The conventional model of intergenerational income mobility suggests child’s income is a function of his human capital investment determined by parental income, which neglects the role of public ...investment. This paper aims to distinguish whether and how public investment affects intergenerational income mobility and who are the actual beneficiaries. Data used for analysis is from China Health and Nutrition Survey, and is precisely matched to provincial public investment data. To mitigate the potential biases, average income of at least three waves is adopted. Through investigations, this study finds public investment could promote intergenerational income mobility obviously but unequally. Middle-distributed income groups are found to benefit more from public investment than the upper and bottom tail of the income distribution. The opportunities for the middle-distributed income groups are fairly better, while it seems harder for individuals of the bottom income distribution to have a breakthrough. Positional changes between middle income groups and top income groups contribute largely to the intergenerational income mobility during the sample period. Regions with higher public investment present higher mobility as well. To promote intergenerational mobility, public investment should target more precisely at lower income groups.
Abstract To address the growing demand of small-diameter vascular grafts for cardiovascular disease, it is necessary to develop substitutes with bio-functionalities, such as anticoagulation, rapid ...endothelialization, and smooth muscle regeneration. In this study, the small-diameter tubular grafts (2.2 mm) were fabricated by electrospinning of biodegradable polymer polycaprolactone (PCL) followed by functional surface coating with an arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD)-containing molecule. The healing characteristics of the grafts were evaluated by implanting them in rabbit carotid arteries for 2 and 4 weeks. Results showed that at both time points, all 10 of the RGD-modified PCL grafts (PCL-RGD) were patent, whereas 4 of the 10 non-modified PCL grafts were occluded due to thrombus formation. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) data showed abundant platelets adhering on the surface of the midportion of the PCL grafts. In contrast, only few platelets were observed on the PCL-RGD surface, suggesting that RGD modification significantly improved the hemocompatibility of the PCL grafts. Histological analysis demonstrated enhanced cell infiltration and homogeneous distribution within the PCL-RGD grafts in comparison with the PCL grafts. Furthermore, immunofluorescence staining also showed a 3-fold increase of endothelial coverage of the PCL-RGD grafts than that of PCL grafts at those two time points. After 4-week implantation, 65.3 ± 7.6% of the surface area of the PCL-RGD grafts was covered by smooth muscle cell layer, which is almost 23% more than that on the PCL grafts. The present study indicates that RGD-modified PCL grafts exhibit an improved remodeling and integration capability in revascularization.
Abstract
Background
Acute lung injury (ALI) is a prevalent complication of sepsis with high mortality rate. Saikosaponin D (SSD) is a triterpenoid saponin that has been reported to alleviate ...sepsis‐triggered renal injury in mice. Nonetheless, the therapeutic effect of SSD on sepsis‐evoked ALI is unclarified.
Methods
Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) from
Escherichia coli
055:B5 was utilized to stimulate lung epithelial cell line MLE‐12. A mouse model of sepsis was established. CCK‐8 assay was employed for determining cytotoxicity. ELISA was utilized for determining proinflammatory cytokine production. Flow cytometry and western blotting were implemented for evaluating cell apoptosis. Hematoxylin–eosin staining was conducted for histologic analysis of murine lung tissues.
Results
SSD alleviated LPS‐triggered inflammation and cell apoptosis of MLE‐12 cells. SSD treatment ameliorated the pathological damages, inflammatory response, and cell apoptosis in the lungs of septic mice.
Conclusion
SSD protects against sepsis‐triggered ALI by inhibiting inflammation and cell apoptosis in MLE‐12 cells and septic mouse mice.
Esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the most aggressive malignancies in the gastrointestinal tract. Emerging studies have indicated that microRNAs (miRNAs) are strongly implicated in ...the development and progression of ESCC. Here, we focused on the function and the underlying molecular mechanism of miR-202 in ESCC. The results showed that miR-202 was significantly down-regulated in ESCC tissues and cell lines. Overexpression of miR-202 in ECa-109 and KYSE-510 cells markedly suppressed cell proliferation and cell migration, and induced cell apoptosis. Furthermore, laminin α1 (LAMA1) expression was frequently positive in ESCC tissues and inversely correlated with miR-202 expression. Then we demonstrated that miR-202 targeted 3'-untranslated region (UTR) of LAMA1 and inhibited its protein expression. Additionally, LAMA1 overexpression rescued the proliferation inhibition and cell apoptosis elevation induced by miR-202. MiR-202 also inhibited the protein expression of p-FAK and p-Akt, which were all reversed by LAMA1 overexpression. Taken together, these findings suggest that miR-202 may function as a novel tumor suppressor in ESCC by repressing cell proliferation and migration, and its biological effects may attribute the inhibition of LAMA1-mediated FAK-PI3K-Akt signaling.
