A South Asian disadvantage? Differences in occupational pension membership in the UK

The UK state pension system offers a state pension that is relatively low, and as a result, occupational pensions have been a key aspect of pension protection for employees to ‘top up’ their income in later life. Previous research reported that individuals from South Indian groups (Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi) are less likely to contribute to occupational pensions than White British individuals due to the interaction of their labour market participation and pension membership patterns, meaning they are less likely to receive income from pensions and more likely to face poverty in later life. This study uses individual data from the first wave of Understanding Society and investigates patterns of employment and the determinants of membership in an employer’s pension scheme among working-age individuals from minority ethnic groups and the White British population. The analysis focuses specifically on patterns of occupational pension membership for individuals from the three South Indian groups compared to White British individuals and those from other ethnic groups. This paper is based on Vlachantoni, A. et al (2015) ‘Ethnicity and occupational pension membership in the UK’, Social Policy and Administration. Article first published online: 14 APR 2015, DOI: 10.1111/spol.1213

Social trust, interpersonal trust and self-rated health in China: a multi-level study

Background: Trust is important for health at both the individual and societal level. Previous research using Western concepts of trust has shown that a high level of trust in society can positively affect individuals’ health; however, it has been found that the concepts and culture of trust in China are different from those in Western countries and research on the relationship between trust and health in China is scarce. Method: The analyses use data from the national scale China General Social Survey (CGSS) on adults aged above 18 in 2005 and 2010. Two concepts of trust (“out-group” and “in-group” trust) are used to examine the relationship between trust and self-rated health in China. Multilevel logistical models are applied, examining the trust at the individual and societal level on individuals’ self-rated health.Results: In terms of interpersonal trust, both “out-group” and “in-group” trust are positively associated with good health in 2005 and 2010. At the societal level, the relationships between the two concepts of trust and health are different. In 2005, higher “out-group” social trust (derived from trust in strangers) is associated with better health; however, higher “in-group” social trust (derived from trust in most people) is associated with poor health in 2010. The cross-level interactions show that lower educated individuals (no education or only primary level), rural residents and those on lower incomes are the most affected groups in societies with higher “out-group” social trust; whereas people with lower levels of educational attainment, a lower income, and those who think that most people can be trusted are the most affected groups in societies with higher “in-group” social trust.Conclusion: High levels of interpersonal trust are of benefit to health. Higher “out-group” social trust is associated with better health; while higher “in-group” social trust is associated with poor health. Individuals with different levels of educational attainment are affected by trust differently

Ethnic differentials in health: the additional effect of ethnic density

It is well established that there are differentials in health among individuals of different Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) heritage. BME communities are unevenly concentrated across England and Wales. This paper examines the effect of residential density of one’s own ethnic group on physical health outcomes in England and Wales. In addition, it explores whether the effects of ethnic density on physical health outcomes are concealed by area deprivation, and whether individual economic deprivation and area deprivation play a role in this relationship. Data on BME and White British individuals from the first wave of the UK Household Longitudinal Study (Understanding Society) are linked with ethnic density characteristics from the 2011 UK Census and with the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) from the 2010 English and Welsh Governments. Multilevel logistic regression is then employed in the analysis. The results show that individuals from BME groups who live in areas with a high density of their own ethnic group are more likely to report poor health, but these effects are mediated by both individual economic deprivation and area deprivation. The results highlight that facilitating the improvement of economic and social conditions for individuals in deprived areas could help to reduce the negative differentials in health outcomes experienced by individuals from BME communities

Theoretical study of single transition metal atom catalysts supported on two-dimensional Nb2NO2 for efficient electrochemical CO2 reduction to CH4

The design of highly efficient catalysts for electrochemical reduction CO2 (ECR) to value-add chemicals and fuels is important for CO2 conversion technologies. In this work, earth abundant transition metal (TM = V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co and Ni) atoms embedded into two-dimensional (2D) Nb2NO2 (TM@Nb2NO2) as single-atom catalysts (SACs) for ECR was investigated by first-principles study. We demonstrated that Nb2NO2 can be an excellent substrate for anchoring single TM atom due to its excellent stability and electronic conductivity. Besides, V, Cr and Ni@Nb2NO2 could effectively promote CO2 adsorption and reduction. All TM@Nb2NO2 exhibit high selectivity towards CH4, and V, Cr and Ni@Nb2NO2 show low limiting potentials. The activity origin was revealed by analysing adsorption energy, d band centre, bonding/antibonding population and the change of valence state of TM atoms.publishedVersio

