Local Exposure Research Articles

PM2.5 pollution in Texas: a geospatial analysis of health impact functions.

Air pollution is the greatest environmental threat to human health in the world today and is responsible for an estimated 7-9 million deaths annually. One of the most damaging air pollutants is PM2.5 pollution, fine airborne particulate matter under 2.5 microns in diameter. Exposure to PM2.5 pollution can cause premature death, heart disease, lung cancer, stroke, diabetes, asthma, low birthweight, and IQ loss. To avoid these adverse health effects, the WHO recommends that PM2.5 levels not exceed 5 μg/m3. This study estimates the negative health impacts of PM2.5 pollution in Texas in 2016. Local exposure estimates were calculated at the census tract level using the EPA's BenMAP-CE software. In BenMAP, a variety of exposure-response functions combine air pollution exposure data with population data and county-level disease and death data to estimate the number of health effects attributable to PM2.5 pollution for each census tract. The health effects investigated were mortality, low birthweight, stroke, new onset asthma, new onset Alzheimer's, and non-fatal lung cancer. This study found that approximately 26.7 million (98.9%) of the 27.0 million people living in Texas in 2016 resided in areas where PM2.5 concentrations were above the WHO recommendation of 5 μg/m3, and that 2.6 million people (9.8%) lived in areas where the average PM2.5 concentration exceeded 10 μg/m3. This study estimates that there were 8,405 (confidence interval [CI], 5,674-11,033) premature deaths due to PM2.5 pollution in Texas in 2016, comprising 4.3% of all deaths. Statewide increases in air-pollution-related morbidity and mortality were seen for stroke (2,209 - CI: [576, 3,776]), low birthweight (2,841 - CI: [1,696, 3,925]), non-fatal lung cancers (636 - CI: [219, 980]), new onset Alzheimer's disease (24,575 - CI: [20,800, 27,540]), and new onset asthma (7,823 - CI: [7,557, 8,079]). This study found that air pollution poses significant risks to the health of Texans, despite the fact that pollution levels across most of the state comply with the EPA standard for PM2.5 pollution of 12 μg/m3. Improving air quality in Texas could save thousands of lives from disease, disability, and premature death.

The deforestation effects of trade and agricultural productivity in Brazil

This paper quantifies the relative footprint of trade and agricultural productivity on deforestation across Brazilian municipalities between 2000 and 2017. Using remote-sensing data, we identify distinct effects of these two phenomena on land use. Greater exposure to new genetically engineered soy seeds is associated with faster deforestation through cropland expansion. We find no significant association between local exposure to Chinese demand and deforestation, but exposure to trade with China mitigates the deforestation impacts from the new soy technology. Our findings suggest that, when considered together, productivity gains altering municipalities’ comparative advantage played a more significant role in driving deforestation across Brazil than Chinese demand alone.

No Interference of H9 Extract on Trastuzumab Pharmacokinetics in Their Combinations

Trastuzumab is used to treat breast cancer patients overexpressing human epidermal growth factor receptor 2, but resistance and toxicity limit its uses, leading to attention to trastuzumab combinations. Recently, the synergistic effect of trastuzumab and H9 extract (H9) combination against breast cancer has been reported. Because drug exposure determines its efficacy and toxicity, the question of whether H9 changes trastuzumab exposure in the body has been raised. Therefore, this study aimed to characterize trastuzumab pharmacokinetics and elucidate the effect of H9 on trastuzumab pharmacokinetics at a combination dose that shows synergism in mice. As a result, trastuzumab showed linear pharmacokinetics after its intravenous administration from 1 to 10 mg/kg. In the combination of trastuzumab and H9, single and 2-week treatments of oral H9 (500 mg/kg) did not influence trastuzumab pharmacokinetics. In the multiple-combination treatments of trastuzumab and H9 showing their synergistic effect (3 weeks of trastuzumab with 2 weeks of H9), the pharmacokinetic profile of trastuzumab was comparable to that of 3 weeks of trastuzumab alone. In tissue distribution, the tissue to plasma ratios of trastuzumab below 1.0 indicated its limited distributions within the tissues, and these patterns were unaffected by H9. These results suggest that the systemic and local exposures of trastuzumab are unchanged by single and multiple-combination treatments of H9.

