Subregional Analysis Research Articles

Study on the Impact of Entrepreneurship on Enterprise Performance in the Manufacturing Industry

Purpose: The study aims to explore the impact of entrepreneurship on the performance of manufacturing enterprises in China, focusing on specific traits of entrepreneurship such as innovation, risk-taking, and competitiveness. Additionally, it examines the relationship between entrepreneurship and regional economic growth, with an emphasis on how entrepreneurship drives enterprise performance, particularly in economically underdeveloped regions. Approach/Methodology/Design: The research uses empirical analysis based on sample data from listed manufacturing companies on China’s Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share markets. It employs regression models to assess the impact of entrepreneurship on enterprise performance. Indicators such as R&D investment, market share, and firm size serve as proxies for entrepreneurship traits, while principal component analysis is used to calculate scores for both entrepreneurship and enterprise performance. Control variables include regional economy and leadership structure. Sub-regional analysis is conducted to compare the impact of entrepreneurship across different economic regions. Findings: The results show that entrepreneurship, innovation spirit, risk-taking spirit, and competitive spirit all have significant positive impacts on enterprise performance. Additionally, in different economic regions, entrepreneurship generally has a positive impact on enterprise performance, with a greater effect observed in areas with lower economic development. Practical Implications: The study provides valuable insights for enterprises and policymakers. It suggests that enterprises can enhance their competitiveness by fostering entrepreneurial traits, increasing R&D investment, and efficiently managing financial leverage. Furthermore, governments should support entrepreneurship in underdeveloped regions through training and policy measures to stimulate regional economic growth. Originality/value: This study constructs a unique evaluation system for entrepreneurship from a micro perspective and verifies its positive impact on enterprise performance. This study innovatively explores the differential impact of entrepreneurship across various economic regions, providing new perspectives for future research on the relationship between regional economies and entrepreneurship.

Gene expression profile analysis of subregions of the adult female reproductive tract in the brown anole, Anolis sagrei.

The morphological diversity and functional role of the organs of the female reproductive system across tetrapods (limbed vertebrates) are relatively poorly understood. Though some features are morphologically similar, species-specific modification makes comparisons between species and inference about evolutionary origins challenging. In combination with the study of morphological changes, studying differences in gene expression in the adult reproductive system in diverse species can clarify the function of each organ. Here, we use the brown anole, Anolis sagrei, to study gene expression differences within the reproductive tract of the adult female. We generated gene expression profiles of four biological replicates of the three regions of the female reproductive tract, the infundibulum, glandular uterus, and nonglandular uterus by RNA-sequencing. We aligned read to the recently published Anolis sagrei genome and identified significantly differentially expressed genes between the regions using DEseq2. Each organ expressed approximately 14600 genes and comparison of gene expression profiles between organs revealed between 367-883 differentially expressed genes. We identify shared and region-specific transcriptional signatures for the three regions and compare gene expression in the brown anole reproductive tract to known gene expression patterns in other tetrapods. We find that genes in the Hox cluster have an anterior-posterior, colinear expression pattern as has been described in mammals. We also define a secretome for the glandular uterus. These data provide fundamental information for functional studies of the reproductive tract organs in the brown anole as well as an important phylogenetic anchor for comparative study of the evolution of the female reproductive tract.

Bulimia nervosa selectively reshapes the structure and intrinsic function of anterior insula subregions associated with cognition-emotion integration

