Impact of Trade Facilitation on Export Competitiveness: a Regional Perspective

The present study, based on the experiences of China Customs, aims to identify good practices in enhancing export competitiveness through customs modernization. The paper examines the link between customs operations and export competitiveness, reviews overall principles and patterns for customs modernization, and proposes relevant models. It then examines the modernization of China Customs, including its objective, strategy, major initiatives and measures, as well as the overall impact of a modernized customs on export expansion.Customs, Export, Competitiveness, China

Transcription factor binding motif analyses in two biological systems

The mechanism of gene regulation is a crucial problem in current computational biology. Chromatin-immunoprecipitation microarray (ChIP-chip) is a technique used to study transcriptional regulation by identifying the binding regions of specific transcription factors. In this thesis, we focus on the binding of transcription factors to upstream region motifs to understand the mechanism of gene regulation. Sonic hedgehog (Shh) signals direct digit number and identity in the vertebrate limb via Gli transcription factors. We sought to identify key Gli binding motifs in Gli binding regions through whole-genome ChIP-chip in the developing mouse limb. Through de novo motif discovery method, we found that there were specific DNA motifs enriched in different expression domains of the developing limb. A novel motif in Gli binding regions is highly likely to be a functional element. In addition, we noted that there was no statistically significant difference of quality of Gli motifs in Gli binding regions associated with genes expressed in different domains. The quality of Gli motif might not be a factor that influences the expression of genes in different domains. Myc transcription factor, produced by the MYC oncogene, has the ability to activate and repress gene transcription. Elevated expression of Myc transcription factor is frequently found in cancers. We conducted antibody-specific motif analysis with application to human MYC transcription factor by using high-throughput genomic approaches. Chromatin immunoprecipitation was performed using two different anti-Myc antibodies in human P493-6 B cells, Santa Cruz (SC) antibody and Epitomics (Epit) antibody. Intersection of the two peak lists from SC antibody and Epit antibody identified 885 common Myc binding regions in both data sets. With the average probe intensities of the ChIP samples, we found no statistically significant difference between the binding intensity of probe with ChIP sequences immunoprecipitated by SC antibody and Epit antibody. There was linear increasing relationship between Epit antibody and SC antibody. Furthermore, we identified that Sfpi1 motif might be specifically bound to Myc-SC antibody and involved in differentiation or activation of B-cells

Extremely cold and hot temperatures increase the risk of ischaemic heart disease mortality: epidemiological evidence from China.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the effects of extremely cold and hot temperatures on ischaemic heart disease (IHD) mortality in five cities (Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Wuhan and Guangzhou) in China; and to examine the time relationships between cold and hot temperatures and IHD mortality for each city. DESIGN: A negative binomial regression model combined with a distributed lag non-linear model was used to examine city-specific temperature effects on IHD mortality up to 20 lag days. A meta-analysis was used to pool the cold effects and hot effects across the five cities. PATIENTS: 16 559 IHD deaths were monitored by a sentinel surveillance system in five cities during 2004-2008. RESULTS: The relationships between temperature and IHD mortality were non-linear in all five cities. The minimum-mortality temperatures in northern cities were lower than in southern cities. In Beijing, Tianjin and Guangzhou, the effects of extremely cold temperatures were delayed, while Shanghai and Wuhan had immediate cold effects. The effects of extremely hot temperatures appeared immediately in all the cities except Wuhan. Meta-analysis showed that IHD mortality increased 48% at the 1st percentile of temperature (extremely cold temperature) compared with the 10th percentile, while IHD mortality increased 18% at the 99th percentile of temperature (extremely hot temperature) compared with the 90th percentile. CONCLUSIONS: Results indicate that both extremely cold and hot temperatures increase IHD mortality in China. Each city has its characteristics of heat effects on IHD mortality. The policy for response to climate change should consider local climate-IHD mortality relationships