Porphyromonas gingivalis Lipopolysaccharide Damages Mucosal Barrier to Promote Gastritis-Associated Carcinogenesis.

Recent epidemiological studies suggested correlation between gastric cancer (GC) and periodontal disease. We aim to clarify involvement of lipopolysaccharide of Porphyromonas gingivalis (Pg.), one of the red complex periodontal pathogens, in the GC development. To evaluate barrier function of background mucosa against the stimulations, we applied biopsy samples from 76 patients with GC using a Ussing chamber system (UCs). K19-Wnt1/C2mE transgenic (Gan) mice and human GC cell-lines ± THP1-derived macrophage was applied to investigate the role of Pg. lipopolysaccharide in inflammation-associated carcinogenesis. In the UCs, Pg. lipopolysaccharide reduced the impedance of metaplastic and inflamed mucosa with increases in mRNA expression of toll-like receptor (TLR) 2, tumor necrosis factor (TNF) α, and apoptotic markers. Invitro, Pg. lipopolysaccharide promoted reactive oxidative stress (ROS)-related apoptosis as well as activated TLR2-β-catenin-signaling on MKN7, and it increased the TNFα production on macrophages, respectively. TNFα alone activated TLR2-β-catenin-signaling in MKN7, while it further increased ROS and TNFα in macrophages. Under coculture with macrophages isolated after stimulation with Pg. lipopolysaccharide, β-catenin-signaling in MKN7 was activated with an increase in supernatant TNFα concentration, both of which were decreased by adding a TNFα neutralization antibody into the supernatant. In Gan mice with 15-week oral administration of Pg. lipopolysaccharide, tumor enlargement with β-catenin-signaling activation were observed with an increase in TNFα with macrophage infiltration. Local exposure of Pg. lipopolysaccharide may increase ROS on premalignant gastric mucosa to induce apoptosis-associated barrier dysfunction and to secrete TNFα from activated macrophages, and both stimulation of Pg. lipopolysaccharide and TNFα might activate TLR2-β-catenin-signaling in GC.

The local environment and germline genetic variation predict cancer risk in the UK Biobank prospective cohort

BackgroundThere is a growing body of evidence on the effect of the local environment exposure on cancer susceptibility. Nonetheless, several of the associations remain controversial. Moreover, our understanding of the possible interaction between the local environment and the genetic variability is still very limited. ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to clarify the role of the local environment and its possible interplay with genetics on common cancers development. MethodsUsing the UK Biobank (UKBB) prospective cohort, we selected 12 local environment exposures: nitrogen oxides, nitrogen dioxides, particulate matter (10 and 2.5 μm), noise pollution, urban traffic, living distance from the coast, percentage of greenspace, natural environment, water, and domestic garden within 1000 m from the residential coordinates of each participant. All these exposures were tested for association with 17 different types of cancer for a total of 53,270 cases and 302,645 controls. Additionally, a polygenic score (PGS) was computed for each cancer, to test possible gene-environment interactions. Finally, mediation analyses were carried out. ResultsThirty-six statistically significant associations considering multiple testing (p < 2.19 × 10−4) were observed. Among the novel associations we observed that individuals living farther from the coast had a higher risk of developing prostate cancer (OR = 1.13, CI95% = 1.06–1.20, P = 1.98 × 10−4). This association was partially mediated by physical activity (indirect effect (IE) = -8.48 × 10−7) and the time spent outdoor (IE = 9.07 × 10−6). All PGSs showed statistically significant associations. Finally, genome-environment interaction analysis showed that local environment and genetic variability affect cancer risk independently. DiscussionLiving close to the coast and air pollution were associated with a decreased risk of prostate cancer and skin melanoma, respectively. These findings from the UKBB support the role of the local environment on cancer development, which is independent from genetics and may be mediated by several lifestyle factors.

