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Background With the development of next-generation sequencing (NGS), several anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) fusion partner genes have been identified. However, ALK fusion is extremely rare in small cell lung cancer (SCLC), and there is no standard treatment option. Here, we report a patient with SCLC who carried an ALK- Intergenic Region (IR) rearrangement and responded to Alectinib. Case Presentation A 26-year-old man was pathologically diagnosed with extensive-stage SCLC. After 2 cycles of first-line chemotherapy, CT showed a large soft tissue mass in the middle lobe of the right lung and increased liver nodules, left kidney lesions and right kidney lesions. To seek potential therapeutic regimens, ALK rearrangement was identified. The patient achieved a rapid and durable partial response with Alectinib (600 mg BID). The patient experienced a significant clinical response with a progression-free survival of more than 6 months. There were no grade 3 or more adverse events reported, and there was no dose reduction during treatment. Following Alectinib treatment, the allele frequency of ALK rearrangement and RB1 and TP53 mutations in plasma circulating tumor DNA decreased with the reduction in tumor size. Conclusion This case provides a meaningful reference for the treatment of SCLC patients with ALK rearrangement. This case also provides valuable information on the response to ALK inhibitors in patients with ALK-IR rearrangement and better understanding of ALK-TKI applications in the future.

Inspired by China’s historical role as a central hub in the Silk Road, the Chinese government officially launched the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2013. The BRI aims at deepening regional econ...

Over the past decade, ESG investment has become an important criterion for the Chinese economic activities, including its capital market where ESG integration in asset management has become a hot t...

Monetary policy and financial sustainability are linked. However, the role of monetary policy and its implementation have come under particular scrutiny after the 2008 Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and the 2010 European sovereign debt crisis, where one of the main challenges was financial sustainability. In this paper, we contribute to the literature by improving our understanding of the influence of monetary policy on financial sustainability for a monetary union. To that end, we develop a two-state open economy macroeconomic model, in which the two state economies have the same monetary policy but maintain their fiscal independence. Examples include two countries in the eurozone, two states in the United States, core and periphery countries, etc. The linkages between these two state economies are inter-state trade in goods and inter-state borrowing in bonds. We apply the calibrated model and conduct economic experiments under alternative monetary policy regimes. The model simulation shows that monetary policy is incorrect if inflation differentials persist in a monetary union, and that incorrect monetary policy leads to real interest rates that are too low for high inflation countries, which become indebted after excessive borrowing. This study sheds light on how monetary policy should be implemented if inflation differs in countries within a monetary union. Our findings draw policy implications for those “two-state” economies considering alternative macroeconomic policy regimes to achieve financial sustainability and regional economic integration.

In this work, the performance of Ni-doped spinel-type LiMn2O4 (doping concentration 6.25%) for Li-ion batteries is studied using first-principles calculations based on density functional theory. It is found that Ni substituted for Mn3+ is the most favored in thermodynamics. After Ni-doping, the unit cell volume is reduced (about 0.6%), while the Mn3+ adjacent to the dopant Ni is oxidized to Mn4+, thus reducing the probability of Jahn–Teller distortion and disproportionation reactions. For Ni-doped spinel-type LiMn2O4 (Li8Mn15NiO32), Li ions in the Mn environment are easier to extract, while Mn3+ is the first to be oxidized; the first delithiation voltage increases by ∼ 12.6% to 4.457 V.

In the literature on monetary economics, there is the ‘inflationary bias’ result which predicts that the rate of inflation will be biased towards a higher level under discretionary monetary policy than under a rule‐based policy regime. It is established that a credible nominal target can eliminate this ‘inflationary bias’. In this paper, we examine the case of nominal GDP targeting, which is a rule‐based monetary regime. Depending on the degree of conservativeness by the central bank, we show in a stylized model the choice of different combination of inflation and real GDP targets can still result in an ‘inflationary bias’, and there also exists the possibility of a ‘dis‐inflationary bias’.

