Most plants form symbioses with mycorrhizal fungi since their emergence on land hundreds of millions of years ago. Depending on the availability of carbon (C), these symbioses employ two nutrient acquisition strategies: (i) via mycorrhizal fungi and (ii) via roots. While nutrient acquisition through symbiotic ectomycorrhizal fungi is C costly, it is fundamental for plant growth, community and ecosystem functioning.

A research paper by scientists at Beijing Institute of Technology presented a magnetic shaftless propeller-like millirobot (MSPM) that possesses the capabilities of rotating-based multimodal 3-dimensional motion and cargo transportation with untethered manipulation.

A research paper by scientists at Hefei University of Technology presented an intuition-guided deep reinforcement learning framework for soft tissue manipulation under unknown constraints.

Purpose

The impact of banking deregulation on firms and economic growth is heavily researched, but not the effects on banks’ risk-taking. This study aims to investigate the impact of China’s 2009 banking deregulation on bank risk-taking, particularly from a balance sheet capacity perspective.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a difference-in-differences approach, this study examines how deregulation affects bank risk-taking. A three-stage regression strategy is employed to conduct mechanism analysis.

Findings

The results reveal that deregulated banks exhibit higher levels of risk-taking. Mechanism analysis confirms the bank balance sheet capacity channel: deregulation helps strengthen the net interest margin of deregulated banks, which enhances their balance sheet capacity and subsequently increases their risk appetite. In addition, deregulation improves firms’ access to long-term credit in regions with limited credit availability, especially for smaller firms, thereby expanding the financial sector’s service outreach.

Practical implications

While banking deregulation enhances credit availability for firms and supports the real economy, it also raises banks’ risk-taking, posing challenges to financial stability. Our study highlights the trade-off between supporting the real economy and maintaining financial stability under banking deregulation.

Originality/value

This study fills a gap in research on the effects of banking deregulation on bank risk-taking, highlighting the critical role of balance sheet capacity in this process.

ATP6V0d2 is a subunit of the vacuolar-type H⁺-ATPase (V-ATPase) that pumps H⁺ ions into lysosomes. TRPML1 (MCOLN1/Mcoln1) transports cations out of lysosomes. Mcoln1^−/− mice recapitulate the lysosomal storage disorder mucolipidosis type IV (MLIV) phenotype. We previously demonstrated that Mcoln1^−/− female mice quickly became infertile at 5 months old (5M) with degenerating corpora lutea (CL) and progesterone (P4) deficiency. We tested our hypothesis that Atp6v0d2 deficiency could partially compensate for Mcoln1 deficiency to restore CL functions in Atp6v0d2−/−Mcoln1−/− mice.

In a Perspective article published in MedComm – Future Medicine, a joint team from The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou) explores how the emerging large language model DeepSeek-R1 may accelerate the transformation of healthcare. Highlighting its open-source, low-cost and interpretable capabilities, the study discusses how DeepSeek-R1 can enhance diagnostic efficiency, support clinical decision-making, and improve patient engagement across diverse medical settings.

A universal method of micro-patterning solution-processed materials is highly desired by industry to enable the integration of these materials with optoelectronic devices. A team at the University of Washington demonstrated a dry photolithographic lift-off method for high-resolution patterning (~1 µm diameter) of quantum dots (QDs). They also achieved full-scale processing on a 100 mm wafer and multi-color integration of two different varieties of QDs. This method paves a way towards realization of high-resolution micro-LED displays.