Abstract 17255: Local Gunfire Exposure is Associated With Acutely Increased Blood Pressure on the South Side of Chicago

Hypertension is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease, which is especially prevalent among minority urban patients. Our group and others have previously shown that socio-environmental factors such as crime and poverty raise cardiovascular risk. However, the acute effects of local urban gunfire on patients’ blood pressure are unknown. We hypothesized that local gunfire in our South Side Chicago community was temporally associated with an acute rise in blood pressure for nearby patients. We performed a retrospective cohort study including 7,564 patients aged 18-104 who completed two or more outpatient clinic visits within 1 year at our academic tertiary-care center on the South Side of Chicago. We included 41,554 pre-pandemic clinic visits and recorded the blood pressure for each visit. Local gunfire was measured using ShotSpotter®, a network of microphones installed throughout the South Side of Chicago, which locates gunshots using auditory triangulation. Datasets of gunfire incidents are publically available from ShotSpotter® including date/time and geolocation of incidents. We focused on incidents that occurred within 1 km of each patient’s address and between two clinic visit dates (33 days, on average). Our primary outcome was the change in systolic blood pressure between the two clinic appointments. We excluded patients whose antihypertensive regimen was changed at the first appointment. Next, we utilized a multivariate regression model to assess the relationship between incidents of gunfire and seasonally-adjusted changes in blood pressure. Between-visit gunshot exposure ranged from 1 to 1,793 per patient. We found that each incident of gunfire was associated with a statistically significant acute increase in systolic blood pressure (0.0033 mmHg increase per gunfire incident [0.0022, 0.0044], p&lt;0.0001). Results were similar regardless of whether total round count or total gunfire incidents were considered. In this study of urban patients, incidence of gunfire within 1 km of a patient’s address was associated with an acute rise in blood pressure over approximately 1 month. These findings implicate the adverse impact of local gunfire exposure and environmental stress on blood pressure in adults on the South Side of Chicago.

Detail-Preserving Multi-exposure Fusion for DR Images of Turbine Blades with Local Contrast Analysis and Exposure Intensity

Detail-Preserving Multi-exposure Fusion for DR Images of Turbine Blades with Local Contrast Analysis and Exposure Intensity

Features of reparative myogenesis of the internal anal sphincter locally exposed to humic acids

Aim to evaluate the effect of local exposure to humic substances on the repair of smooth muscle tissue of the internal anal sphincter.&#x0D; Material and methods. Laboratory male rats were subjects for experimental study. The tissues were studied using light-electron microscopy and immunocytochemistry.&#x0D; Results. The study revealed the features of myocyte survival in the wound and near-wound zones, the connective tissue scar formation rate. The phenomenon of the transformation of contractile myocytes into contractile-secretory ones was confirmed. The experiment has registered several features of the compensatory processes occurring with the use of humic acids as a local therapeutic agent. Specifically, the presence of a more pronounced edema of the interstitium, prolongation in time, in comparison with the control, filling the interstitium with connective tissue, as a result of which the architectonics of collagen fibers was adequate to the direction of myocyte contraction and relaxation. In addition, mitotically dividing cells were found among the muscle layer of the wound zone in the experimental group.&#x0D; Conclusion. The experimental data suggests that humic acids, being a natural factor, can contribute to the processes of intracellular and cellular regeneration, resulting in better restoration of the internal sphincter structure. Further development of humic substances along with the research on their action at the cellular and tissue levels should be encouraged.

Local and distant response to intratumoral immunotherapy assessed by immunoPET in mice

BackgroundDespite the promising efficacy of immune checkpoint blockers (ICB), tumor resistance and immune-related adverse events hinder their success in cancer treatment. To address these challenges, intratumoral delivery of immunotherapies has...