Does epigenetic polymorphism contribute to phenotypic variances in Jatropha curcas L.?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>There is a growing interest in <it>Jatropha curcas </it>L. (jatropha) as a biodiesel feedstock plant. Variations in its morphology and seed productivity have been well documented. However, there is the lack of systematic comparative evaluation of distinct collections under same climate and agronomic practices. With the several reports on low genetic diversity in jatropha collections, there is uncertainty on genetic contribution to jatropha morphology.</p> <p>Result</p> <p>In this study, five populations of jatropha plants collected from China (CN), Indonesia (MD), Suriname (SU), Tanzania (AF) and India (TN) were planted in one farm under the same agronomic practices. Their agronomic traits (branching pattern, height, diameter of canopy, time to first flowering, dormancy, accumulated seed yield and oil content) were observed and tracked for two years. Significant variations were found for all the agronomic traits studied. Genetic diversity and epigenetic diversity were evaluated using florescence Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphism (fAFLP) and methylation sensitive florescence AFLP (MfAFLP) methods. Very low level of genetic diversity was detected (polymorphic band <0.1%) within and among populations. In contrast, intermediate but significant epigenetic diversity was detected (25.3% of bands were polymorphic) within and among populations. More than half of CCGG sites surveyed by MfAFLP were methylated with significant difference in inner cytosine and double cytosine methylation among populations. Principal coordinates analysis (PCoA) based on Nei's epigenetic distance showed Tanzania/India group distinct from China/Indonesia/Suriname group. Inheritance of epigenetic markers was assessed in one F1 hybrid population between two morphologically distinct parent plants and one selfed population. 30 out of 39 polymorphic markers (77%) were found heritable and followed Mendelian segregation. One epiallele was further confirmed by bisulphite sequencing of its corresponding genomic region.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our study confirmed climate and practice independent differences in agronomic performance among jatropha collections. Such agronomic trait variations, however, were matched by very low genetic diversity and medium level but significant epigenetic diversity. Significant difference in inner cytosine and double cytosine methylation at CCGG sites was also found among populations. Most epigenetic differential markers can be inherited as epialleles following Mendelian segregation. These results suggest possible involvement of epigenetics in jatropha development.</p

Prevalence and risk factors of childhood allergic diseases in eight metropolitan cities in China: A multicenter study

Background Several studies conducted during the past two decades suggested increasing trend of childhood allergic diseases in China. However, few studies have provided detailed description of geographic variation and explored risk factors of these diseases. This study investigated the pattern and risk factors of asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema in eight metropolitan cities in China. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey during November-December 2005 in eight metropolitan cities in China. A total of 23791 children aged 6-13 years participated in this survey. Questions from the standard questionnaire of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Children (ISAAC) were used to examine the pattern of current asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema. Logistic regression analyses were performed to assess the risk factors for childhood allergies. Results The average prevalence of childhood asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema across the eight cities was 3∙3% (95% Confidence interval (CI): 3∙1%, 3∙6%), 9∙8% (95% CI: 9∙4%, 10∙2%) and 5∙5% (95% CI: 5∙2%, 5∙8%), respectively. Factors related to lifestyle, mental health and socio-economic status were found to be associated with the prevalence of childhood allergies. These risk factors were unevenly distributed across cities and disproportionately affected the local prevalence. Conclusions There was apparent geographic variation of childhood allergies in China. Socio-environmental factors had strong impacts on the prevalence of childhood allergies; but these impacts differed across regions. Thus public health policies should specifically target at the local risk factors for each individual area

Genome-wide occupancy links Hoxa2 to Wnt–β-catenin signaling in mouse embryonic development

The regulation of gene expression is central to developmental programs and largely depends on the binding of sequence-specific transcription factors with cis-regulatory elements in the genome. Hox transcription factors specify the spatial coordinates of the body axis in all animals with bilateral symmetry, but a detailed knowledge of their molecular function in instructing cell fates is lacking. Here, we used chromatin immunoprecipitation with massively parallel sequencing (ChIP-seq) to identify Hoxa2 genomic locations in a time and space when it is actively instructing embryonic development in mouse. Our data reveals that Hoxa2 has large genome coverage and potentially regulates thousands of genes. Sequence analysis of Hoxa2-bound regions identifies high occurrence of two main classes of motifs, corresponding to Hox and Pbx–Hox recognition sequences. Examination of the binding targets of Hoxa2 faithfully captures the processes regulated by Hoxa2 during embryonic development; in addition, it uncovers a large cluster of potential targets involved in the Wnt-signaling pathway. In vivo examination of canonical Wnt–β-catenin signaling reveals activity specifically in Hoxa2 domain of expression, and this is undetectable in Hoxa2 mutant embryos. The comprehensive mapping of Hoxa2-binding sites provides a framework to study Hox regulatory networks in vertebrate developmental processes