•Expression of miR-202 was decreased in ESCC tissues and cell lines.•MiR-202 overexpression inhibited ESCC cell growth and induced apoptosis.•MiR-202 directly targeted LAMA1 in ESCC.•The LAMA1-FAK-PI3K signaling mediated the suppressive role of miR-202.
Intergenerational mobility is considered as an indicator of opportunity equality by interdisciplinary scholars. Recent literature has increasingly focused on international comparisons to unravel the ...underlying forces shaping disparities in intergenerational mobility. While illuminating, this branch encounters significant challenges stemming from unobserved factors, particularly social norms and values, which threaten the credibility of findings. However, most previous studies do not address such concerns. In this paper, we pay special attentions to the role of social trust in shaping the intergenerational mobility. More specifically, perceived upward mobility is of our top interest because it not only is deemed to be a strong reflection of the real socio-economic distribution, but also directs to individuals' behaviors. Employing a multilevel regression approach, our analysis confirms the positive impact of general trust on perceived upward mobility. The result remains robust across alternative measures and methods. Notably, it mitigates the potential endogeneities by incorporating proxies for individuals' optimistic nature and the instrumental variable strategy. Through further investigations, this paper reveals that the effect of trust differs across regime types, income groups, geography and institutions. Moreover, we identify institutional quality and social interactions as potential mechanisms shaping perceived mobility. Additionally, individuals with upward mobility experiences exhibit reduced preferences for redistribution. This paper contributes to the mobility literature by highlighting the significance of the social norms and values beyond the known factors of perceived intergenerational mobility. It underscores the importance of social trust in intergenerational mobility and advocates for proactive engagement of city practitioners in fostering trust through civic initiatives and community structures.
•Ignorance of social trust threats the credibility of mobility estimates.•This paper confirms that trust has a positive effect on intergenerational upward mobility.•The result is robust to alternative measures and instrumental strategy.•Heterogeneities and the potential mechanisms are explored as well.
Design of BPSC composite with dual photothermal and photodynamic functions for tumor therapy.
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•Heterojunction composites were constructed with Bi2Se3 nanosheets and carbon ...nanotubes.•The efficient and safe tumor ablation has been realized with the composites with low laser power.•The composites can produce reactive oxygen species under near-infrared irradiation.•The composites exhibit good biocompatibility for photothermal and photodynamic therapy.
The use of functional nanomaterials to realize tumor therapeutic therapy has received considerable attention. However, a single type of nanomaterial usually can only achieve one specific function, and may cause biosafety problems due to poor metabolism. In this work, we have designed a kind of nanocomposite film based on Bi2Se3 nanosheets and carbon nanotubes, which can achieve efficient photothermal conversion and reactive oxygen species generation under near-infrared laser irradiation. Moreover, the developed films showed good biocompatibility in vivo. The multifunctional films showed remarkable therapeutic effects under 808 nm excitation with 0.3 W/cm2, which avoiding the introduction of nano-reagents into the mice and excessive laser power damage. Our work will provide reference for the use of nanomaterials with heterojunctions in synergistic therapy strategies of photothermal and photodynamic therapy.
The relationship between intergenerational mobility and inequality is widely explored but yet to reach conclusive results. The convention is to provide descriptive analysis with data of several ...developed countries, termed as the Great Gatsby Curve (GGC). This paper constructs a panel data containing a wide range of modern societies to replicate and extend the GGC with alternative measures. Through investigations, this study confirms that inequality skews the intergenerational upward mobility. Ceteris paribus, every one percent increase in inequality measured by top 10% income share will decrease the upward mobility by about 5 percent on average. On the other hand, every one percent increase in the bottom 50% income share contributes to 12 percent increase in the upward mobility. In comparison, it implies that it is not only the degree but also the structure of the inequality, that matters for the intergenerational mobility. The increase in the income share held by the bottom earners prompts the overall upward mobility with much greater and more meaningful magnitude. Besides, economic development benefits to the overall upward mobility.
Abstract
Background
Increasing studies focused on the regulatory roles of circular RNAs (circRNAs) in diverse cancers. This study was to evaluate the function and mechanism of circRNA Scm-like with ...four malignant brain tumor domains 2 (circ-SFMBT2) in esophageal cancer (EC).
