Restructuring industrial districts, scaling up regional development: a study of the Wenzhou Model, China

Working PaperThe Wenzhou Municipality in Zhejiang Province is spearheading China's marketization and development of private enterprises. Its successful development trajectory, centered on family-owned small businesses embedded in thick local institutions, resembles Marshallian industrial districts (MIDs). However, with China's changing institutional environment and intensifying competition, Wenzhou has been facing challenges. Since the late 1980s, Wenzhou has gone through two major rounds of restructuring (from family enterprises to shareholding cooperatives to shareholding enterprises), that have included four major types of strategic response: institutional change, technological upgrading, industrial diversification, and spatial restructuring. Firms in Wenzhou have gone through localization and delocalization, and locational choices reflect the dual destinations of globalizing cities and interior cities. The formation of new firms and clusters has been accompanied by mergers, acquisitions, and the emergence of multiregional enterprises (MREs), some of which have relocated their headquarters and specialized functions to metropolitan areas, especially Shanghai and Hangzhou. More recently, Wenzhou's growth has slowed, leading some to question the sustainability of the Wenzhou model. We argue that Wenzhou's development is in danger of regional lock-ins--relational, intergenerational, and structural. Wenzhou's experience challenges the orthodox concept of MIDs and calls for "scaling up" regional development

Institutions, location, and network of multinational enterprises in China: a case study of Hangzhou

Working PaperBased on extensive interviews with local government officials and a survey of forty-four foreign-invested enterprises, this paper examines the role of local formal institutions and their constituent components in intra-urban location decisions of multinational enterprises (MNEs) and in network properties of their investments in Hangzhou municipality, Zhejiang province, China. This paper finds that, unlike previous studies based on developed economies, local formal institutions in terms of sub-municipal governments are an important factor influencing the intra-urban distribution of MNE investments in Hangzhou. The local formal institutional components that are of primary importance include financial incentives, industrial infrastructures, and government attitudes toward foreign investments. They are of greater significance than their municipal-level counterparts given the immediate administrative relationships between the sub-municipal authorities and the foreign investors. The start-up fiscal capability of sub-municipal governments can therefore partly determine the intra-urban pattern of foreign supplier investments

Analyzing Water Diffusion Properties in Dough Film Based on the Free Volume Theory

The water adsorption process by dough films at 20 and 40 ℃ was measured using a dynamic vapor sorption system under nine relative humidity (RH) levels. Water diffusivity was expressed as a function of water content and temperature according to the Vrentas & Duda free volume theory. The parameters of the free volume model were obtained by inversion of water content as a function of time. The results showed that the water diffusion coefficient determined based on the free volume theory could well simulate the water adsorption process by dough films at most water contents tested, but the predicted values were significantly lower than the actual ones at low water contents. Therefore, the Vrentas & Duda was improved by adding a free volume term as a function of water content. As the water content increased, the water diffusion coefficient slightly decreased initially, then increased, and finally increased rapidly. Finally, the mechanism of water diffusion at low water contents was discussed from the perspectives of β-transition and free volume changes

Gou Qi Zi inhibits proliferation and induces apoptosis through the PI3K/AKT1 signaling pathway in non-small cell lung cancer

BackgroundGou Qi Zi (Lycium barbarum) is a traditional herbal medicine with antioxidative effects. Although Gou Qi Zi has been used to prevent premature aging and in the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), its mechanism of action in NSCLC remains unclear. The present study utilized network pharmacology to assess the potential mechanism of action of Gou Qi Zi in the treatment of NSCLC.MethodsThe TCMSP, TCMID, SwissTargetPrediction, DrugBank, DisGeNET, GeneCards, OMIM and TTD databases were searched for the active components of Gou Qi Zi and their potential therapeutic targets in NSCLC. Protein-protein interaction networks were identified and the interactions of target proteins were analyzed. Involved pathways were determined by GO enrichment and KEGG pathway analyses using the Metascape database, and molecular docking technology was used to study the interactions between active compounds and potential targets. These results were verified by cell counting kit-8 assays, BrdU labeling, flow cytometry, immunohistochemistry, western blotting, and qRT-PCR.ResultsDatabase searches identified 33 active components in Gou Qi Zi, 199 predicted biological targets and 113 NSCLC-related targets. A network of targets of traditional Chinese medicine compounds and potential targets of Gou Qi Zi in NSCLC was constructed. GO enrichment analysis showed that Gou Qi Zi targeting of NSCLC was mainly due to the effect of its associated lipopolysaccharide. KEGG pathway analysis showed that Gou Qi Zi acted mainly through the PI3K/AKT1 signaling pathway in the treatment of NSCLC. Molecular docking experiments showed that the bioactive compounds of Gou Qi Zi could bind to AKT1, C-MYC and TP53. These results were verified by experimental assays.ConclusionGou Qi Zi induces apoptosis and inhibits proliferation of NSCLC in vitro and in vivo by inhibiting the PI3K/AKT1 signaling pathway

The complete mitochondrial genome of large odorous frog, Odorrana graminea (Amphibia: Ranidae) and phylogenetic analysis