BackgroundExisting evidence suggests that anterior insula plays a crucial role in cognitive control and emotional regulation and is implicated in the onset and maintenance of bulimia nervosa (BN). However, it remains unclear how structural and functional abnormalities in specific subregions of anterior insula contribute to BN. MethodsIn this study, we analyzed structural MRI and resting-state functional MRI data from 54 BN patients and 56 healthy controls (HCs). We conducted voxel-based morphometry, amplitude of low frequency fluctuation (conventional band: 0.01–0.08 Hz, slow-5: 0.01–0.027 Hz) and seed-based whole-brain functional connectivity (FC) analysis of the anterior insula subregions for both groups. Additionally, we investigated the correlation between neuroimaging findings and clinical characteristics in the BN group. ResultsOur findings revealed that BN patients exhibited reduced gray matter volume in the right dorsal anterior insula (dAI) and bilateral ventral anterior insula (vAI) and demonstrated decreased ALFF in slow-5 band of bilateral dAI. The BN group also showed increased FC between bilateral dAI and precuneus or right superior frontal gyri which significantly correlated with the severity of BN or its key symptom. In addition, the decreased FC between bilateral vAI and anterior cingulate and paracingulate gyri and/or median cingulate and paracingulate gyri were both significantly correlated with the severity and its restrained eating behavior. ConclusionsOur findings further indicate that the functional separation of anterior insula subregions may underlie the pathophysiology of BN. Notably, the vAI associated with emotional processing may serve as a promising neuroimaging biomarker which could inform therapeutic strategy.

Analysis of opioid analgesics consumption in Africa: a longitudinal study from a 20-year continental perspective

Opioid analgesics are essential for managing acute and chronic pain in diseases such as cancer. Inadequate opioid access remains a major public health concern in low-income regions including Africa. This study aimed to provide updated and comprehensive data on changes in opioid consumption, specifically in Africa. This longitudinal study has updated and expanded upon the International Narcotics Control Board data obtained from 1999 to 2021, assessing opioid consumption trends across all African countries. The defined daily doses for statistical purposes (SDDD) was used to determine the changes in opioid consumption in Africa. In addition, we used sub-analyses of the data to delve into individual substances, income levels, cancer incidence, cancer mortality, and sub-regional cluster analysis (based on the language spoken) to identify possible disparities and inform further research and tailored solutions. Our results indicate a persistently low and stagnant trend in opioid consumption between 2001-03 and 2019-21, from 73 SDDD (95% CI 69-77) to 55 SDDD (32-79). In-depth analysis revealed a morphine consumption increase from 735 SDDD in 1999 to 1115 SDDD in 2021. Moreover, opioid consumption was closely related to country-level income levels, with most of the low-income and lower-middle-income African countries reporting low opioid consumption. Notably, the escalating incidence and mortality rates associated with cancer in Africa indicated a misalignment with the trajectory of opioid use. Additionally, French-speaking African countries exhibited lower opioid usage than the rest of the continent, suggesting avenues for research into cultural, political, and social aspects. In the context of global doubling in opioid consumption, Africa has shown insufficient and stagnant opioid consumption during the last 20 years. These findings underscore the need for policy reform to facilitate safe and responsible opioid access in Africa, particularly for legitimate indications such as cancer pain and palliative care. None. For the French translation of the abstract see Supplementary Materials section.

Convergent reductive evolution of cyanobacteria in symbiosis with Dinophysiales dinoflagellates

The diversity of marine cyanobacteria has been extensively studied due to their vital roles in ocean primary production. However, little is understood about the diversity of cyanobacterial species involved in symbiotic relationships. In this study, we successfully sequenced the complete genome of a cyanobacterium in symbiosis with Citharistes regius, a dinoflagellate species thriving in the open ocean. A phylogenomic analysis revealed that the cyanobacterium (CregCyn) belongs to the marine picocyanobacterial lineage, akin to another cyanobacterial symbiont (OmCyn) of a different dinoflagellate closely related to Citharistes. Nevertheless, these two symbionts are representing distinct lineages, suggesting independent origins of their symbiotic lifestyles. Despite the distinct origins, the genome analyses of CregCyn revealed shared characteristics with OmCyn, including an obligate symbiotic relationship with the host dinoflagellates and a degree of genome reduction. In contrast, a detailed analysis of genome subregions unveiled that the CregCyn genome carries genomic islands that are not found in the OmCyn genome. The presence of the genomic islands implies that exogenous genes have been integrated into the CregCyn genome at some point in its evolution. This study contributes to our understanding of the complex history of the symbiosis between dinoflagellates and cyanobacteria, as well as the genomic diversity of marine picocyanobacteria.

