Pulmonary fibrosis is a progressive lung disease associated with high morbidity and mortality. Increasing evidence indicates that metabolic reprogramming is a central driver of fibrogenesis. Multiple cell types in the fibrotic lung, including fibroblasts, alveolar epithelial type II (AEC2) cells, and macrophages, exhibit enhanced glycolysis, dysregulated lipid turnover, and altered amino acid utilization. These metabolic changes promote fibroblast activation, sustain ECM production, and impair epithelial repair. Recent studies have identified key regulatory pathways—such as hypoxia-inducible factor-1α(HIF-1α)-mediated glycolysis, aberrant fatty acid and cholesterol metabolism, and glutamine-dependent anabolic processes—that collectively shape the profibrotic microenvironment. Targeting these metabolic vulnerabilities has shown promising antifibrotic effects in preclinical studies, supporting glycolysis inhibitors, lipid-modulating agents, and amino acid metabolism blockers as potential therapeutic approaches. This review summarizes recent advances in glucose, lipid, and amino acid metabolic reprogramming in pulmonary fibrosis, with IPF discussed as a representative and well-studied subtype, and highlights emerging metabolic-targeted therapeutic strategies. Understanding cell-specific metabolic adaptations may provide new opportunities to develop effective interventions for pulmonary fibrosis, whereas most metabolic mechanisms are shared across fibrotic lung diseases.
Diethyl aminoethyl hexanoate (DA-6) is a broad-spectrum high-energy plant growth regulator with multiple functions similar to auxin, gibberellin, and cytokinin. Research on crops such as corn, rice, peanuts, flowers, and vegetables has shown that it can increase the activity of plant peroxidase (POD) and nitrate reductase, promote plant cell division and elongation, and facilitate seed germination and seedling growth. This experiment used the seeds of the chili variety “Changxian Tianxia” as research materials. The experiment was conducted by designing DA-6 soaking experiments with different concentration gradients to determine physiological indicators of pepper growth, screen a suitable DA-6 concentration for pepper seed germination, and study the alleviating effect of DA-6 on pepper seed growth under salt stress. The aim is to provide a scientific basis for high-yield cultivation of chili in saline alkali soil. In the seed germination experiment, five DA-6 concentration treatment groups were set up, namely 0, 0.1 mmol/L, 0.5 mmol/L, 1 mmol/L, and 5 mmol/L. Three biological replicates were set up for each treatment group to screen for the most suitable DA-6 concentration for pepper seed germination. The germination and growth effects of pepper seeds under salt stress were then studied using this concentration. The growth physiological indicators were measured to investigate the alleviating effect of aminobutyric acid on pepper seed germination under salt stress. The experimental results showed that the appropriate concentration of aminobutyric acid ester (DA-6) promoted the germination of pepper seeds under salt stress. Under the treatment of soaking seeds in DA-6 at a concentration of 1 mmol/L, the activities of catalase (CAT) and POD increased by 8.6% and 14.6%, respectively, while inhibiting the accumulation of MDA (reducing it by 11.4%), improving the antioxidant effect of plant cell membranes, and enhancing the salt tolerance of pepper seeds. This experiment shows that soaking pepper seeds in 1 mmol/L DA-6 can effectively improve the antioxidant capacity of pepper seeds under salt stress environment, enhance seed germination rate and growth effect, and alleviate the damage caused by salt stress to pepper seedling growth to a certain extent.
The proliferation of Industry 4.0 technologies in manufacturing has created an unprecedented opportunity to leverage Big Data for process optimization and efficiency improvements. However, the sheer volume of data can also lead to critical information being overlooked, potentially hindering productivity and competitiveness. This paper presents a straightforward Industry 4.0-based data visualization framework designed to transform raw manufacturing data into actionable insights. Specifically, this work focuses on the analysis of Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) data. The framework utilizes a practical dashboard tool to enable manufacturers to perform in-depth data analysis and identify areas for improvement in real-time. Such a framework enables prompt intervention when corrective actions are needed, ultimately increasing efficiency and reducing production downtime. The framework was successfully implemented at a tire manufacturing company on a single machine within a short period of time. The results highlighted the effectiveness of data visualization in identifying specific operational losses and informing strategic decision-making. This work emphasizes the critical role of technology and proper policies in leveraging data to optimize production processes and drive continuous improvement in Industry 4.0 environments.
Carbon emissions of clinical trials have been one of the contributors to global emissions. However, the clinical research industry, particularly contract research organisations (CROs) engaged in trials, has received little attention in the existing literature regarding their carbon footprint. This research examines the sustainable practices implemented by leading global CROs and how these practices influence scope 1 and 2 CO2 emissions. The findings show that increasing the number of sustainability initiatives is insufficient to achieve a measurable reduction in emissions. At the same time, whilst some sustainable practices, such as building upgrades and real estate improvements, lead to a reduction in scope 1 and 2 emissions, others, such as equipment upgrades, are associated with higher emissions. The study, therefore, uncovers a counterintuitive finding—that renewable energy practices showed a positive correlation with emissions. This may be viewed as a paradox, although it serves as a critical warning against measuring sustainability by the quantity of initiatives, rather than their quality or ultimate effect. By assessing the impact of organisational environmental practices on emissions, the study contributes to knowledge by providing a more nuanced understanding of the effectiveness of environmentally sustainable business strategies adopted by CROs.
Modafinil (MF) is a clinically approved wake-promoting agent with emerging anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic effects, although its upstream molecular target has remained undefined. Here, we identify adenosine deaminase (ADA) as a previously unrecognized target mediating the therapeutic actions of MF. Its S- and R-isomers (MF-S and MF-R) robustly increased intracellular cAMP levels in fibroblasts with efficacy comparable to NECA, despite minimal direct binding to adenosine receptors, and suppressed KCa3.1 channel activity via a PKA–dependent mechanism. MF-S markedly upregulated CD39 and CD73, leading to increased adenosine availability. Pharmacological inhibition of CD73 with AB680 abolished MF-S–induced increases in cAMP and Epac levels and reversed suppression of TGFβ–induced collagen expression. Consistently, MF-S attenuated canonical profibrotic signaling by inhibiting TGFβ–induced Smad4 upregulation. In vivo, MF-S significantly reduced hypertrophic scarring in a rabbit ear model, with efficacy comparable to Contratubex. Mechanistically, MF-S directly inhibited purified ADA at subnanomolar concentrations and suppressed cellular ADA activity in fibroblast and immune cells. Collectively, these findings establish ADA inhibition as a key upstream mechanism by which MF enhances adenosine–cAMP signaling to suppress inflammation and fibrosis, highlighting MF and its isomers as promising therapeutic candidates for inflammatory and fibrotic diseases.