Ethnopharmacological relevance Allium macrostemon Bunge. is an edible Chinese herb traditionally used for the treatment of thoracic pain, stenocardia, heart asthma and diarrhea. Although its biological potential has been extensively proven such as antioxidant activity, antiplatelet aggregation, vasodilation and antidepressant-like activity, there are no reports in the literature regarding its pharmacological analgesic activity. Aim of the study The study was carried out to examine the anti-nociceptive activity of the crude extract of A. macrostemon bulbs and interpret its likely molecular target. Materials and methods The bulbs of A. macrostemon were gathered, dried-up , and extracted with water (AMWD). AMWD was subjected to activity testing, using chemical-induced (acetic acid and formalin test) and heat-induced (hot plate) pain models. To evaluate the likely mechanistic strategy involved in the analgesic effect of AMWD, whole-cell patch clamp recordings were conducted in acutely dissociated dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons and human embryonic kidney 293T (HEK293T) cells expressing pain-related receptors. Electrophysiological methods were employed to detect the action potentials of DRG neurons and potential targets of A. macrostemon. Results AMWD showed significant palliative effect in all heat and chemical induced pain assays. Moreover, AMWD significantly reduces the excitability of dorsal root ganglion neurons by reducing the firing frequency of action potentials. Further analysis revealed that voltage-gated sodium channel Nav1.7 is the potential target of A. macrostemon for its analgesic activity. Conclusion This study has brought new scientific evidence of preclinical efficacy of A. macrostemon as an anti-nociceptive agent. Apparently, these effects are involved with the inhibition of the voltage-sensitive Nav1.7 channel contributing to the reduction of peripheral neuronal excitability. Our present study justifies the folkloric usage of A. macrostemon as a remedy for several pain states. Furthermore, A. macrostemon is a good resource for the development of analgesic drugs targeting Nav1.7 channel.

In this chapter, we analyze changes in trade balance in response to protectionist policy on imported intermediate inputs. Our analysis is conducted in a non-scale growth model, which features endogenous labor supply, leisure choice, and an imported intermediate input in the domestic production. From our model results, we find that an increase in the price of the imported intermediate input will lead to lower productivity and lower output, which in turn will have an adverse effect on the trade balance. But the reduced consumption following the import tariff will have a positive effect on the trade balance. The net impact on the trade balance depends on the relative forces of these offsetting factors. Hence, trade protectionism on imported intermediate inputs will not necessarily reduce the trade deficit in the domestic economy. The policy implication is that President Trump’s trade protectionist policy on imported intermediate inputs from China will probably not work.

This chapter examines how the spatial distribution of foreign direct investment (FDI) affects productivity growth in less developed regions of China. A systematic theoretical framework is set up concerning the potential effects of FDI capital via different channels. Following the theoretical framework, this study presents empirical evidence showing that FDI spillovers from the developed regions play a crucial role in enhancing productivity growth in the less developed regions. Empirical results also show that local FDI spillovers in less developed regions promote local productivity growth. In addition, FDI spillovers from less developed regions are not shown to have a significant effect on productivity growth in other less developed regions.

It has been over a decade since the cooperation within the BRICS was formalized. In this chapter, we attempt to examine the behavior and the correlation of growth cycles among the BRICS. To that end, we measure their growth cycles, locate the turning points in their cycles, and conduct contemporaneous and cross-time correlation tests in their growth cycles. From our empirical results, we find that the growth cycles of Brazil, Russia, and South Africa depend highly on the growth in the Chinese economy and the demand from the Chinese market. This common dependence on China drives growth cycle correlation among Brazil, Russia, and South Africa over time. As the BRICS are major economic forces in their respective regions, the findings from our study have important policy implication for future cooperation among the BRICS.

In this chapter, we examine the synchronization of business cycles between China and the United States for the past few decades. To that end, we measure their business cycles and find the turning points in their cycles. Under a GMM analytical framework, we conduct both single synchronization tests and joint synchronization tests in the growth cycles and acceleration cycles between China and the US. From our synchronization tests, we find strong evidence of positive correlation in the growth cycles between China and the US, with spillover effects on each other. In addition, we find evidence of negative correlation in the acceleration cycles between China and the US across time, which implies that when the rate of US economic growth begins to slow down, the Chinese economy will be resilient. So when the US sneezes, China will not catch a cold.