Study on the Coupling Coordination Between Tourism Economy and Technology Innovation in China Costal Regions

ABSTRACT The study investigates the interplay between the tourism economy and technological innovation in China’s coastal provinces and cities, uncovering the dynamics of regional and sub-regional coupling and coordination from 2014 to 2022. Empirical findings indicate that the overall degree of coupling coordination among 11 coastal provinces and cities exhibited a rising trend from significant imbalance to good coordination from 2014 to 2019, but underwent fluctuations due to the impact of COVID-19 from 2020 to 2022. Sub-regional analysis reveals dynamic changes in coastal provinces and cities such as the Yangtze River Delta, Bohai Rim, and Pearl River Delta, highlighting the coupling, coordination, and competition between tourism economy and technological innovation in these economic zones. The results suggest that regional alliances can be established to promote the integration of tourism economic development with technological innovation in China’s coastal areas, while emphasizing active support measures by local and central governments for long-term development.

Assessing China's energy‐related efficiency towards SDG7 and influencing factors

AbstractWith scholars paying increasing attention to energy sustainability, integrating energy sustainable utilization into the energy‐related assessment framework is particularly useful for achieving SDG7. This study empirically assesses the energy‐related efficiency (EE) comprised of the energy utilize stage and energy sustainable stage in China using a dynamic two‐stage data envelopment analysis model, and its influencing factors including digital economy with fixed‐effect models. The findings reveal a slight downward trend of EE from 2011 to 2020, primarily due to the poor performance of energy utilize stage. The subregional analysis illustrates that increasing clean energy use (CEU) is more beneficial to energy efficiency than reducing carbon emissions (CER). Dagum Gini coefficients indicate a growing disparity between regions. Additionally, a “U‐shaped” relationship between digital economy and EE is found, but two‐thirds provinces of China have not yet surpassed the turning point. Moreover, different degrees of CEU and CER will influence the impact of digital economy on EE. Environmental regulations and green technology innovation play positive moderating roles in the “U‐shaped” relationship. This study recommends to stimulate the energy sustainable use through higher adoption of clean energy sources and carbon emissions reduction, as well as highlight the green value of the digital economy.

Evolution mechanism and parametric investigation of relative negative pressure zone in spiral groove gas face seal for aero-engine at high rotational speed

As an advanced sealing technology, spiral groove gas face seal has excellent sealing performance. However, it is rarely used in aero-engine. Previous investigation proposed that the relative negative pressure zone (RNPZ) in the spiral groove gas face seal can regulate the sealing performance. In this paper, further numerical simulation work is carried out. By quantifying the obstruction effect, viscous pumping effect and shear effect, the evolution mechanism of RNPZ under different film thicknesses and groove depths is revealed. Then, the parametric analysis of spiral groove configuration and groove number is carried out. Through the sub-regional quantitative analysis of the groove, the influence mechanism of structural configuration on RNPZ is revealed. Finally, combined with the hydrodynamic performance analysis, the spiral groove seal structure under optimal conditions is obtained. It is found that under the condition of high speed and low inlet pressure of aero-engine, RNPZ is suppressed by adjusting the structure of the spiral groove to enhance the shear effect, the pumping effect at the top of the groove and reduce the pumping effect at the bottom of the groove. When the number of grooves is 20 and the groove depth is 3 μm, the stiffness-leakage ratio of structure B and C can be increased by 10.15 % and 12.68 %, and the sealing performance is the strongest. This work can provide a theoretical and data basis for the subsequent optimization design of aero-engine gas face seals.

Imaging Genomics of Glioma Revisited: Analytic Methods to Understand Spatial and Temporal Heterogeneity.