Changes in living arrangements and mortality among older people in China

Living arrangements in later life are dynamic, with changes associated with life events such as widowhood or moves into an institution. Previous research has found particular changes in living arrangements to be associated with an elevated risk of mortality. However, research in this area within the context of China is limited, despite China being home to the world’s largest population of older people. This study investigates the impact of changes in living arrangements on older persons’ survival using the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey from 2002 to 2011. The original sample was 16,064 in 2002, and this study includes 6,191 individuals who survived in 2005 and had complete information of track record in later waves. Living arrangements are examined between 2002 and 2005. Cox-proportional hazards models are then used to investigate the association between the dynamics of living arrangements and respondents’ survival status in 2008 and in 2011/12. Men and women who lived in an institution in both 2002 and 2005, or who moved into an institution from living with family faced a greater risk of dying compared to those continuing to live with family. By contrast, continuing to live with family or alone, or moving between living with family and living alone, were not associated with an increased mortality risk, although there were some differences by gender. The institutional care sector in China is still in its infancy, with provision based on ability to pay market fees rather than need associated with age-related function impairment. The finding that living in, or moving into, an institution is associated with a high mortality risk therefore requires further investigation in the context of a rapidly changing Chinese society

Transition metal single-atom supported on PC3 monolayer for highly efficient hydrogen evolution reaction by combined density functional theory and machine learning study

It is essential to develop non-precious metal-based alternatives used in hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) due to high cost and scarcity of Pt-based catalysts. Herein, through density functional theory (DFT) calculations, the HER activity over 26 single-atom anchored phosphorus carbide (PC3) monolayer (TM@PC3) has been systematically investigated. Results indicate that ΔG*H of V, Fe, Nb, Mo, and Pd@PC3 are lower than that of Pt (1 1 1) catalyst, with 0.03, −0.03, −0.07, −0.04, and − 0.02 eV, respectively. By imposing the criterion window (−0.2 ≤ ΔG*H ≤ 0.2 eV), the d band centre (εd) for catalysts with excellent HER ability is in the range of − 0.68–0.41 eV. Besides, the five promising HER catalysts follow Volmer-Tafel mechanism. Fe, Nb, and Mo@PC3 show activation barriers of 0.75, 0.74, and 0.55 eV, lower than that of Pt. Machine learning (ML) was employed to explore the intrinsic relationship between catalytic performance and feature parameters. We demonstrated that the first ionization energy, bond length of TM − H and d band center are more correlated with hydrogen adsorption behaviour. Our work not only predicts that Fe, Nb, and Mo@PC3 can be substitutes for Pt metal in HER, but also reveals that the intrinsic correlation between catalytic activity and feature parameters by combining DFT and ML investigations.publishedVersio

The Involvement of Bax in Zinc-Induced Mitochondrial Apoptogenesis in Malignant Prostate Cells

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The development and progression of prostate cancer requires the transformation of normal zinc-accumulating epithelial cells to malignant cells that have lost the ability to accumulate zinc. This metabolic transformation is essential so that the tumor suppressive effects of zinc can be eliminated and the malignant process can proceed. One of the major effects of zinc is its prevention of prostate cell growth by its induction of apoptosis. The accumulation of cellular zinc has a direct effect on the mitochondria that results in the release of cytochrome c, which initiates the caspase cascade that leads to apoptosis. This effect is associated with the mitochondrial pore-forming process, but the mechanism by which zinc induces the release of cytochrome c and induces mitochondrial apoptogenesis has not been resolved. The present report provides for the first time information that implicates Bax in the zinc induction of mitochondrial apoptogenesis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The effects of zinc treatment on the Bax levels of PC-3 cells and on the mitochondria were determined. The exposure of isolated mitochondria to zinc results in an increase in membrane bound Bax, which is due to the mitochondrial insertion of endogenous resident Bax. The mitochondrial Bax/Bcl-2 ratio is increased by zinc treatment. Zinc treatment of PC-3 cells also increases the mitochondrial level of Bax. In addition, zinc treatment increases the cellular level of Bax and the cellular Bax/Bcl2 ratio. Down regulation of Bax in PC-3 cells eliminates the zinc induction of apoptosis. The increase in cellular Bax level appears to involve zinc induction of Bax gene expression.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This report extends and confirms that physiological levels of zinc induce apoptosis in prostate cells. The study provides evidence that zinc is directly involved in facilitating a Bax-associated pore formation process that initiates mitochondrial apoptogenesis. This is enhanced by an additional effect of zinc on increasing the cellular level of Bax. To avoid the anti-tumor apoptogenic effects of zinc, the malignant cells in prostate cancer posses genetic/metabolic adaptations that prevent the cellular accumulation of zinc.</p