BrightsightNet: A lightweight progressive low-light image enhancement network and its application in “Rainbow” maglev train

To address the low-light image (LLI) problem in train driving scenarios, this paper proposes a progressive and lightweight network called BrightsightNet for LLI enhancement. First, to overcome the problem of insufficient local exposure level, two structurally identical light curve parameter estimation sub-networks are used for light enhancement in turn. Second, for real-time inference, an efficient feature extraction operator is proposed that combines depth-separable convolution and attention mechanism. Third, the overall network uses encoder–decoder architecture. For the encoder, the output features of the three layers are fused through skip connections to form an information-rich feature map. For the decoder, a hierarchical decoding approach is used to predict the light curve parameters through the three convolution layers sequentially. Experimental results show that BrightsightNet achieves a user study score (USR) of 4.43 on the proposed dataset, outperforming Zero-DCE++, SCI, RetinexDIP, and RUAS by 0.51, 0.86, 0.64, and 1.39, respectively. Moreover, BrightsightNet has parameters of only 2.6K and a single inference time of 0.052 s, which is an innovative and practical solution for low-light image enhancement in train driving scenarios, contributing to safer and more reliable train operations.

Labor markets and incarceration: The China shock to American punishment

AbstractStudies have failed to show a positive effect of unemployment on incarceration despite reasons to expect such a relationship. We note that prior estimates have been muddied by the absence of substate data, a focus on prisons rather than on jails, limited measures of unemployment, and the fact that the health of the labor market is endogenous to incarceration. We instrument for local exposure to the rise of Chinese exports (“the China Shock”) to estimate the effect of job loss on American incarceration. Marshaling a new data set of prisoners and jail inmates by race at the commuting zone level, we show that negative shocks to local labor markets led to significant increases in total incarceration rates for both Blacks and Whites. The effect seems to be driven by increased prison rather than jail populations. This estimate is invisible to ordinary least squares, which may help explain null results reported by past work. Counterfactual exercises suggest that the effect of job loss was punitively consequential. Had employment gains from the 1990s been preserved into the 2000s, the U.S. incarceration rate would have grown significantly less than it did.

Aging is associated with impaired triggering of TRPV3-mediated cutaneous vasodilation: a crucial process for local heat exposure.

Sensing temperature is vitally important to adapt our body to environmental changes. Local warm detection is required to initiate regulation of cutaneous blood flow, which is part of the peripheral thermoregulatory mechanisms, and thus avoid damage to surrounding tissues. The mechanisms mediating cutaneous vasodilation during local heat stress are impaired with aging. However, the impact of aging on the ability of the skin to detect subtle thermal changes is unknown. Among heat-activated cation channels, transient receptor potential vanilloid 3 (TRPV3) is a thermo-sensor predominantly expressed on keratinocytes and involved in local vascular thermoregulatory mechanisms of the skin in young mice. In the present study, using a murine in vivo model of local heat exposure of the skin, we showed that heat-induced vasodilation was reduced in old mice associated with reduced expression of TRPV3 channels. We also found a decrease in expression and activity of TRPV3 channel, as well as reduced TRPV3-dependent adenosine tri-phosphate release in human primary keratinocytes from old donors. This study shows that aging alters the epidermal TRPV3 channels, which might delay the detection of changes in skin temperature, thereby limiting the mechanisms triggered for local vascular thermoregulation in the old skin.

Physiologically-based pharmacokinetic model to predict doxorubicin and paclitaxel exposure in infants through breast milk.