An improved understanding of the cellular and molecular biologic processes responsible for brain tumor development, growth, and resistance to therapy is fundamental to improving clinical outcomes. Imaging genomics is the study of the relationships between microscopic, genetic, and molecular biologic features and macroscopic imaging features. Imaging genomics is beginning to shift clinical paradigms for diagnosing and treating brain tumors. This article provides an overview of imaging genomics in gliomas, in which imaging data including hallmarks such as IDH-mutation, MGMT methylation, and EGFR-mutation status can provide critical insights into the pretreatment and posttreatment stages. This article will accomplish the following: 1) review the methods used in imaging genomics, including visual analysis, quantitative analysis, and radiomics analysis; 2) recommend suitable analytic methods for imaging genomics according to biologic characteristics; 3) discuss the clinical applicability of imaging genomics; and 4) introduce subregional tumor habitat analysis with the goal of guiding future radiogenetics research endeavors toward translation into critically needed clinical applications.

The incentive effects of the macro tax burden on economic growth: A negative or positive incentive effect? Analysis based on panel data

Utilizing macroeconomic panel data from 2010 to 2022 of 31 provinces in China, this paper employed the fixed effect model, the random effect mode, the robust test method, the system GMM estimation method, the instrumental variables method (IV), and subregional heterogeneity analysis to conduct an empirical investigation into the effect of China's small-caliber macro tax burden, large-caliber macro tax burden and the burden of various major taxes and fees on economic growth. The research revealed that the small-caliber macro tax burden exerts a positive incentive effect on economic growth, while the large-caliber macro tax burden acts in the opposite way. The tax burden of VAT and CIT is relatively moderate, which can stimulate a positive incentive effect on economic growth. However, the tax burden of total nontax income and individual income tax is too heavy and overburdens negatively economic growth. Moreover, this paper reveals regional heterogeneity in the effects of China's small-caliber and large-caliber macro tax burdens and the burden of major taxes and fees on economic growth. Drawing from the findings of this study and considering the specific context of China, this paper offers several policy recommendations for optimizing China's tax system.

The gainers and losers from the United Kingdom's university‐related migration: A subregional analysis of Graduate Outcomes Survey data

AbstractAgainst the background of the rise in higher‐education participation rates, this paper examines the spatial redistribution of undergraduates across the United Kingdom resulting from moves to and from university. Drawing on the Graduate Outcomes Surveys of 2017/2018 and 2018/2019, address data coded to 53 subregions (SRs) are used to track those enrolled on degree courses by age 20 from domicile to university and workplace 15 months after graduation. The paper begins by examining how university‐ward migration serves to concentrate this group geographically and the way in which subsequent job‐related moves tend to reinforce this process. Each person is then classified on the basis of their migration trajectories between domicile and workplace, enabling a set of migration accounts to be produced for each SR. Applying cluster analysis to these accounts, a six‐way grouping of SRs is used to gauge change between their domicile and workplace populations in both overall numbers and qualitative characteristics, the latter being measured in terms of educational qualifications preuniversity and occupational status 15 months after graduation. These analyses demonstrate how the different types of SRs fare in these exchanges of students/graduates, with more subregions suffering the ‘double whammy’ of losing out in both quantitative and qualitative terms than gaining from this process, with challenging implications for central government's current ‘levelling‐up’ agenda.

Agent-based modeling for an end-of-life power battery cross-regional recycling system and subregional policy analysis: A case study in China

Informal recycling of end-of-life electric vehicle batteries has caused severe environmental pollution and tax losses. Linear models and static strategies have difficulty capturing complex relationships and regional heterogeneity. Therefore, we aim to suggest an optimal subregional joint policy under fiscal constraints. This study uses agent-based modeling with geographic information systems to construct a cross-regional recycling system model that assesses the economic and environmental effects of policies. Based on actual data, the model considers four subsystems, multiple region types, two battery types, and six stakeholders. The results show that: (1) The optimal subregional joint policy can increase the average formal recycling rate from 28.44 % to 48.58 % and achieve an emission reduction rate of 19.81 %; (2) In underdeveloped regions, allocating 70–80 % of fiscal funds to supervision can achieve optimal economic and environmental benefits; and (3) For the local governments with few formal sectors, investing in a unit subsidy exceeding $1.4/kWh will diminish economic efficiency. Provincial governments in economically developed areas with formal business clusters should provide higher subsidies, while other regions should allocate more fiscal expenditure for supervision. This cross-regional recycling system model can improve solid waste management in countries with large areas and decentralized facilities.

