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Under the "Digital China" strategy and "Carbon Peaking and Carbon Neutrality" goal, it is significant to explore the carbon reduction effect from the digital economy development in a multi-dimensional way. Based on the panel data of 13 cities in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (BTH) region from 2011 to 2019, this study uses mechanism test model, threshold effect model, and spatial Durbin model which empirically test the influence mechanism and spatial spillover effect of digital economy development on regional CEI. The research found that (1) the digital economy development in the BTH region can reduce regional CEI, and it passes the endogenous test; (2) the digital economy indexes of 13 cities in the BTH region have significantly increased with time evolution, but there is obvious spatial unevenness; the CEI of each city except Tianjin decreases significantly with time evolution, and Tianjin shows a trend of decreasing and then increasing; (3) digital economy has a positive spatial correlation, showing the characteristics of "H–H" and "L-L" clustering. Furthermore, the digital economy has a spatial spillover effect on the CEI of neighboring cities; (4) the digital economy development can promote the industrial structure rationalization and upgrade, improves the urban green innovation quantity and quality, then reduces the regional CEI through them; and (5) the impact strength of digital economy on CEI varies at different threshold intervals of the mechanism variable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To use machine learning methods to explore overall survival (OS)-related prognostic factors in elderly multiple myeloma (MM) patients. Methods: Data were cleaned and imputed using simple imputation methods. Two data resampling methods were implemented to facilitate model building and cross validation. Four algorithms including the cox proportional hazards model (CPH); DeepSurv; DeepHit; and the random survival forest (RSF) were applied to incorporate 30 parameters, such as baseline data, genetic abnormalities and treatment options, to construct a prognostic model for OS prediction in 338 elderly MM patients (>65 years old) from four hospitals in Beijing. The C-index and the integrated Brier score (IBwere used to evaluate model performances. Results: The 30 variables incorporated in the models comprised MM baseline data, induction treatment data and maintenance therapy data. The variable importance test showed that the OS predictions were largely affected by the maintenance schema variable. Visualizing the survival curves by maintenance schema, we realized that the immunomodulator group had the best survival rate. C-indexes of 0.769, 0.780, 0.785, 0.798 and IBS score of 0.142, 0.112, 0.108, 0.099 were obtained from the CPH model, DeepSurv, DeepHit, and the RSF model respectively. The RSF model yield best scores from the fivefold cross-validation, and the results showed that different data resampling methods did affect our model results. Conclusion: We established an OS model for elderly MM patients without genomic data based on 30 characteristics and treatment data by machine learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traffic authorities have taken various measures to mitigate vehicular-source pollution emissions, among which setting speed limits has been proved to be effective. However, most of the existing macroscopic research proposes idealized mathematical models to design optimal speed limit from the perspective of network equilibrium, and the simplified pollution emission functions cannot accurately reflect the emission mechanism. In order to improve the accuracy of emission calculation and obtain more reliable speed limit schemes in a large-scale network, an integrated traffic simulation approach was proposed herein to derive environment-friendly road speed limit schemes. First, this article built an integrated simulation framework to portray traffic operations and emissions comprehensively. Subsequently, a toy network was employed to demonstrate how to obtain environment-friendly speed limit schemes using this framework. Then this article utilized it to determine the corresponding optimal speed limit schemes on the Second Ring road network in Beijing under different scenarios. The results indicated that traffic authorities should impose adaptive rather than fixed speed limits according to traffic period and emission reduction priority. Moreover, imposing the derived speed limit schemes, the amounts of total emissions, hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon dioxide, and fine particulate matter decreased by 2.24%, 0.72%, 0.13%, 1.61%, 2.32%, and 5.35% during peak hour, and by 8.31%, 0.60%, 1.92%, 7.16%, 8.60%, and 8.72% during off-peak hour, respectively. Implications: In order to alleviate traffic pollutions emission issues more effectively from the traffic management perspective, we put forward an integrated traffic simulation approach to derive the environmental friendly road speed limit schemes. We combined MOVES and PARAMICES to build the integrated traffic simulation framework to portray road traffic operations and emissions elaborately. To verify the effectiveness of our method on real large road network, we used this method to find out the corresponding optimal speed limit schemes within the combination scheme set on Second Ring road network in Beijing under different traffic demand scenarios. Comparing with the current speed limit scheme, our derived speed limit scheme contributed to lowering emission. The amounts of total pollution emissions, hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbon dioxide (CO2), and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) decreased by 2.24%, 0.72%, 0.13%, 1.61%, 2.32%, and 5.35% during peak hours, and by 8.31%, 0.60%, 1.92%, 7.16%, 8.60%, and 8.72% during off-peak hours, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have examined the associations between ambient fine particulate matter (PM 2.5) exposure and gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). However, limited studies explored the relationships between PM 2.5 exposure and blood glucose levels during pregnancy, especially in highly polluted areas. To examine the associations of prenatal ambient PM 2.5 exposure with GDM and blood glucose levels, and to identify the sensitive exposure windows in a highly air-polluted area. From July 2016 to October 2017, a birth cohort study was conducted in Beijing, China. Participants were interviewed in each trimester regarding demographics, lifestyle, living and working environment, and medical conditions. Participant's daily ambient PM 2.5 levels from 3 m before last menstrual period (LMP) to the third trimester was estimated by a hybrid spatiotemporal model. Indoor air quality index was calculated based on environmental tobacco smoke, ventilation, cooking, painting, pesticide, and herbicide use. Distributed lag non-linear model was applied to explore the sensitive weeks of PM 2.5 exposure. Of 165 pregnant women, 23 (13.94%) developed GDM. After adjusting for potential confounders, PM 2.5 exposure during the 1st trimester was associated with higher odds of GDM (10 μg/m3 increase: OR = 1.89, 95% CI: 1.04–3.49). Each 10 μg/m3 increase in PM 2.5 during the 2nd trimester was associated with 17.70% (2.21–33.20), 15.99% (2.96–29.01), 18.82% (4.11–33.52), and 17.10% (3.28–30.92) increase in 1-h, 2-h, Δ1h-fasting (1-h minus fasting), and Δ2h-fasting (2-h minus fasting) blood glucose levels, respectively. PM 2.5 exposure at 24th-27th weeks after LMP was associated with increased GDM risk. We identified sensitive exposure windows of 21st-24th weeks for higher 1-h and 2-h blood glucose levels and of 20th-22nd weeks for increased Δ1h-fasting and Δ2h-fasting. Ambient PM 2.5 exposure during the second trimester was associated with higher odds of GDM and higher blood glucose levels. Avoiding exposure to high air pollution levels during the sensitive windows might prevent women from developing GDM. • Using DLNM enabled us to better understand the lag effect of PM 2.5 exposure. • The 2nd trimester of pregnancy was identified as a sensitive window of PM 2.5 exposure. • PM 2.5 exposure through 24th to 27th weeks after LMP was associated with GDM. • PM 2.5 exposure through 21st to 22nd weeks after LMP was related to glucose levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: With market-oriented economic and health-care reform, public hospitals in China have received unprecedented pressures from governmental regulations, public opinions, and financial demands. To adapt the changing environment and keep pace of modernizing healthcare delivery system, public hospitals in China are expanding clinical services and improving delivery efficiency, while controlling costs. Recent experiences are valuable lessons for guiding future healthcare reform. Here we carefully study three teaching hospitals, to exemplify their experiences during this period. Methods: We performed a systematic analysis on hospitalization costs, health-care quality and delivery efficiencies from 2006 to 2010 in three teaching hospitals in Beijing, China. The analysis measured temporal changes of inpatient cost per stay (CPS), cost per day (CPD), inpatient mortality rate (IMR), and length of stay (LOS), using a generalized additive model. Findings: There were 651,559 hospitalizations during the period analyzed. Averaged CPS was stable over time, while averaged CPD steadily increased by 41.7% (P<0.001), from CNY 1,531 in 2006 to CNY 2,169 in 2010. The increasing CPD seemed synchronous with the steady rising of the national annual income per capita. Surgical cost was the main contributor to the temporal change of CPD, while medicine and examination costs tended to be stable over time. From 2006 and 2010, IMR decreased by 36%, while LOS reduced by 25%. Increasing hospitalizations with higher costs, along with an overall stable CPS, reduced IMR, and shorter LOS, appear to be the major characteristics of these three hospitals at present. Interpretations: These three teaching hospitals have gained some success in controlling costs, improving cares, adopting modern medical technologies, and increasing hospital revenues. Effective hospital governance and physicians' professional capacity plus government regulations and supervisions may have played a role. However, purely market-oriented health-care reform could also misguide future healthcare reform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Combining insights from the theory of fields to markets and recent geographic literature on regional innovation, I conceptualize regional industry building as a contested process of market building involving initiatives of both economic actors and political actors in intertwined governmental fields and organizational fields. Market building entails the contribution of knowledge brokers capable of bridging the gap between the local industrial community and global leaders. Moreover, it requires the institutionalization of a stable governance structure to enable the rise of productivity- enhancing new entrepreneurship, especially to minimize 'unproductive' endeavors of technological entrepreneurs in fighting against powerful incumbents and reactionary institutions. From a policy perspective, regional industry building entails not only policies facilitating the pooling of glocal knowledge brokers at the regional scale, but also institutional reform and political transformation in the national arena, especially in an emerging market economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Invited for this month's cover is the group of Jun‐Long Zhang, Peking University, Beijing. The cover picture shows the porpholactone cofactor, which play unique roles in molecular imaging and therapy (or theranostics), catalysis, as well as energy and optical materials. This class of molecules is ideal for more intriguing scientific research and future practical applications. Read the full text of the Minireview at 10.1002/cplu.202000494. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To explore the risk factors for the recurrence of endometrioma and the risk factors for the recurrence of endometriosis-related pain after long-term follow-up. Methods: This study retrospectively analyzed 358 women with endometriomas who had a minimum of 5-years follow up after laparoscopic endometrioma excision, which was performed at Peking Union Medical College Hospital from January 2009 to April 2013. All women were divided into recurrence group and nonrecurrence group. Analysis was performed with regard to preoperative history, laboratory analysis, findings during surgery, and symptoms during follow-up, including improvement and recurrence. Results: The cumulative incidence rates of recurrence from 5 to 10 years after surgery were 15.4, 16.8, 19.3, 22.5, 22.5, and 22.5%, respectively. Significant differences were found between two groups in terms of age at surgery (RR: 0.764, 95% CI: 0.615–0.949, p = 0.015), duration of dysmenorrhea (RR: 1.120, 95% CI: 1.054–1.190, p < 0.001), presence of adenomyosis (RR: 1.629, 95% CI: 1.008–2.630, p = 0.046), CA125 level (RR: 1.856, 95% CI: 1.072–3.214, p = 0.021) and severity of dysmenorrhea. The severity of dysmenorrhea (RR: 1.711, 95% CI: 1.175–2.493, p = 0.005) and postoperative pregnancy (RR: 0.649, 95% CI: 0.460–0.914, p = 0.013) were significantly correlated with endometrioma recurrence in the multivariate analysis. No significant associations were found between the recurrence rate and gravida, parity, body mass index, infertility, leiomyoma presence, the size of ovarian endometrioma, the presence of deep infiltrating endometriosis, disease stage or postoperative medication. Conclusions: The severity of dysmenorrhea and postoperative pregnancy were independent risk factors for the recurrence of ovarian endometriomas after surgery during the long-time follow up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Online auctions for distressed property sales in Beijing, China. • Impacts of home purchase restrictions. • Auction entry, auction premia and bidders' willingness to pay. • Valuation distributions between restricted and non-restricted buyers. • HPR has significant impacts on auction prices and market liquidity. Distressed property sales, which are carried out under court order by online auction, have increased rapidly in China in recent years. We examine how the implementation of home purchase restrictions (HPR) by the Chinese government in 2017 has affected the market for distressed properties in Beijing. We first use a stylized second-price auction model to derive theoretical predictions for how HPR should impact the number of auction entrants, auction prices/premia, and auction bidders' average willingness to pay. We then test those predictions using data on court sales from the Taobao online auction platform from 2015 to 2018. By comparing legal auctions of housing before and after April 2017, we obtain empirical results consistent with the model's predictions. Specifically, our analysis documents that auction entrants fell by approximately 70% and auction premia by 16%–27% after the HPR policy was implemented. Furthermore, the average bidder's willingness to pay relative to the seller's valuation fell from 80% to 40%, which suggests that bidders who were affected by HPR had higher valuations, on average, than bidders who weren't. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine whether the expression of leukemia inhibitory factor during the implantation window in endometrial tissue and uterine flushing fluid of patients with adenomyosis differs from that of healthy fertile women. Design: Experimental study using endometrial tissue and uterine flushing fluid. Setting: Peking University First Hospital, People''s Republic of China. Patient(s): There were 28 patients with adenomyosis and 27 control fertile women. Intervention(s): Uterine flushing fluid and endometrial samples were collected during the implantation window, defined as 7 to 9 days after ovulation. Main Outcome Measure(s): Leukemia inhibitory factor levels in uterine flushing fluid were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Leukemia inhibitory factor messenger RNA expression in eutopic endometrium was quantified by real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. Leukemia inhibitory factor protein expression was evaluated with semiquantitative immunohistochemistry. Result(s): Leukemia inhibitory factor levels were significantly lower in the uterine flushing fluid of patients with adenomyosis with a history of infertility. Leukemia inhibitory factor messenger RNA and protein also were significantly lower in patients with adenomyosis, compared with control. Leukemia inhibitory factor immunostaining intensity was significantly lower in patients with adenomyosis, compared with control. Conclusion(s): Leukemia inhibitory factor is dysregulated in the endometrium and uterine flushing fluid of women with adenomyosis during the implantation window. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]