Methods
The circ-SFMBT2, microRNA-107 (miR-107) and solute-linked carrier family A1 member 5 (SLC1A5) levels were analyzed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Cell proliferation was evaluated by 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-y1)-2, 5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay, colony formation assay and EdU assay. Cell apoptosis and invasion were detected by flow cytometry and transwell assay. Glutamine metabolism was assessed by the corresponding kits for glutamine consumption, α-ketoglutarate production and glutamate production. Western blot was used for protein quantification. The binding analysis was performed using dual-luciferase reporter assay, RNA immunoprecipitation (RIP) and pull-down assays. The functional research of circ-SFMBT2 in vivo was performed by xenograft tumor assay. Exosomes were identified by morphological observation and protein detection.
Results
Circ-SFMBT2 was overexpressed in EC samples and cells. Circ-SFMBT2 downregulation inhibited EC cell proliferation, invasion and glutamine metabolism. Circ-SFMBT2 targeted miR-107 and the regulation of circ-SFMBT2 was achieved by sponging miR-107. SLC1A5 was a target of miR-107, and it worked as an oncogene in EC cells. MiR-107 retarded the EC progression by downregulating SLC1A5. Circ-SFMBT2 could affect the SLC1A5 expression by targeting miR-107. Circ-SFMBT2 regulated EC progression in vivo by miR-107/SLC1A5 axis. Circ-SFMBT2 was transferred by exosomes in EC cells.
Conclusion
These results suggested that circ-SFMBT2 upregulated the SLC1A5 expression to promote the malignant development of EC by serving as a miR-107 sponge.
Background
Limited studies have observed the prognostic value of CT images for esophageal neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC) due to rare incidence and low treatment experience in clinical. In this study, ...the pretreatment enhanced CT texture features and clinical characteristics were investigated to predict the overall survival of esophageal NEC.
Methods
This retrospective study included 89 patients with esophageal NEC. The training and testing cohorts comprised 61 (70%) and 28 (30%) patients, respectively. A total of 402 radiomics features were extracted from the tumor region that segmented pretreatment venous phase CT images. The least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) Cox regression was applied to feature dimension reduction, feature selection, and radiomics signature construction. A radiomics nomogram was constructed based on the radiomics signature and clinical risk factors using a multivariable Cox proportional regression. The performance of the nomogram for the pretreatment prediction of overall survival (OS) was evaluated for discrimination and calibration.
Results
Only the enhancement degree was an independent factor in clinical variable influenced OS. The radiomics signatures demonstrated good predictability for prognostic status discrimination. The radiomics nomogram integrating texture signatures was slightly superior to the nomogram derived from the combined model with a C-index of 0.844 (95%CI: 0.783-0.905) and 0.847 (95% CI: 0.782-0.912) in the training set, and 0.805 (95%CI: 0.707-0.903) and 0.745 (95% CI: 0.639-0.851) in the testing set, respectively.
Conclusion
The radiomics nomogram based on pretreatment CT radiomics signature had better prognostic power and predictability of the overall survival in patients with esophageal NEC than the model using combined variables.
The underlying mechanisms of breast cancer cells metastasizing to distant sites are complex and multifactorial. Bone sialoprotein (BSP) and αvβ3 integrin were reported to promote the metastatic ...progress of breast cancer cells, particularly metastasis to bone. Most theories presume that BSP promotes breast cancer metastasis by binding to αvβ3 integrin. Interestingly, we found the αvβ3 integrin decreased in BSP silenced cells (BSPi), which have weak ability to form bone metastases. However, the relevance of their expression in primary tumor and the way they participate in metastasis are not clear. In this study, we evaluated the relationship between BSP, αvβ3 integrin levels, and the bone metastatic ability of breast cancer cells in patient tissues, and the data indicated that the αvβ3 integrin level is closely correlated to BSP level and metastatic potential. Overexpression of αvβ3 integrin in cancer cells could reverse the effect of BSPi in vitro and promote bone metastasis in a mouse model, whereas knockdown of αvβ3 integrin have effects just like BSPi. Moreover, The Cancer Genome Atlas data and RT‐PCR analysis have also shown that SPP1, KCNK2, and PTK2B might be involved in this process. Thus, we propose that αvβ3 integrin is one of the downstream factors regulated by BSP in the breast cancer‐bone metastatic cascade.
In this study, we evaluated the relationship between bone sialoprotein (BSP), αvβ3 integrin levels, and the metastatic ability of breast cancer cells in patient tissues, and the data indicated that αvβ3 integrin level is closely correlated to BSP level and metastatic potential. Overexpression of αvβ3 integrin in cancer cells could reverse the effect of BSPi in vitro and in a mouse model, whereas knockdown of αvβ3 integrin has effects similar to BSPi. Moreover, The Cancer Genome Atlas data and RT‐PCR analysis show that SPP1, KCNK2, and PTK2B might be involved in this process. Thus, we propose that αvβ3 integrin is one of the downstream factors regulated by BSP in the breast cancer metastatic cascade.
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