Limited information is available concerning infant exposure and safety when breastfed by mothers receiving chemotherapy. Whereas defining distribution to breast milk is important to infer drug exposure, infant pharmacokinetics also determine to what extent the infant will be exposed to potential toxic effects. We aimed to assess the impact of chemotherapy containing breast milk on infants by predicting systemic and local (intestinal) exposure of paclitaxel and doxorubicin in infants through breast milk using a physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) approach. Whole-body PBPK models of i.v. paclitaxel and doxorubicin were extended from the literature, with an oral absorption component to enable predictions in infants receiving paclitaxel or doxorubicin-containing breast milk. For safety considerations, worst-case scenarios were explored. Finally, paclitaxel and doxorubicin exposures in plasma and intestinal tissue of infants following feeding of breast milk from paclitaxel- or doxorubicin-treated mothers were simulated and breast milk discarding strategies were evaluated. The upper 95th percentile of the predicted peak concentrations in peripheral venous blood were 3.48 and 0.74 nM (0.4%-1.7% and 0.1%-1.8% of on-treatment) for paclitaxel and doxorubicin, respectively. Intestinal exposure reached peak concentrations of 1.0 and 140 μM for paclitaxel and doxorubicin, respectively. Discarding breast milk for the first 3 days after maternal chemotherapy administration reduced systemic and tissue exposures even further, to over 90% and 80% for paclitaxel and doxorubicin, respectively. PBPK simulations of chemotherapy exposure in infants after breastfeeding with chemotherapy containing breast milk suggest that particularly local gastrointestinal adverse events should be monitored, whereas systemic adverse events are not expected.

Heterogeneous impacts of local traffic congestion on local air pollution within a city: Utilizing taxi trajectory data

This study estimates the causal effects of traffic congestion on air quality in local areas within a city, highlighting the spatial and temporal variation in local traffic, local air pollution, and health risks to residents due to local pollutant exposure. We employ a large-scale taxi driving trajectory data to construct measures of traffic congestion in local areas surrounding air quality monitoring stations in Beijing, on an hourly basis. The station-by-hour panel data enables the estimation of both contemporaneous and lagged marginal effects of local traffic on local air pollution. We find that local traffic congestion increases concentrations of NO2 and CO contemporaneously, but concentrations of PM2.5 and PM10 in a 2-h lagged manner. The magnitude and significance of the estimates vary with local traffic and pollution conditions, implying heterogeneous marginal effects on local air pollution of local traffic across locations, hours of the day, months and seasons. These results stress the importance of designing traffic policies that are both spatially and temporally fine-grained to attain efficiency and equity.

Probiotic Consortia and their Metabolites Protect Intestine Against Radiation Injury by Improving Intestinal Epithelial Homeostasis

The intestine is a highly radiosensitive tissue that is susceptible to structural and functional damage due to systemic as well as localized radiation exposure. Unfortunately, no therapeutic agents are available at present to manage radiation-induced intestinal injuries (RIII). Probiotics, especially Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium, are orally taken as food supplements or microbial drugs by patients with gastrointestinal disorders due to their safety, efficacy, and power to restore the gut microenvironment. Our results demonstrate that probiotic consortia and their metabolites could exert protective roles in the RIII mouse model by restoring the structure of the gut microbiota and regulating redox imbalance. Moreover, the effect of probiotic consortia is better than that of any single probiotic strain. Male C57BL/6J mice were treated with 13 Gy of whole abdominal irradiation (WAI). Probiotics were administered by gavage before (once a day for 30 days) WAI. The survival and body weight were recorded, while the severity of RIII was evaluated by HE staining, immunohistochemistry (IHC) and TUNEL assay of gut tissues. Meanwhile, stool samples were obtained 3.5 d after irradiation. Gut microbiome were measured by 16S rRNA sequencing, and metabolites were detected by LC-MS analysis. For sterile fecal filtrate (SFF), the supernatants were collected and passed through 70 and 0.2μm filters. Compared to the control, probiotic consortia (Lactobacillus plantarum, Bifidobacterium longum, Lactobacillus paracasei) treatment significantly increased survival rates by 50% (P<0.05) and improved clinical scores of mice after WAI. HE staining showed that probiotics mitigated RIII, as reflected by the dramatic attenuation of crypt-villus architecture destruction. IHC results showed that probiotic consortia treatment markedly increased the Lgr5+ cells, Paneth cells, and Ki67+ cells (P<0.001) per crypt, indicating that probiotics promoted the proliferation and differentiation of ISCs after WAI. Consistent with the H&E staining, the level of CD4/CD8 was increased by the probiotic consortia compared with that of the control group. The probiotic consortia modulated the structure of the gut microbiota and metabolites in the RIII mouse model. To further investigate the impact of metabolites on RIII, crude probiotic fermentation metabolites were administered to the RIII mouse model. Specifically, mice fed the mixed-metabolite daily for 7 days before IR had significantly more Lgr5+ and Ki67+cells in the SI crypt than mice of control. Moreover, treatment with mixed metabolites resulted in insignificant changes in SOD, MDA, GSH and T-AOC activity compared to the control group in intestinal tissues. In the present study, we demonstrate that probiotic consortia and their metabolites treatment attenuate RIII by modulating the structure and composition of the gut microbiota and regulating redox imbalance.