Insights from a modelling analysis of COVID-19 vaccination in the Eastern Mediterranean Region.

Understanding the main determinants of COVID-19 vaccine uptake is critical to increasing vaccine coverage. This is particularly important for COVID-19 vaccine uptake, which has been affected by both demand and supply issues. To understand the links between vaccine uptake and demand and supply issues in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean and UNICEF Middle East and North Africa regions. We collected data through 2 rounds of a repeated cross-sectional phone survey from 11 000 individuals across 16 low- and middle-income countries. We used logit modelling to distil the main characteristics of the 4 vaccination categories (vaccinated, unvaccinated but willing, unvaccinated and undecided, and unvaccinated and unwilling) while also considering vaccine availability. We conducted sub-regional analysis to account for differences in level of development between the low- and middle-income countries. Despite the increase in vaccination coverage from 60.9% at the end of 2021 to 78.3% by August 2022, about 9% were not willing and were not vaccinated during the two rounds of interviews. Our modelling analysis revealed that positive beliefs about safety, effectiveness and side effects of the COVID-19 vaccines were associated with increased odds of being vaccinated or willingness to be vaccinated. Those who did not believe in the safety of the vaccines were less likely to be vaccinated than those who believed in the safety of the vaccines (OR: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.46-0.67). By contrast, negative beliefs about the COVID-19 vaccines increased the probability of being unwilling to be vaccinated. The results from this research offer useful insights into tackling the supply and demand related barriers to COVID-19 vaccination uptake and provides lessons for future health threats.

Heart rate and insula activity increase in response to music in individuals with high interoceptive sensitivity.

Interoception plays an important role in emotion processing. However, the neurobiological substrates of the relationship between visceral responses and emotional experiences remain unclear. In the present study, we measured interoceptive sensitivity using the heartbeat discrimination task and investigated the effects of individual differences in interoceptive sensitivity on changes in pulse rate and insula activity in response to subjective emotional intensity. We found a positive correlation between heart rate and valence level when listening to music only in the high interoceptive sensitivity group. The valence level was also positively correlated with music-elicited anterior insula activity. Furthermore, a region of interest analysis of insula subregions revealed significant activity in the left dorsal dysgranular insula for individuals with high interoceptive sensitivity relative to individuals with low interoceptive sensitivity while listening to the high-valence music pieces. Our results suggest that individuals with high interoceptive sensitivity use their physiological responses to assess their emotional level when listening to music. In addition, insula activity may reflect the use of interoceptive signals to estimate emotions.

Subregional analysis of joint stiffness facilitates insight into ligamentous laxity after ACL injury.

Purpose: Increased incidence of anterior cruciate ligament injuries has amplified the need for quantitative research in clinical and academic settings. We used a novel digital arthrometer to measure knee laxity in healthy people and patients with anterior cruciate ligament injuries. Changes in stiffness were also assessed to develop new indicators for detecting anterior cruciate ligament injury. The purpose of this study was to use arthrometer to measure the quantitative indicator of knee laxity, bringing clinicians a new perspective on how to identify injury to the ACL. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, anterior tibial displacement under continuous loading was measured using a novel digital arthrometer in 30 patients with unilateral anterior cruciate ligament injury and 30 healthy controls. Load-displacement curves were plotted, using real-time load and displacement changes. Stiffness was defined by the slope of the applied load to tibial displacement. Anterior tibial displacement and instantaneous stiffness values under different loads were compared. The restricting contribution of the anterior cruciate ligament transformed the displacement-stiffness curve from a sharp decrease to a stable increase, resulting in a minimum stiffness value. Using the minimum stiffness as the turning point, the load-displacement curve was divided into regions 1 and 2. The two regions' stiffness changes were compared. Based on the findings, receiver operating characteristic curves were plotted and the area under the curve was calculated to estimate the diagnostic accuracy. Results: Anterior tibial displacement was significantly greater in the anterior cruciate ligament injury group than in the controls under each 10-N increase load (p < 0.05). In the anterior cruciate ligament injury group, instantaneous stiffness was significantly lower on the injured side than on the healthy side (p < 0.05). In the two regions of the load-displacement curve, stiffness was significantly lower in the anterior cruciate ligament injury group than in the control group (all, p < 0.05). Receiver operating characteristic curves were plotted, using changes in stiffness under the two regions in both groups. Stiffness in region 2 had the largest area under the curve (0.94; 95% CI, 0.88-0.99). Using the cut-off value of 9.62N/mm to detect ACL injury, the sensitivity and specificity were 93% and 82%, respectively. Conclusion: Our investigation of ligament stiffness provides novel insights into the properties of knee laxity. Stiffness in the later stages of increased loading <9.62N/mm could be a valid indicator for identifying knee laxity.