This chapter contains a statistical analysis exploring the interrelationships between technology, production and various socio-economic variables in the context of China’s regional macroeconomy. We focus on empirically examining how technology at the macro level is interrelated to production, output, and various macro-level socio-economic indicators. Our statistical analysis shows that a higher level of technology is always associated with socio-economically desirable outcomes on the various chosen macro-level indicators. However, the causality may run bi-directionally. Our empirical results also show that even after the partial effects of all the other macro-level variables are netted out, that is, even when the indirect effects of technology are not considered, the remaining direct effect of technology is still shown to play a very crucial role in determining labor productivity in the production process at the macro level.

This chapter presents an empirical analysis to improve our understanding of the catch-up and convergence tendencies of total factor productivity (TFP) growth across the Chinese provinces. After controlling for the province heterogeneity, our regression results show that the Chinese provinces exhibit significant conditional convergence in TFP growth over the sample period. This indicates that province-specific factors play an important role in determining provincial TFP growth. Economic policies conducive to faster TFP growth should thus be directed to the relevant factors underlying the province heterogeneity. This chapter suggests that openness to international economic activities and human capital accumulation are two important factors that promote TFP growth, both of which rely on a salutary social infrastructure.

The current wave of globalization has encouraged growth in the world economy and affected all sides of international economic involvement over the last few decades. Developing and emerging market economies have introduced major policy reforms and experienced significant economic growth. As a developing country, China has set an annual growth target, which has driven the nation’s economic policies for decades. Motivated by the Chinese experience, we develop an analytical framework to examine the case of economic growth targeting. In our model economy, key features for developing countries include the degree of commitment by the central bank, semi-dependence between the monetary authority and the fiscal authority, and the risk of sovereign default. From our analytical results, we find that under a GDP growth targeting regime, when the central bank is more committed to its growth target, the actual growth rate becomes close to the target level, the inflation rate increases moderately for those countries with flatter supply curves, and the social welfare improves. Moreover, higher growth rate is associated with lower tax levied by the fiscal authority, and it is inversely related to the government’s default probability. Policy implication could be drawn from our model results for developing countries when they evaluate the policy option of growth targeting, in order to achieve positive and sustainable economic growth.

SUMMARY: Aim: IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is the most common primary form of glomerulonephritis worldwide. In the present study, the genetic structure of the NPHS2 gene was studied to verify if podocin plays a role in the pathogenesis of IgAN. Methods: Clinical characteristics and DNA samples were collected from 26 Chinese children with sporadic IgAN. A direct sequencing was performed after polymerase chain reaction amplification to all the eight exons of the NPHS2 gene. Results: Three synonymous variants as known polymorphisms (954T→C homozygous, 1038A→G heterozygous and homozygous) were found in 3, 4 and 1 patients, respectively. There was no significant difference in the genotypic and allelic frequencies of 954T > C and 1038A > G polymorphisms between the patients and normal controls. Conclusion: No significant difference in the genotypic and allelic frequencies of the identified 954T > C and 1038A > G polymorphisms between the patients and normal controls was found.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects and the mechanism of a pulsed electric field (PEF) on insulin and its subsequent mediation of proliferative changes in human hepatocytes in vitro. The PEF, the electric field intensity coupled into the culture medium, was about 0.7 V/m with a repeating frequency of 50 Hz. Insulin solution was exposed to PEF for 20 min and added to the culture medium of human hepatocytes. Combining fluorescence spectroscopy, immunocytochemistry, microarrays, RT-PCR and MTT, several important events of the insulin signaling pathways were investigated, including ligand-receptor binding capacity, intracellular tyrosine phosphorylation level, gene transcription, and cell proliferation. PEF produced a conformational change of insulin molecule. The binding capacity of insulin to its receptors was reduced to 87% of the control level after PEF treatment, and the average intracellular tyrosine phosphorylation level decreased by 11%. The expression of 55 of 12,000 genes examined was modified, including an increase in the expression of human tyrosine phosphatase and the small GTP-binding protein. Based on these results, a mechanism is proposed to explain the bio-effects of PEF on hepatic cell proliferation through the insulin signaling pathway.

