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Can the expansion of a prosperous middle class help China to rebalance to consumption-led growth? We address this question through analysis of macro- and micro-level data. Using macro statistics, we examine trends in national aggregate consumption and GDP growth from 2000 through 2019. We observe growth in aggregate consumption but do not find convincing evidence of consumption-led growth. Using micro-level household survey data from 2002, 2007, 2013 and 2018, we estimate the size of China's prosperous middle class and its contribution to aggregate consumption growth. We find that the prosperous middle class expanded rapidly but contributed less to aggregate consumption growth than expected. We discuss features of this class that diminished its contribution to consumption-led growth, including its low propensity to consume out of income and its limited expansion beyond urban subgroups. We conclude that the expansion of the prosperous middle class is necessary but not sufficient to bring about rebalancing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adenosine 5ʹ-triphosphate (ATP)-binding cassette (ABC) transporter, IrtAB, plays a vital role in the replication and viability of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), where its function is to import iron-loaded siderophores. Unusually, it adopts the canonical type IV exporter fold. Herein, we report the structure of unliganded Mtb IrtAB and its structure in complex with ATP, ADP, or ATP analogue (AMP-PNP) at resolutions ranging from 2.8 to 3.5 Å. The structure of IrtAB bound ATP-Mg2+ shows a "head-to-tail" dimer of nucleotide-binding domains (NBDs), a closed amphipathic cavity within the transmembrane domains (TMDs), and a metal ion liganded to three histidine residues of IrtA in the cavity. Cryo-electron microscopy (Cryo-EM) structures and ATP hydrolysis assays show that the NBD of IrtA has a higher affinity for nucleotides and increased ATPase activity compared with IrtB. Moreover, the metal ion located in the TM region of IrtA is critical for the stabilization of the conformation of IrtAB during the transport cycle. This study provides a structural basis to explain the ATP-driven conformational changes that occur in IrtAB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electrostatic coalescence of the water droplets in water-in-oil (W/O) emulsion plays a significant role in demulsification process. As the droplets collide and aggregate with each other, the dispersed droplets may coalesce and separate from continuous phase. Several mechanisms simultaneously contribute to the complexity associated with droplets coalescence. Thus, an appropriate simulation approach is needed to predict electrostatic coalescence performance in W/O emulsion. In this work, the population balance model (PBM) was used to predict coalescence performance of W/O emulsion under electric field. The proposed approach is novel as it integrates various mathematical models to study dispersed droplets collision frequency considering Boltzmann motion, differential settlement, and electric field. Moreover, a new collision efficiency model, which is best proper for the droplet size between 1 μm and 100 μm, is also proposed to make the prediction model more accurate. The simulation results were verified by comparing with existing experimental datasets. After that, a sensitivity analysis was carried out to study parameters that affect electrostatic coalescence performance, such as electric field strength, dispersion permittivity, continuous viscosity, and collision efficiency coefficient. The results show that the higher voltage and droplet permittivity both lead to the greater electrostatic coalescence performance, but the increments are gradually smaller under the condition of neglecting the droplet fragmentation. With the increasing of continuous viscosity, the droplet size median significantly decreases at first and then flattens. Meanwhile, the performance of electrostatic coalescence is greater at bigger collision efficiency coefficient. But the variation of volume size median with collision efficiency coefficient is modest. The simulation approach proposed in this paper provides an in-depth understanding of the dispersed droplets collision in electric field, which provides useful insights for prediction of electrostatic coalescence performance of W/O emulsion in petroleum industries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As more and more oilfields enter later stages of extraction, demulsification of water-in-oil (W/O) emulsions with high water content has become a challenging problem. To upgrade the current offshore oil treatment process, a compact and efficient demulsification treatment is highly desirable. In this paper, a novel enhanced treatment combining a direct current (DC) electric field and medium coalescence was proposed. Based on this idea, an electric-medium demulsifier was also designed for deep purification of W/O emulsions. The effects of operating conditions, emulsions characteristics and