Morphometric analysis of medial temporal lobe subregions in Alzheimer's disease using high-resolution MRI.

The spread pattern of progressive degeneration seen in Alzheimer's disease (AD) to small-scale medial temporal lobe subregions is critical for early diagnosis. In this context, it was aimed to examine the morphometric changes of the hippocampal subfields, amygdala nuclei, entorhinal cortex (ERC), and parahippocampal cortex (PHC) using MRI. MRI data of patients diagnosed with 20 Alzheimer's disease dementia (ADD), 30 amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), and 30 subjective cognitive impairment (SCI) without demographic differences were used. Segmentation and parcellation were performed using FreeSurfer. The segmentation process obtained volume values of 12 hippocampal subfields and 9 amygdala nuclei. Thickness values of ERC and PHC were calculated with the parcellation process. ANCOVA was performed using age, education and gender as covariates to evaluate the intergroup differences. Linear discriminant analysis was used to investigate whether atrophy predicted groups at an early stage. ERC and PHC thickness decreased significantly throughout the disease continuum, while only ERC was affected in the early stage. When the hippocampal and amygdala subfields were compared volumetrically, significant differences were found in the amygdala between the SCI and aMCI groups. In the early period, only volume reduction in the anterior amygdaloid area of the amygdala nuclei exceeded the significance threshold. Research on AD primarily focuses on original hippocampocentric structures and their main function which is episodic memory. Our results emphasized the significance of so far relatively neglected olfactocentric structures and their functions, such as smell and social cognition in the pre-dementia stages of the AD process.

Efficacy of a digitally supported regional systems intervention for suicide prevention (SUPREMOCOL) in Noord-Brabant, the Netherlands

ObjectiveWe evaluated the effect of a digitally supported systems intervention for suicide prevention (SUPREMOCOL) in Noord-Brabant, the Netherlands. MethodNon-randomized stepped wedge trial design (SWTD). Stepwise implementation in the five subregions of the systems intervention. Pre-post analysis for the whole province (Exact Rate Ratio Test, Poisson count). SWTD Hazard Ratios of suicides per person-years for subregional analysis of control versus intervention conditions over five times three months. Sensitivity analysis. ResultsSuicide rates dropped 17.8% (p = .013) from 14.4 suicides per 100,000 before the start of implementation of the systems intervention (2017), to 11.9 (2018) and 11.8 (2019) per 100, during implementation; a significant reduction (p = .043) compared to no changes in the rest of the Netherlands. Suicide rates dropped further by 21.5% (p = .002) to 11.3 suicides per 100,000 during sustained implementation in 2021. Sensitivity analysis confirmed the reduction (p = .02). The SWTD analysis over 15 months in 2018–2019 did not show a significant association of this reduction with implementation per subregional level, probably due to insufficient power given the short SWTD timeframe for implementation and low suicide rates per subregion. ConclusionsDuring the SUPREMOCOL systems intervention, over four years, there was a sustained and significant reduction of suicides in Noord-Brabant.

