Research on the Impact of Vocational Education on Total Factor Productivity and Mediating Effects

As an important type of education for cultivating high-quality technical and skilled talents, vocational education provides significant human capital support for the high-quality development of the economy. Based on panel data from 30 provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities) in China from 2005 to 2020, this study employs the Malmquist productivity index to measure Total Factor Productivity (TFP). Using a two-way fixed effects and mediation effects model, the study empirically analyzes the impact and mechanisms of vocational education on TFP. The results show that the expansion of higher vocational education has a more significant effect on TFP growth compared to secondary vocational education, with a particularly pronounced influence in the eastern and western regions. The analysis of the mediating mechanisms reveals that human capital and technological innovation are important pathways through which vocational education promotes TFP growth. Therefore, to achieve high-quality development of vocational education and enhance TFP growth, it is recommended to moderately expand the scale, improve the vocational education training system, increase support for vocational education to narrow regional disparities, promote the integration of vocational education with industry to enhance the conversion rate of technological innovation, shift the focus from scale expansion to internal improvement, and promote regional coordinated development

Induction of CCL8/MCP-2 by mycobacteria through the activation of TLR2/PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.

Pleural tuberculosis (TB), together with lymphatic TB, constitutes more than half of all extrapulmonary cases. Pleural effusions (PEs) in TB are representative of lymphocytic PEs which are dominated by T cells. However, the mechanism underlying T lymphocytes homing and accumulation in PEs is still incompletely understood. Here we performed a comparative analysis of cytokine abundance in PEs from TB patients and non-TB patients by protein array analysis and observed that MCP-2/CCL8 is highly expressed in the TB-PEs as compared to peripheral blood. Meanwhile, we observed that CCR5, the primary receptor used by MCP-2/CCL8, is mostly expressed on pleural CD4(+) T lymphocytes. Furthermore, we found that infection with either Mycobacterium bovis Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) or Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv induced production of MCP-2/CCL8 at both transcriptional and protein level in Raw264.7 and THP-1 macrophage cells, mouse peritoneal macrophages as well as human PBMC monocyte-derived macrophages (MDMs). The induction of MCP-2/CCL8 by mycobacteria is dependent on the activation of TLR2/PI3K/Akt and p38 signaling pathway. We conclude that accumulation of MCP-2/CCL8 in TB-PEs may function as a biomarker for TB diagnosis

A complete mitochondrial genome sequence of the wild two-humped camel (Camelus bactrianus ferus): an evolutionary history of camelidae

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The family Camelidae that evolved in North America during the Eocene survived with two distinct tribes, Camelini and Lamini. To investigate the evolutionary relationship between them and to further understand the evolutionary history of this family, we determined the complete mitochondrial genome sequence of the wild two-humped camel (<it>Camelus bactrianus ferus</it>), the only wild survivor of the Old World camel.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The mitochondrial genome sequence (16,680 bp) from <it>C. bactrianus ferus </it>contains 13 protein-coding, two rRNA, and 22 tRNA genes as well as a typical control region; this basic structure is shared by all metazoan mitochondrial genomes. Its protein-coding region exhibits codon usage common to all mammals and possesses the three cryptic stop codons shared by all vertebrates. <it>C. bactrianus ferus </it>together with the rest of mammalian species do not share a triplet nucleotide insertion (GCC) that encodes a proline residue found only in the <it>nd1 </it>gene of the New World camelid <it>Lama pacos</it>. This lineage-specific insertion in the <it>L. pacos </it>mtDNA occurred after the split between the Old and New World camelids suggests that it may have functional implication since a proline insertion in a protein backbone usually alters protein conformation significantly, and <it>nd1 </it>gene has not been seen as polymorphic as the rest of ND family genes among camelids. Our phylogenetic study based on complete mitochondrial genomes excluding the control region suggested that the divergence of the two tribes may occur in the early Miocene; it is much earlier than what was deduced from the fossil record (11 million years). An evolutionary history reconstructed for the family Camelidae based on <it>cytb </it>sequences suggested that the split of bactrian camel and dromedary may have occurred in North America before the tribe Camelini migrated from North America to Asia.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Molecular clock analysis of complete mitochondrial genomes from <it>C. bactrianus ferus </it>and <it>L. pacos </it>suggested that the two tribes diverged from their common ancestor about 25 million years ago, much earlier than what was predicted based on fossil records.</p

Changes in risk factors for food sensitization in early life: Analysis over a period of 10 years

BackgroundAlthough epidemiological trends of childhood food sensitization (FS) in IgE-mediated food allergy were reported in China, few studies have examined at changes in its risk factors.ObjectiveTo investigate the change in early-life risk factors associated with childhood food sensitization during 2009–2019 in China.MethodsData from two cross-sectional surveys conducted in 2009 and 2019 (401 and 513 children, respectively) were analyzed. The results of skin prick tests and information on food sensitization-related risk factors in children were summarized, including family history of atopic disease (FHA), demographic characteristics, method of delivery, feeding patterns, sibship size, pet ownership, and vitamin D supplementation. Binary logistic regression was used to calculate the odds ratio and the regression coefficient β-value of risk factors in the 2009 and 2019 surveys separately. Then, coefficient β-value differences between the two surveys were analyzed by the bdiff command in STATA to describe the change in risk factors over 10 years.ResultsThe 2009 survey revealed that FHA, age, only child, and feeding patterns were associated with food sensitization. The 2019 survey showed that food sensitization was affected by age, sex, and feeding patterns. However, from 2009 to 2019, the probability of food sensitization in the only-child group significantly increased by 226.0% (β-value difference = 0.81, P = 0.024) and decreased by 65.0% in female children (β-value difference = −1.06, P = 0.008). The effect of age on food sensitization decreased by 50.0% (β-value difference = −0.69, P &lt; 0.001) over 10 years.ConclusionThe effect of FHA and common lifestyle factors on food sensitization did not significantly change during 2009−2019. However, the influence of demographic characteristics on food sensitization has changed since 2009; that is, older age, male gender, and only child are more likely to develop food sensitization, which needs to be considered in future epidemiological surveys.Clinical Trial Registrationhttp://www.chictr.org.cn/, identifier ChiCTR1900024338

Analysis of fine grained sand and shale sedimentary characteristics in estuary based on sediment dynamics

Due to the dual effects of fluvial and tides, the tidal sand bars in estuaries have complex sedimentary characteristics and complex internal structures, making them difficult to predict and describe. In this paper, the sedimentary dynamics numerical simulation method is used to establish a tidal-controlled estuary model. The effects of tidal range and sediment grain size on tidal sand bars are simulated. The length, width, and thickness of tidal sand bars, as well as the length and thickness of the internal shale layer, are also analyzed. The results show that in the environment of a tide-controlled estuary, the tidal range has a more significant effect on tidal sand bars compared to the sediment grain size under the specific conditions used in this study. The main effect of tidal range on tidal sand bars is that the greater the tidal range, the greater the length-to-width ratio of the sandbank, and the higher the degree of sandbank development. In a tidal-controlled estuary environment, the formation and distribution of shale layer structures are also affected by tides: the length of the shale layer increases as the tidal energy increases, but the changes in the thickness are not obvious. Numerical simulations of the development and distribution of the tidal sand bars and shale layers in estuaries based on sedimentary dynamics will provide a basis for the sedimentary evolution of tide-controlled estuaries and will provide guidance for the exploration and development of tidal estuaries