Gaseous air pollution and emergency hospital visits for hypertension in Beijing, China: a time-stratified case-crossover study

Background: A number of epidemiological studies have been conducted to research the adverse effects of air pollution on mortality and morbidity. Hypertension is the most important risk factor for cardiovascular mortality. However, few previous studies have examined the relationship between gaseous air pollution and morbidity for hypertension. ---------- Methods: Daily data on emergency hospital visits (EHVs) for hypertension were collected from the Peking University Third Hospital. Daily data on gaseous air pollutants (sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2)) and particulate matter less than 10 μm in aerodynamic diameter (PM10) were collected from the Beijing Municipal Environmental Monitoring Center. A time-stratified case-crossover design was conducted to evaluate the relationship between urban gaseous air pollution and EHVs for hypertension. Temperature and relative humidity were controlled for. ---------- Results: In the single air pollutant models, a 10 μg/m3 increase in SO2 and NO2 were significantly associated with EHVs for hypertension. The odds ratios (ORs) were 1.037 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.004-1.071) for SO2 at lag 0 day, and 1.101 (95% CI: 1.038-1.168) for NO2 at lag 3 day. After controlling for PM10, the ORs associated with SO2 and NO2 were 1.025 (95% CI: 0.987-1.065) and 1.114 (95% CI: 1.037-1.195), respectively.---------- Conclusion: Elevated urban gaseous air pollution was associated with increased EHVs for hypertension in Beijing, China

The short-term effect of air pollution on cardiovascular mortality in Tianjin, China: Comparison of time series and case-crossover analyses

Background: Many studies have illustrated that ambient air pollution negatively impacts on health. However, little evidence is available for the effects of air pollution on cardiovascular mortality (CVM) in Tianjin, China. Also, no study has examined which strata length for the time-stratified case–crossover analysis gives estimates that most closely match the estimates from time series analysis. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to estimate the effects of air pollutants on CVM in Tianjin, China, and compare time-stratified case–crossover and time series analyses. Method: A time-stratified case–crossover and generalized additive model (time series) were applied to examine the impact of air pollution on CVM from 2005 to 2007. Four time-stratified case–crossover analyses were used by varying the stratum length (Calendar month, 28, 21 or 14 days). Jackknifing was used to compare the methods. Residual analysis was used to check whether the models fitted well. Results: Both case–crossover and time series analyses show that air pollutants (PM10, SO2 and NO2) were positively associated with CVM. The estimates from the time-stratified case–crossover varied greatly with changing strata length. The estimates from the time series analyses varied slightly with changing degrees of freedom per year for time. The residuals from the time series analyses had less autocorrelation than those from the case–crossover analyses indicating a better fit. Conclusion: Air pollution was associated with an increased risk of CVM in Tianjin, China. Time series analyses performed better than the time-stratified case–crossover analyses in terms of residual checking

