Comparative Study on the Choice of Muslim migrants Residence in Xi’an and Lanzhou Cities, China

Residential choice is one of the basic contents of urban adaptation of the floating population and an important aspect in determining the quality of life in the city. This study is for Muslim migrants with three attributes (minority, floating population and religious belief). The purpose is to reveal the commonalities and differences in the choice of living spaces of Muslim Migrants in multi-ethnic cities Lanzhou and Xi’an, to provide guidance for the targeted management of Muslim migrants and promote their urban integration. Based on available research data from 2017-2019, the study adopts spatial analysis and regression analysis to explore the results of the selection of Muslim migrants living space in two cities and its influencing factors. The main conclusions are as follows: 1) The commonality of Muslim migrants living space in the two cities lies in: the distribution pattern of “Living around the mosque and running business nearby the mosque” still exists. The living space of Muslim migrants consists of points (mosques), lines (streets or traffic lines), and faces (inhabited areas), forming a spatial distribution pattern of the “mosque + community” residential circle. Differences: Muslim migrants in Hui’s street, Xi’an, taking the “Mosque-alley system” as an independent social organization, and their living space presents a " mosque-alley Interlaced" distribution. Muslim migrants living in the urban village community on the periphery of Hui’s street take "mosque" and "farm market" as the dual core, showing the “core (mosque/market) + community” inlaid living space situation. The Muslim migrants in Lanzhou generally live around the mosque or close to the streets and roads that lead to mosque. 2). In terms of commonality, the living choices of Muslim migrants in both cities consider the distance from the place of work, the mosque or the Muslim community to the place of residence. In terms of differences, the residential choice of Muslim migrants in Xi’an is mainly influenced by the composition of the living, the income of wages, and the nature of the occupation. The choice is mainly influenced by the rent level, occupational nature and wage income of the house; and the main influencing factors of the choice of Muslim migrants in Lanzhou are the education level and the rent level of the house. The main influencing factors of residential location selection are education level and mobility purpose. The level of education, traditional living customs, and rent levels have become the core factors determining the urban accommodation adaptation of Muslim migrants

A Study on Urban Renewal Strategies of Shuozhou City, Shanxi Province, China Based on Stakeholder Theory and Social Network Analysis

China has undergone an unprecedented period of rapid urbanization in recent decades, resulting in a host of urban challenges. In response to these issues, urban renewal has emerged as a proactive policy approach to address urban problems. Urban regeneration is a multifaceted and multi-level endeavor that involves numerous stakeholders. Investigating the formulation of urban regeneration strategies in light of these stakeholders is pivotal for resolving societal issues and enhancing the comprehensiveness and feasibility of urban regeneration strategies.This paper employs Shuozhou City as a case study, using a combination of stakeholder theory and social network analysis to identify stakeholders in the context of urban renewal. It conducts a comprehensive stakeholder analysis, explores the social network structure among these stakeholders, and constructs an “impact-interest” matrix to capture their roles and interests. Based on this matrix, it proceeds to propose a range of dimension-specific urban renewal strategies for Shuozhou City.In conclusion, leveraging this matrix, the paper outlines specific strategies tailored to the urban renewal context in Shuozhou, exemplifying the potential for a more effective approach to addressing urban challenges

Downregulation of ITGβ3 in colon adenocarcinoma reveals poor prognosis by affecting genome stability, cell cycle, and the tumor immune microenvironment

IntroductionAbnormal expression of integrin subunit beta 3 (ITGβ3), a gene-encoding protein, is related to the occurrence and development of cancers; however, the biological role of ITGβ3 in colon adenocarcinoma (COAD) remains unclear.MethodsWe used the Cancer Genome Atlas database to obtain the clinical data of patients with COAD, analyzed the mRNA gene clusters related to ITGβ3, and analyzed the interaction signal pathway and interaction protein network of the differentially expressed gene clusters. The results showed that ITGβ3 expression in COAD tumor tissues was significantly downregulated compared with that in paracancerous tissues. Low ITGβ3 expression in tumor tissues is associated with poor overall survival of patients with COAD. In multivariate analysis, stage IV and ITGβ3 low expression were independent prognostic factors. Gene Ontology analysis showed that differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were significantly enriched in leukocyte migration, cell adhesion, and extracellular matrix (ECM) organization. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analysis revealed that the DEGs were mainly enriched in ECM-receptor interactions, focal adhesion, and the PI3K-Akt signaling pathway. Protein-protein interaction network analysis revealed the hub and seed genes of the key modules related to ITGβ3. Finally, we analyzed the correlation between TGβ3 and immune-related genes and found that ITGβ3 expression was significantly correlated with tumor purity and infiltration level of dominant immune cells.DiscussionThese findings indicate that ITGβ3 downregulation in COAD may profoundly affect genome stability and multiple steps of the cell cycle, alter the tumor immune microenvironment, and be related to the prognosis of patients with COAD

