Regional Inequality in China Based on NPP-VIIRS Night-Time Light Imagery

Regional economic inequality is a persistent problem for all nations. Meanwhile, satellite-derived night-time light (NTL) data have been extensively used as an efficient proxy measure for economic activity. This study firstly proposes a new method for correction of the NTL data derived from the Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) aboard the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (Suomi-NPP) satellite and then applies the corrected NTL data to estimate gross domestic product (GDP) at a multi-scale level in China from 2014 to 2017. Secondly, incorporating the two-stage nested Theil decomposition method, multi-scale level regional inequalities are investigated. Finally, by using scatter plots, this paper identifies the relationship between the regional inequality and the level of economic development. The results indicate that: (1) after correction, the NPP-VIIRS NTL data show a statistically positive correlation with GDP, which proves that our correction method is scientifically effective; (2) from 2014 to 2017, overall inequality, within-province inequality, and between-region inequality all declined, However, between-province inequality increased slightly. As for the contributions to overall regional inequality, the within-province inequality was the highest, while the between-province inequality was the lowest; (3) further analysis of within-province inequality reveals that economic inequalities in coastal provinces in China are smaller than in inland provinces; (4) China’s economic development plays an important role in affecting regional inequality, and the extent of influence of economic development on regional inequality is varied across provinces

Study on the Vertical Linkage of Greenhouse Gas Emission Intensity Change of the Animal Husbandry Sector between China and Its Provinces

China’s carbon intensity (CI) reduction target in 2030 needs to be allocated to each province in order to be achieved. Thus, it is of great significance to study the vertical linkage of CI change between China and its provinces. The existing research on the vertical linkage focuses more on energy-related economic sectors in China; however, attention has not been paid to China’s animal husbandry (AH) sector, although the role of the China’s AH sector in greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction is increasingly important. This study firstly established a vertical linkage of change in greenhouse gas emission intensity of the animal husbandry sector (AHGI) between China and its 31 provinces based on the logarithmic mean Divisia index (LMDI) decomposing method from the perspective of combining emission reduction with economic development, and quantified the contributions of each province and its three driving factors of environmental efficiency (AHEE), productive efficiency (AHPE), and economic share (AHES) to reducing China’s AHGI during the period of 1997–2016. The main results are: (1) The AHGI of China decreased from 5.49 tCO2eq/104 yuan in 1997 to 2.59 tCO2eq/104 in 2016, showing a 75.25% reduction. The AHGI in 31 provinces also declined and played a positive role in promoting the reduction of national AHGI, but there were significant inter-provincial differences in the extent of the contribution. Overall, the provinces with higher emission levels contributed the most to the reduction of China’s AHGI; (2) The AHPE and AHEE factors in 31 provinces cumulatively contributed to the respective 68.17% and 11.78% reduction of China’s AHGI, while the AHES factors of 31 provinces cumulatively inhibited the 4.70% reduction. Overall, the AHPE factor was the main driving factor contributing to the reduction of China’s AHGI. In the future, improving the level of AHEE through GHG emissions reduction technology and narrowing the inter-provincial gap of the level of AHPE are two important paths for promoting the reduction of China’s AHGI

Baculovirus Display of Varicella–Zoster Virus Glycoprotein E Induces Robust Humoral and Cellular Immune Responses in Mice

Varicella–zoster virus (VZV) is the causative agent of varicella and herpes zoster (HZ) and can pose a significant challenge to human health globally. The initial VZV infection—more common in children—causes a self-limiting chicken pox. However, in later life, the latent VZV can become reactivated in these patients, causing HZ and postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), a serious and painful complication. VZV glycoprotein E (gE) has been developed into a licensed subunit vaccine against HZ (Shingrix). However, its efficacy relies on the concomitant delivery of a robust adjuvant (AS01B). Here, we sought to create a new immunogen for vaccine design by displaying the VZV–gE on the baculovirus surface (Bac–gE). Correct localization and display of gE on the engineered baculovirus was verified by flow cytometry and immune electron microscopy. We show that Bac–gE provides excellent antigenicity against VZV and induces not only stronger gE-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses but also higher levels of VZV–specific neutralizing antibodies as compared with other vaccine strategies in mice. Collectively, we show that the baculovirus display of VZV–gE confers ideal humoral and cellular immune responses required for HZ vaccine development, paving the way for a baculovirus-based vaccine design