Aim: To compare the fluid management of hypernatraemic dehydration in acute gastroenteritis in those who developed cerebral oedema (cases) versus those who did not (controls). Methods: A retrospective study of 97 cases of hypernatraemic dehydration at a tertiary children’s hospital in China over five years, in which rehydration regimes of 49 children who developed cerebral oedema were compared with 48 children who made an uneventful recovery. Results: Risk factors for cerebral oedema (vs. no cerebral oedema) were an initial fluid bolus (29/49 vs. 15/48, P = 0.006), the mean rate of bolus infusion (14.7 2.2 vs. 10.8 1.4 mL/kg/hr, P < 0.001), the severity of hypernatraemia (serum sodium 167.7 7.8 vs. 161.3 7.9 mmol/L, P < 0.001) and the overall rehydration rate (8.2 1.1 vs. 6.4 0.6 mL/kg/hr, P < 0.001). On logistic regression, a rapid rehydration rate was the most significant contributor to cerebral oedema. From receive operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, the safe rate of rehydration was

Objective To highlight the clinical presentations of influenza A (H1N1) infection, for early diagnosis and recognition by the pediatricians. Methods In this retrospective study, the medical records of inpatients with influenza A (H1N1) infection between November 1, 2009 and May 31, 2011were reviewed. Results Eighty pediatric in-patients with median age 41.9 mo were studied. ARDS (11/80), pneumothorax (8/80), pleural effusion (7/80) and encephalopathy (7/80) were the most frequent complications. Six of 11 ARDS patients died;all of them were under 5 y. The median days of viral shedding was 11.4 d. Slight increase of Il-6, Il-10 and TNF-γ were revealed in some cases. Conclusions During late stage of pandemic wave, the majority of patients were young children. Children with severe Influenza A (H1N1) are prone to develop complications, and die from ARDS. If influenza-like illness is accompanied by neurologic signs, influenza A (H1N1) virus infection should be considered. The viral shedding in children is longer than in adults.

To compare the fluid management of hypernatraemic dehydration in acute gastroenteritis in those who developed cerebral oedema (cases) versus those who did not (controls).A retrospective study of 97 cases of hypernatraemic dehydration at a tertiary children's hospital in China over five years, in which rehydration regimes of 49 children who developed cerebral oedema were compared with 48 children who made an uneventful recovery.Risk factors for cerebral oedema (vs. no cerebral oedema) were an initial fluid bolus (29/49 vs. 15/48, P=0.006), the mean rate of bolus infusion (14.7+/-2.2 vs. 10.8+/-1.4 mL/kg/hr, P0.001), the severity of hypernatraemia (serum sodium 167.7+/-7.8 vs. 161.3+/-7.9 mmol/L, P0.001) and the overall rehydration rate (8.2+/-1.1 vs. 6.4+/-0.6 mL/kg/hr, P0.001). On logistic regression, a rapid rehydration rate was the most significant contributor to cerebral oedema. From receive operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, the safe rate of rehydration was6.8 mL/kg/hr.The key risk factors for the development of cerebral oedema during recovery from hypernatraemic dehydration were too rapid a rate of rehydration, an initial fluid bolus to rapidly expand plasma volume and the severity of the hypernatraemia. Thus, we conclude that a uniformly slow rate of rehydration is the best way of preventing cerebral oedema.

In this paper, we investigate the relationship between Chinese macroeconomic policy and economic growth, and examine how the choice of macroeconomic regime affects economic performance in China. An open-economy model is developed for this purpose. It is a three-sector “almost small" open-economy macroeconomic model, with asset markets and forward-looking agents. This open-economy model is then adopted to analyse the implications of both domestic and external growth shocks to the Chinese economy under two alternative macroeconomic policy regimes. These policy regimes have two extreme assumptions on the exchange rate, with differing degrees of financial capital mobility. The simulation results show that greater flexibility in the exchange rate regime allows the central bank to conduct independent monetary policy in the Chinese economy, the benefit from which increases as financial capital becomes more internationally mobile. Most growth shocks cause an expansion in the real GDP level, and there is a deflation in the price level and depreciation in the real exchange rate when the economy operates a floating exchange rate regime with high financial capital mobility. Overall, the expansionary effects in this macroeconomic environment will be beneficial to the Chinese economy.