Influence of exposure to climate-related hazards in the phenotypic expression of primary Sjögren's syndrome.

To analyse how the key components at the time of diagnosis of the Sjögren's phenotype (epidemiological profile, sicca symptoms, and systemic disease) can be influenced by the potential exposure to climate-related natural hazards. For the present study, the following variables were selected for harmonisation and refinement: age, sex, country, fulfilment of 2002/2016 criteria items, dry eyes, dry mouth, and overall ESSDAI score. Climate-related hazards per country were defined according to the OECD and included seven climate-related hazard types: extreme temperature, extreme precipitation, drought, wildfire, wind threats, river flooding, and coastal flooding. Climatic variables were defined as dichotomous variables according to whether each country is ranked among the ten countries with the most significant exposure. After applying data-cleaning techniques and excluding people from countries not included in the OECD climate rankings, the database study analysed 16,042 patients from 23 countries. The disease was diagnosed between 1 and 3 years earlier in people living in countries included among the top 10 worst exposed to extreme precipitation, wildfire, wind threats, river flooding, and coastal flooding. A lower frequency of dry eyes was observed in people living in countries exposed to wind threats, river flooding, and coastal flooding, with a level of statistical association being classified as strong (p<0.0001 for the three variables). The frequency of dry mouth was significantly lower in people living in countries exposed to river flooding (p<0.0001) and coastal flooding (p<0.0001). People living in countries included in the worse climate scenarios for extreme temperature (p<0.0001) and river flooding (p<0.0001) showed a higher mean ESSDAI score in comparison with people living in no-risk countries. In contrast, those living in countries exposed to worse climate scenarios for wind threats (p<0.0001) and coastal flooding (p<0.0001) showed a lower mean ESSDAI score in comparison with people living in no-risk countries. Local exposure to extreme climate-related hazards plays a role in modulating the presentation of Sjögren across countries concerning the age at which the disease is diagnosed, the frequency of dryness, and the degree of systemic activity.

Welcome to the Punch. Local exposure to refugees and hate events in Italy

Which are the effects of hosting refugees on hate events, the most extreme acts against minorities? While growing research considers the link between refugees and voting behaviors, little is known about the influence of refugee reception on radicalization of anti-immigrant attitudes. Exploiting a novel database on geotagged hate events in Italy and the geography of refugee hosting centers, this paper provides novel evidence on the effect of exposure to refugees on hate in Italian provinces. Using instrumental variable estimation, we show that provinces with bigger refugee hosting capacity experienced higher incidence of hate.

Substantiation of the method of local deep hypothermia for the relief of synovitis of the knee joint in patients with osteoarthritis