medium bed parameters on demulsification performance were investigated. The enhanced treatment showed better performance compared to electrostatic demulsification and medium coalescence alone, and was especially suitable for treating emulsions with strong emulsification. In short, at U = 3 kV, the demulsification efficiency increased by approximately 30% compared to that at U = 0 kV. This research provided a new approach for the treatment of W/O emulsions that has the advantages of wide operational flexibility, a tolerance for deteriorated characteristics and a rapid and thorough treatment process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) leucine, isoleucine and valine are synthesized via a common biosynthetic pathway. Ketol-acid reductoisomerase (KARI) is the second enzyme in this pathway. In addition to its role in BCAA biosynthesis, KARI catalyzes two rate-limiting steps that are key components of a cell-free biofuel biosynthesis route. For industrial applications, reaction temperature and enzyme stability are key factors that affect process robustness and product yield. Here, we have solved the cryo-EM structure (2.94 Å resolution) of a homododecameric Class I KARI (from Campylobacter jejuni) and demonstrated how a triad of amino acid side chains plays a crucial role in promoting the oligomerization of this enzyme. Importantly, both its thermal and solvent stability are greatly enhanced in the dodecameric state when compared to its dimeric counterpart (apparent melting temperatures (Tm) of 83.1 °C and 51.5 °C, respectively). We also employed protein design (PROSS) for a tetrameric Class II KARI (from Escherichia coli) to generate a variant with improved thermal and solvent stabilities. In total, 34 mutations were introduced, which did not affect the oligomeric state of this enzyme but resulted in a fully functional catalyst with a significantly elevated Tm (58.5 °C vs. 47.9 °C for the native version). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We estimate the size of the global middle class in China and 33 other countries and analyze China's expanding middle class in an international context. The "global middle class" is defined in terms of being neither poor nor rich in the developed world. China's global middle class has grown rapidly and has been catching up with the middle class in developed countries. By 2018 China's global middle class constituted 25 percent of China's population; in absolute size it was nearly double the size of the global middle class in the US and was similar in size to that of Europe. Cross‐country analysis of the relationship between the middle‐class share of the total population and GDP per capita reveals an inverted‐U pattern. China is not an outlier from the cross‐country pattern but the speed with which its middle‐class has expanded is unusual. The only other countries with similarly large, rapid expansions of the middle class are transition economies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using nationwide household survey data for 2002 and 2013, we investigate how widely Chinese household incomes had caught up to those of the middle class in the developed world by 2013, the year Xi Jinping came to power. Based on the living standards of the middle-income class in the European Union as our standard of comparison, we estimate that China's "global middle class" with a similar living standard grew rapidly after 2002, reaching 254 million in 2013. We project that it had grown further to over 450 million by 2018. We describe the characteristics of this middle class, which is predominately urban, largely resides in China's eastern region, and mainly depends on a wage income. A distinct business middle class exists but is relatively small. Analysis of the chances of attaining a middle-class income reveals the importance of an individual's circumstances at birth. Parents' education and occupation matter, and being born with an urban registration (hukou) provides a large advantage. For those born with a rural hukou , the most effective pathways to the middle class are migration and, if possible, obtaining an urban hukou. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper asks if economic growth and steps towards a market economy have affected earnings gaps between the Han and nine large urban ethnic minorities: Zhuang, Hui, Manchurian, Tujia, Uighur, Miao, Tibetan, Mongol and Korean. It also asks how earnings premiums and earnings penalties have changed for the nine ethnic minorities. For the analysis we use a subsample of the 2005 China's Inter-Census Survey. We find examples of three different changes over time in earnings premiums and earnings penalties: One ethnic minority for whom the development has been more favourable than for the Han majority; a second category in which development has been similar; and a third category for which development has been unfavourable. We conclude from the analysis that it can be misleading to infer the experience of one ethnic minority from that of another. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]