浅析马德里乌塞拉地区：校园与华人/华裔学生及其家长的跨文化能力分析对比研究。 案例分析

En las últimas décadas, y especialmente en los últimos años, España ha comenzado a convertirse en un centro de migración para muchas familias procedentes de China. Los centros educativos como institutos o colegios de primaria, así como la docencia, no son un factor inmune a estos movimientos migratorios. Este proyecto es una investigación analítica sobre la competencia intercultural del instituto educativo con el alumnado chino y familiares chinas, se trata de un estudio de casos del barrio Usera en Madrid, donde se sitúan muchos alumnos y familiares de origen chino. Se pretende conocer la última situación sobre la interculturalidad, multiculturalidad y la competencia intercultural del tema en cuestión, analizando de forma comparativa las competencias interculturales de los docentes, los alumnos y sus familiares. El objetivo principal de esta investigación se ha dividido en objetivos a corto y largo plazo. Primero, a corto plazo es necesario conocer la situación actual de la competencia intercultural de los centros educativos con los alumnos y familias chinas en el barrio chino de Madrid, y el nivel de integración escolar de los alumnos de origen chino. Es necesario conocer las dificultades, retos y problemas a desarrollar en torno a la competencia intercultural. Y, por otra parte, a largo plazo se quiere conocer las dificultades, retos, problemas, ventajas y desventajas del desarrollo de la competencia intercultural de ámbito educativo en la misma zona. Con el fin de lograr los objetivos, y tras acudir a diferentes estudios de investigación que han abordando diferentes puntos de vista y perspectivas sobre la interculturalidad, multiculturalidad y competencia intercultural, se han planteado varias hipótesis, como por ejemplo: “los docentes de la zona poseen las competencia necesarias para trabajar la interculturalidad en los centros educativos”, “tanto los alumnos chinos como los alumnos españoles poseen un alto nivel de competencia intercultural”, y “por haber crecido en dos contextos culturales diferentes, se pueden apreciar ciertas diferencias culturales entre ambas etnias”. Para confirmar estas hipótesis, se plantea elaborar una investigación mediante diferentes metodologías científicas. Se ha utilizado una combinación de investigación cuantitativa y cualitativa. Tanto entrevistas semiestructuradas como cuestionarios, que han permitido obtener los datos necesarios para analizar y corroborar o desmentir las hipótesis planteadas. Al final, se han podido verificar algunas de las hipótesis y sacar conclusiones de que el desarrollo de la interculturalidad y de la competencia intercultural siempre ha sido un tema imprescindible en el ámbito educativo. Los padres chinos, en comparación con los padres españoles, deberían mejorar su competencia de habilidad dentro del marco de la competencia intercultural. En caso de los alumnos chinos, en comparación con sus padres, donde generalmente el idioma ya no es un gran obstáculo para ellos, tienen un nivel de integración más alto que sus padres. A pesar de ello, debido a los padres, los alumnos de origen chino carecen de suficientes competencias cognitivas, por las cuáles su competencia afectiva y competencia de habilidad, no ha podido quedar plenamente integrada en el entorno escolar y social. Por eso, tanto los docentes y los padres, como las organizaciones escolares y sociales, deberían esforzarse en mejorar la competencia intercultural de todos, sobre todo la competencia cognitiva de los alumnos, y la competencia de habilidad de los padres在近几十年的发展中， 特别是近几年， 西班牙已经逐渐变成了中国移民聚集的国家。因此提供初级教育及义务教育的西班牙学校，以及西班牙的教育本身，作为社会的重要组成部分，都无法在这场移民浪潮中置身事外。 这是一篇关于校园与华人学生和华人家庭的跨文化能力关系分析研究，而马德 里乌塞拉（Usera），作为一个中国移民聚集且被称之为“中国城”的地区，也成为了本研究案例分析的范围主体。力求通过科学的研究分析，了解该区域有关跨文化， 文化多样性以及跨文化能力的现实情况。除此之外，也将以对比的方式，对该区域教师从业者，学生以及家长的跨文化能力进行分析。 本文的研究目标分为短期目标及长期目标两大类。首先，通过分析研究了解马德里乌塞拉（Usera）地区的校园与华人学生及其家庭的跨文化能力，并对华人（华裔）学生的校园融入程度作出一定的判断；其次，对于长期目标而言，剖析三者在发展跨文化能力时，可能会遇到的苦难，挑战，问题，及其所具备的优势或劣势。 为达到研究目的，在参考了大量现存研究和理论知识后，吸收各方有关跨文化，文化多样性以及跨文化能力的多方态度和观点后，针对该研究课题做出了若干假设，例如：该地区教师从业者都具备较发展跨文化的必要能力；华人（华裔）学生和西班牙本土学生都具有高水平的跨文化能力；因为不同的成长文化环境，在校园内，华人（华裔）学生和本土学生之间存在较多文化差异；等。而本文也采用了定性调研法，定量调研法，网络调查法以及文献调查法的方式，对这些假设进行一一验证。 最后，不仅对假设做出了科学验证，也得到了一定的研究结论。研究得知，跨 文化以及跨文化能力的发展，一直是该区域的发展教育的重点课题。华人家长与西班牙本土家长对比而言，应该增强其跨文化行为能力，而对于华人（华裔）学生而言，与他们的父母相比，因为语言并不是一个严重的融入障碍，所以具有较高的融入水平。但是尽管如此，因为父母的原因，他们缺少一定的跨文化认知能力，从而影响到其跨文化情感能力及行为能力，导致这些华人子女仍然无法完全融入到西班牙校园和社会中。 所以，无论是教师从业者，还是学生家长们，亦或是各种校园及社会组织，应注重发展学生的认知能力以及家长们的行为能力，都应为发展更高程度的跨文化能力而共同努力Máster Universitario en Comunicación Intercultural, Interpretación y Traducción en los Servicios Públicos. Especialidad en Chino-Español (M043