Recent discoveries indicate that the molecules in glomerular podocytes and slit diaphragms may play an important role in the development of proteinuria and nephrotic syndrome. Mutational analyses of NPHS1 and NPHS2 were performed to verify this hypothesis in sporadic nephrotic syndrome (NS) patients. Clinical characteristics and DNA samples were collected from 38 Chinese children with sporadic steroid-sensitive NS, 22 with steroid-resistant NS and 30 controls. Direct sequencing was performed after PCR amplification of all 29 and 8 exons of the NPHS1 and NPHS2 genes, respectively. In NPHS1, 4 patients had heterozygous missense mutations leading to amino acid substitutions (R800C, Q453R). Furthermore, 3 known single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) were found (T741T, V763V, S1105S). In NPHS2, 3 patients had novel heterozygous allelic variants leading to amino acid substitutions (S206I, E188D), while 1 patient was found to carry a novel nonsense mutation leading to a truncated protein product (Glu237STOP). Two known polymorphisms were also found (A318A, L346L). The results demonstrate that NPHS1 and NPHS2 mutations are also present in Chinese sporadic NS patients, suggesting that genetic changes of nephrin and podocin may play pathogenetic roles in some patients with sporadic steroid resistant NS.

Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP) is one of the most common forms of small-vessel vasculitis in childhood, and renal involvement (HSP nephritis, HSPN) is the main determinant of morbidity after acute phase. Considering the racial diversity and clinical heterogeneity in the prevalence, genetic factors might play a role in pathogenesis of HSP and HSPN. Direct sequencing was performed after PCR amplification of all 8 exons of the NPHS2 gene in 20 Chinese children with HSPN and 30 controls in present study. The genetic analyses revealed 3 polymorphisms (954T > C heterozygous, 1038A > G heterozygous and homozygous, all in exon 8) in 7 out of 20 patients studied, but there was no significant difference in the genotypic and allelic frequencies of these polymorphisms between the patients and controls. The result did not support the possible role of the NPHS2 gene in susceptibility to HSPN in the population studied. Studies in a larger sample population with different genetic backgrounds will be necessary in the future.

There have been many exciting advances in our understanding of genetic causes of nephrotic syndrome since 1998 when nephrin was first found. The mRNA expressions of nephrin and CD2AP were studied by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in aspirated renal biopsy tissues from 9 subjects with minimal change nephrotic syndrome (MCNS), 6 with primary IgA nephropathy (IgAN), and 15 controls. Protein expression of nephrin, podocin, and CD2AP were analyzed by immunohistochemistry, indirect immunofluorescence, and laser confocal microscope. Compared with controls, the CD2AP mRNA level was significantly downregulated in renal samples from MCNS and IgAN patients (p=0.001 in MCNS, p=0.046 in IgAN), though no significant downregulation was found in the mRNA level of nephrin (p=0.346 in MCNS, p=0.311 in IgAN). The expression levels of protein CD2AP and nephrin were significantly reduced in MCNS and IgAN (MCNS: nephrin, p=0.034, CD2AP, p=0.005; IgAN: nephrin, p=0.021, CD2AP, p=0.025). The podocin staining did not differ significantly between controls and disease groups (p value 0.340 and 0.787, respectively). The results suggest that transcript and translation expression changes of nephrin and CD2AP may have pathogenetic roles in some patients with MCNS and IgAN in Chinese, though no correlation was found in podocin with proteinuria in this study.

Fetal Rhabdomyoma (F-RM) is a benign tumor of mesenchymal tissue with the characteristics of cross striated muscle, involving mainly the soft tissue around ears, neck and mucosa of the nasopharynx, oropharynx and laryngeal. There have been very few reports of F-RM inside the scrotum. Here we presented a case of a 2-year-old male child with fetal rhabdomyoma inside his scrotum close to the testis. Histopathology shows that the tumor tissue is mainly composed of skeletal muscle cells in diverse differentiated states and a few undifferentiated lobus intermedius cells. The part of immature skeletal cell of the tumor displayed spindle shape and showed intersected and/or fascicular in the arrangement. The tumor cells are void of aberrant enucleated and dividing phase. Consequently, the patient is presently in good condition and requires a follow-up survey. Conclusively, genital rhabdomyoma is a rare tumor of skeletal muscle origin. We presented the clinical, histological, and immunohistochemical findings of paratesticular fetal rhabdomyoma in a 26-month-old boy. To our knowledge, it is the second case in the scrotum to have been reported in children.