Influenza vaccination rates among healthcare workers: a systematic review and meta-analysis investigating influencing factors

IntroductionHealthcare workers risk of exposure to the influenza virus in their work, is a high-risk group for flu infections. Thus WHO recommends prioritizing flu vaccination for them–an approach adopted by >40 countries and/or regions worldwide.MethodsCross-sectional studies on influenza vaccination rates among healthcare workers were collected from PubMed, EMBASE, CNKI, and CBM databases from inception to February 26, 2023. Influenza vaccination rates and relevant data for multiple logistic regression analysis, such as odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI), were extracted.ResultsA total of 92 studies comprising 125 vaccination data points from 26 countries were included in the analysis. The meta-analysis revealed that the overall vaccination rate among healthcare workers was 41.7%. Further analysis indicated that the vaccination rate was 46.9% or 35.6% in low income or high income countries. Vaccination rates in the Americas, the Middle East, Oceania, Europe, Asia, and Africa were 67.1, 51.3, 48.7, 42.5, 28.5, and 6.5%, respectively. Influencing factors were age, length of service, education, department, occupation, awareness of the risk of influenza, and/or vaccines.ConclusionThe global influenza vaccination rate among healthcare workers is low, and comprehensive measures are needed to promote influenza vaccination among this population.Systematic review registrationwww.inplysy.com, identifier: 202350051

Blow to the northeast? Intraspecific differentiation of populus davidiana suggests a northeastward skew of a phylogeographic break boundary in East Asia

Aim There is increasing interest in the role that biological traits, and historical and biogeographic processes, play in the formation of phylogeographic patterns. An arid belt that once existed in northern China might have affected many plants, but this has yet to be tested in an arid-tolerant, wind-dispersed species. Here, we tested how intrinsic and extrinsic factors have affected the phylogeography of Populus davidiana. Location East Asia. Methods Genetic variation was surveyed across 40 populations (555 individuals) covering the Chinese range of P. davidiana, using 16 nuclear microsatellite loci (nSSRs) and four chloroplast fragments (cpDNA). Demographic and migration hypotheses were tested using coalescent-based approaches, and the present and past potential distributions were predicted using species distribution modelling. Results Molecular data divide P. davidiana into two lineages, north-eastern China (NECR) and central and northern China (CNCR); however, the dividing line is around 118ºE for nSSRs, but 122ºE for cpDNA. The range and habitat of the two lineages barely overlap at present, and their ecological separation may have initiated around the Pliocene-Quaternary boundary, when major intraspecific cpDNA clades diverged. NECR and CNCR experienced post-glacial north-eastward and northward range shifts respectively. Bi-directional historical gene flow was detected between NECR and CNCR for both bi-parentally inherited nSSRs and maternally inherited cpDNA. Demographic inferences suggest a severe bottleneck for CNCR and especially NECR, around the latest Pleistocene. Main conclusions The phylogeographic break within P. davidiana reflects the impacts of biogeographic history, climate and biological traits. Its plumed, wind-dispersed seeds might be especially significant because prevailing south-western spring winds may have moved the NECR-CNCR boundary further east than similar phylogenetic breaks in other species, and also moved the cpDNA boundary relative to that for nuclear markers. Biological traits, therefore, should also be considered when examining the genetic and ecological differentiation between closely related taxa

Autologous CIK cells combined with chemotherapy as the first-line treatment for locally advanced or metastatic gastric cancer is safe and feasible