Sea Ice Extent Prediction with Machine Learning Methods and Subregional Analysis in the Arctic

The decline of sea ice in the Arctic region is a critical indicator of rapid global warming and can also influence the feedback processes in the Arctic, so the prediction of sea ice extent and thickness plays an important role in climate modeling and prediction. This paper uses machine learning methods to predict the sea ice extent, and by adjusting the methods and factors, which include the climate variables, the past sea ice extent, and the simple linear-regression-simulated sea ice extent, then we found the best combination to give the result with the highest R2 score. We noticed that with longer periods of past sea ice extent data and shorter periods of climate data, the results appeared to be better. This might be related to the difference in climate and ocean memory. The sub-region sea ice extent prediction shows that the regions with whole-year ice cover are easier to predict and that those regions with sudden weather changes and significant seasonal variability appear to have lower R2 scores in the sea ice extent prediction.

Association of retinal microvascular abnormalities and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders with optical coherence tomography angiography.

Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) are autoimmune central nervous system diseases characterized by the immune system's abnormal attack on glial cells and neurons. Optic neuritis (ON) is one of the indicators of NMOSD, often starting unilaterally and potentially affecting both eyes later in the disease progression, leading to visual impairment. Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) has the potential to aid in the early diagnosis of NMOSD by examining ophthalmic imaging and may offer a window for disease prevention. In this study, we collected OCTA images from 22 NMOSD patients (44 images) and 25 healthy individuals (50 images) to investigate retinal microvascular changes in NMOSD. We employed effective retinal microvascular segmentation and foveal avascular zone (FAZ) segmentation techniques to extract key OCTA structures for biomarker analysis. A total of 12 microvascular features were extracted using specifically designed methods based on the segmentation results. The OCTA images of NMOSD patients were classified into two groups: optic neuritis (ON) and non-optic neuritis (non-ON). Each group was compared separately with a healthy control (HC) group. Statistical analysis revealed that the non-ON group displayed shape changes in the deep layer of the retina, specifically in the FAZ. However, there were no significant microvascular differences between the non-ON group and the HC group. In contrast, the ON group exhibited microvascular degeneration in both superficial and deep retinal layers. Sub-regional analysis revealed that pathological variations predominantly occurred on the side affected by ON, particularly within the internal ring near the FAZ. The findings of this study highlight the potential of OCTA in evaluating retinal microvascular changes associated with NMOSD. The shape alterations observed in the FAZ of the non-ON group suggest localized vascular abnormalities. In the ON group, microvascular degeneration in both superficial and deep retinal layers indicates more extensive vascular damage. Sub-regional analysis further emphasizes the impact of optic neuritis on pathological variations, particularly near the FAZ's internal ring. This study provides insights into the retinal microvascular changes associated with NMOSD using OCTA imaging. The identified biomarkers and observed alterations may contribute to the early diagnosis and monitoring of NMOSD, potentially offering a time window for intervention and prevention of disease progression.

Energy justice, democracy and deforestation

This paper contributes to the debate on the determinants of deforestation, a menace that is posing threat to sustainable development particularly in tropical developing regions. Specifically, the paper focuses on the effect of energy justice and democratization. The main contribution to the literature hinges on the emphasis on energy justice - operationalized as rural-urban equality in access to electricity and clean fuels and technologies for cooking - and its interaction with democracy. Using a panel data of 47 sub-Saharan African countries over the period 2000–2020 and the dynamic two-step generalized method of moment estimator, the results generally indicate that improvement in rural-urban equality in access to electricity and clean fuels and technologies for cooking is associated with a reduction in deforestation. Democracy is similarly found to be associated with reduction in deforestation. The conditional effect analysis largely depicts an intensified reducing effect of energy justice on deforestation in the presence of improved democratic practices. The results though robust to an alternative estimator, the Driscoll-Kraay estimator, differ when sub-regional analysis is considered. The paper aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goals 7, 13, 15 and 16.