The mitochondrial genome of Odorrana graminea was sequenced and analyzed. The complete mitochondrial genome is 18,106 bp in length, including 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs), 2 ribosomal RNA genes, 21 transfer RNA genes, and a control region (D-loop). All PCGs are initiated by ATN codons, except for GTG for COI and ND5. Five PCGs use a common stop codon of TAA or TAG, whereas COI terminats with AGG as stop codon; ND6 with AGA; the other six ends with an incomplete stop codon (a single stop nucleotide T). The analysis results based on Bayesian inference method provide a useful resource for the phylogenetic studies of superfamily Ranoidea

The effects of forest type on soil microbial activity in Changbai Mountain, Northeast China

International audienceAbstractKey messageForty years after clear-cutting mixed old-growth forest (broadleaf/Korean pine) in the Changbai Mountain area (Northeast China), a mixed forest with natural broadleaf regeneration and larch plantation displayed larger microbial biomass and activity in the soil than either a naturally regenerated birch forest or a monospecific spruce plantation.ContextClear-cutting with limited restoration effort was until the end of the twentieth century the norm for managing primary forests in Northeast China. Forest restoration plays an important role in the recovery of soil quality after clear-cutting, but the effects of different regeneration procedures on forest soil quality remain poorly known in Northeast China.AimsWe assessed the effects of three regeneration procedures, i.e., (i) naturally regenerated birch forest, (ii) spruce plantation, and (iii) naturally regenerated broadleaf species interspersed with planted larch on soil quality and microbial activity in the Changbai Mountain area. An old-growth mixed broadleaf/Korean pine forest was used as a reference.MethodsPhysical and chemical properties and microbial biomass were recorded in the soil. Basal respiration and carbon mineralization were measured with a closed-jar alkali-absorption method.ResultsMicrobial biomass was smaller in the birch forest and spruce plantation than in the old-growth and the mixed broadleaf/larch forests. Moreover, microbial biomass, microbial quotient, and potentially mineralizable carbon were larger in the mixed broadleaf/larch than in the birch forest, while no difference was found between spruce plantation and birch forest for microbial biomass and microbial quotient. Basal respiration and metabolic quotient were larger in the birch forest as compared to the three other forest types, indicating a larger energy need for maintenance of the microbial community and lower microbial activity in the naturally regenerated birch forest.ConclusionMixed broadleaf/larch forest displayed a larger microbial biomass and higher substrate use efficiency of the soil microbial community than either naturally regenerated birch forest or spruce plantation. The combined natural and artificial regeneration procedure (mixed broadleaf-larch forest) seems better suited to restore soil quality after clear-cutting in the Changbai Mountain

The skin prick test response after allergen immunotherapy in different levels of tIgE children with mite sensitive Asthma/Rhinitis in South China

Background: At present, the biomarkers which can predict the clinical efficacy of allergen immunotherapy (AIT) are still much debated. IgE levels are often related to allergic severity. Therefore, this study aimed at relating total IgE (tIgE) levels with the efficacy of AIT assessed by symptoms and drug score and skin prick test (SPT) response. Methods: We evaluated 81 allergic children who had received house-dust mite (HDM) subcutaneous immunotherapy for three years. According to the tIgE levels before treatment, all children were divided into high value, medium value and low value group. Each group according to sIgE/tIgE ratio was divided into subgroups. The efficacy of AIT is assessed by symptoms and drug score. By comparing changes in the grade of SPT in each group, the response of AIT are evaluated. Results: The SPT grade changes to determine efficacy had a high degree of consistency with symptoms and drug score judgment (sensitivity 89.7%, specificity 78.3%, Kappa = 0.670, P < 0.001). Compared to ineffective cases, the effective cases had lower tIgE (P < 0.001) and higher ratio of sIgE/tIgE (P < 0.001). The grades of SPT declined the most in the low value group (low value group vs. medium value group, P < 0.05; low value group vs. high value group, P < 0.001; medium value group vs. high value group, P < 0.05). Conclusions: The SPT grade change can be used for efficacy evaluation. Children with lower level of tIgE and higher ratio of sIgE/tIgE that obtain a more satisfactory effect

Variation in Carbon Storage and Its Distribution by Stand Age and Forest Type in Boreal and Temperate Forests in Northeastern China

The northeastern forest region of China is an important component of total temperate and boreal forests in the northern hemisphere. But how carbon (C) pool size and distribution varies among tree, understory, forest floor and soil components, and across stand ages remains unclear. To address this knowledge gap, we selected three major temperate and two major boreal forest types in northeastern (NE) China. Within both forest zones, we focused on four stand age classes (young, mid-aged, mature and over-mature). Results showed that total C storage was greater in temperate than in boreal forests, and greater in older than in younger stands. Tree biomass C was the main C component, and its contribution to the total forest C storage increased with increasing stand age. It ranged from 27.7% in young to 62.8% in over-mature stands in boreal forests and from 26.5% in young to 72.8% in over-mature stands in temperate forests. Results from both forest zones thus confirm the large biomass C storage capacity of old-growth forests. Tree biomass C was influenced by forest zone, stand age, and forest type. Soil C contribution to total forest C storage ranged from 62.5% in young to 30.1% in over-mature stands in boreal and from 70.1% in young to 26.0% in over-mature in temperate forests. Thus soil C storage is a major C pool in forests of NE China. On the other hand, understory and forest floor C jointly contained less than 13% and <5%, in boreal and temperate forests respectively, and thus play a minor role in total forest C storage in NE China.ISSN:1932-620