AimTo evaluate the safety and initial efficacy of autologous cytokine-induced killer (CIK) cells combined with S-1+oxaliplatin (SOX) as the first-line treatment for locally advanced or metastatic gastric cancer (GC).Materials and methodsIn this two-arm, single-center exploratory trial, patients with locally advanced or metastatic GC were randomly assigned (1:1) to receive autologous CIK cells in combination with SOX (CIK-SOX) or SOX alone. The primary endpoint was the incidence of adverse events (AEs). Progression-free survival (PFS), overall survival (OS), objective response rate (ORR), and disease control rate (DCR) served as the secondary endpoints.ResultsFifty-nine patients were enrolled in the study between November 20, 2014 and September 6, 2017. A total of 31 patients received CIK-SOX and 28 patients received SOX. The most common AEs in both groups were gastrointestinal reaction, leucopenia, neutropenia, anemia, thrombocytopenia, hyperbilirubinemia, and elevated aspartate transaminase concentration, with a higher incidence of these conditions in the SOX group. The median PFS for the CIK-SOX and SOX groups was 6.9 and 4.9 months, respectively (hazard ratio (HR) 0.80, p=0.45). The respective median OS values were 17.8 and 9.75 months (HR 0.76, p=0.34). Patients who received more than three injections of specific lymphocyte subsets benefited the most from this combination therapy. Cox univariate and multivariate analyses showed that tumor metastasis to more than two organs was the main risk factor for PFS and OS. A total of 29 patients in the CIK-SOX group and 25 in the SOX group had measurable lesions. The ORR for the CIK-SOX and SOX groups was 55.2% and 32.0%, while the DCR was 93.1% and 88.0%, respectively.ConclusionThe safety of CIK-SOX as the first-line treatment for patients with locally advanced or metastatic GC was good. Although the PFS and OS in the CIK-SOX group were not statistically significantly different compared to the values in the SOX alone group, this treatment increased the PFS and OS duration, with the absolute improvement in OS of about 8.05 months. Continuous benefit from the CIK-SOX treatment was observed during long-term follow-up.Clinical trial registrationhttps://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT02504229?term=NCT02504229&rank=1, identifier ChiCTR-IPR-15005923; NCT02504229

Super-diffusion affected by hydrofacies mean length and source geometry in alluvial settings

Dissolved-phase contaminants experiencing enhanced diffusion (i.e., “super-diffusion”) with a pronounced leading plume edge can pose risk for groundwater quality. The drivers for complex super-diffusion in geological media, however, are not fully understood. This study investigates the impacts of hydrofacies’ mean lengths and the initial source geometry, motivated by a hydrofacies model built recently for the well-known MADE aquifer, on the spatial pattern of super-diffusion for two-dimensional alluvial aquifer systems. Monte Carlo simulations show that the bimodal velocity distribution, whose pattern is affected by the hydrofacies’ mean lengths, leads to super-diffusion of solutes with a bi-peak plume snapshot in alluvial settings where advection dominates transport. A larger longitudinal mean length (i.e., width) for hydrofacies with high hydraulic conductivity (K) enhances the connectivity of preferential pathways, resulting in higher values in the bimodal velocity distribution and an enhanced leading front for the bi-peak plume snapshot, while the opposite impact is identified for the hydrofacies’ vertical mean length (i.e., thickness) on the bi-peak super-diffusion. A multi-domain non-local transport model is then proposed, extending upon the concept of the distributed-order fractional derivative, to quantify the evolution of bi-peak super-diffusion due to differential advection and mobile-mobile mass exchange for solute particles moving in hydrofacies with distinct K. Results show that the bi-peak super-diffusion identified for the MADE site and perhaps the other similar aquifers, which is affected by the initial source geometry at an early stage and the thickness and width of high-K hydrofacies during all stages, can be quantified by the mobile-mobile fractional-derivative model. Porous medium dimensionality and stochastic model comparison are also discussed to further explore the nature of bi-peak super-diffusion in alluvial systems

Effects of different altitudes on the structure and properties of potato starch

The main element influencing the quality of potato starch is the environment. To investigate the effects of different altitude cultivation locations on the molecular structure and physicochemical properties of starch, two potato varieties, Jiusen No.1 B1 and Qingshu No.9 B2, were planted in three different altitude zones: A1 at low altitude (Chongzhou 450 m), A2 at middle altitude (Xichang 2800 m), and A3 at high altitude (Litang 3650 m). The results showed that the average volume, number, surface area diameter, average branched polymerization degree, crystallinity, and gelatinization temperature of two potato granules in high altitude areas were significantly lower than those in middle and low altitude areas were, and the gelatinization performance of potato starch was affected according to the correlation of starch structure characteristics. Potato starch with more short-branched chains and less long branched chains resulted in a lower gelatinization temperature in high altitude areas. The results showed that Jiusen No. 1 and Qingshu No. 9 were mainly affected by accumulated radiation and accumulated rainfall in Litang, a high altitude area, and by effective accumulated temperature in Xichang, a middle altitude area. This study quantified the influence of meteorological factors on the main starch quality of potato tubers. The results can be used as a theoretical basis for the scientific planting of high-quality potatoes