BACKGROUND: In patients with osteoarthritis, the long course of synovitis changes the nature of the inflammatory process, it becomes more resistant and resistant to a number of therapeutic techniques. In the arsenal of a practicing doctor, there are no reliable and affordable therapeutic methods that reliably provide relief of synovitis in the knee joint and objectively monitor the effectiveness of the therapy. Among the numerous methods of application in the treatment of diseases and injuries of the musculoskeletal system, low-molecular technologies with anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects are distinguished. One of these methods is local deep hypothermia.&#x0D; AIM: To substantiate the use of different low-temperature modes of local deep hypothermia in patients with knee osteoarthritis aggravated by synovitis, to study clinical efficacy and safety.&#x0D; MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study included 90 patients with osteoarthritis of the knee joints, burdened with synovitis. To determine the therapeutic parameters of local deep hypothermia, all patients were divided into three groups of 30 people. The effectiveness of the performed local deep hypothermia was assessed by the dynamics of the algofunctional Leken index, the intensity of joint pain on a 100-point Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) in millimeters and a decrease in the need for nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).&#x0D; RESULTS: Technical and clinical parameters have been developed for carrying out the local deep hypothermia technique: area, cooling depth, rate of heat removal from the joint, duration of reproduction and number of procedures. Against the background of the performed local deep hypothermia, patients in three groups showed significant positive dynamics on the VAS and algofunctional Leken index, and in all three groups the difference between the initial and final values of these parameters was statistically significant (p 0.001). The use of local deep hypothermia allowed a significant part of patients to refuse to take NSAIDs, or to reduce the need to 50 mg and take episodically according to need. In our study, we did not record a recurrence of synovitis in all three groups during the first 3 months, which was 100%. After 12 months, the duration of remission in group I was 10.0%, in group II patients 73.3% and in group III patients 86.6%.&#x0D; CONCLUSION: Local deep hypothermia improves the effectiveness of synovitis treatment and can be recommended as an independent method for the treatment of patients with osteoarthritis of the knee aggravated by synovitis. The recommended local deep hypothermia exposure is 90 min, which allows for the longest period of remission of synovitis in the knee joint.

Centrality in the macroeconomic multi-network explains the spatiotemporal distribution of country per-capita income

This paper empirically investigates the role played by cross-country spillovers in shaping spatiotemporal differences in country income. While existing literature focused on effects captured by direct spillovers with partner countries only, here we take a complex network perspective to explore whether the global embeddedness of countries in the macroeconomic multi-network may significantly impact income, net of country local characteristics such as local foreign exposure. We employ data for the period 2000–2020 to build a time sequence of 3-layer multi graphs, with countries as nodes and links weighted by the intensity of bilateral relations in international trade, finance and human migration. Using panel-regression techniques, we then ask if country (eigenvector) centrality in the multi network can account for parts of the observed heterogeneity in country per-capita income, both cross-sectionally and over time. Robustly across a number of alternative specifications of the empirical model, we find that being more central significantly boosts country income. This implies that income-enhancing technological spillovers are not only channeled via local exposure, but also through indirect interactions with more distant nodes.

Locally contextualized psycho-physiological wellbeing effects of environmental exposures: An experimental-based evidence

Geographically-distributed urban environment contexts affect human psychological wellbeing through the real-time interactions between individuals and their surroundings. Recent field experiments have become particularly interesting in using wearable devices for tracking episodic changes in wellbeing outcomes. However, most research primarily contribute to correlate unconscious physiological arousal with single environmental feature, ignoring the contextualized environment neural psychological effects at the brain level. This paper studies the effects of walking exposures to various urban environment contexts on neural physiological and psychological parameters relevant to mental health in women cohorts. We measure neural physiological parameters using a functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) monitoring approach to detect brain activity variability during a journey-based field experiment, and perceived psychological wellbeing outcomes are measured through emotional questionnaires. A group of 10 healthy women walked across dense and diverse urban settings in Guangzhou, China. We have identified the beneficial effects of blue-green spaces and open spaces on psychological wellbeing, as well as their underlying neurophysiological mechanisms that exhibit localized context differentiation. Additional results quantify evidence in support of spatial typology and travel sequence-based uncertainties as underlying channels at work. Our study provide a walking-oriented investigation model of locally contextualized mental health effects, and expand explanatory method for walking mental health. It also suggests the importance of conceptualizing landscape complementarities in planning policies that help to improve the interaction between wellbeing and localized environmental exposures.