This paper presents a review of research progress on photovoltaic direct current arc detection based on VOSviewer bibliometric analysis. This study begins by introducing the basic concept and hazards of photovoltaic DC arcing faults, followed by a summary of commonly used arc detection techniques. Utilizing VOSviewer, the relevant literature is subjected to clustering and visualization analysis, offering insights into research hotspots, trends, and interconnections among different fields. Based on the bibliometric analysis method of VOSviewer software, this paper analyzes the articles published in the last 10 years (2014–2023) on photovoltaic DC fault diagnosis. We analyzed the specific characteristics of 2195 articles on arc failures, including year of publication, author, institution, country, references, and keywords. This study reveals the development trend, global cooperation model, basic knowledge, research hotspots, and emerging frontier of PV DC arc. Future research directions and development trends for photovoltaic DC arc detection are proposed which provides valuable references for further studies and applications in this domain. This comprehensive analysis indicates that photovoltaic DC arc detection technology is expected to find broader applications and greater promotion in the future. Full article

Air pollution is one of the major global public health challenges. Using annual fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentration data from 2016 to 2021, along with the global exposure mortality model (GEMM), we estimated the multi-year PM2.5-pollution-related deaths divided by different age groups and diseases. Then, using the VSL (value of statistical life) method, we assessed corresponding economic losses and values. The number of deaths attributed to PM2.5 in Beijing in 2021 fell by 33.74 percent from 2016, while health economic losses would increase by USD 4.4 billion as per capita disposable income increases year by year. In 2021, the average annual concentration of PM2.5 in half of Beijing’s municipal administrative districts is less than China’s secondary ambient air quality standard (35 μg/m³), but it can still cause 48,969 deaths and corresponding health and economic losses of USD 16.31 billion, equivalent to 7.9 percent of Beijing’s GDP. Therefore, it is suggested that more stringent local air quality standards should be designated to protect public health in Beijing. Full article

In the era of green economic development, green finance serves as a crucial catalyst for green technological innovation, and both may significantly drive the upgrading of industrial structures. This study combines green finance, green technological innovation, and industrial structure into a research framework, analyzing data from 29 Chinese provinces (2003–2020) to empirically assess their impacts on China’s industrial structure using a two-way fixed-effects model. The results show the following: first, green finance and green technological innovation can significantly promote the upgrading of China’s industrial structure directly and synergistically, a finding corroborated by various robustness tests. Secondly, heterogeneity analysis reveals that there is a “path-dependency effect” in the development of green finance and technology innovation: in areas with higher population density, more developed technological markets, and lower fiscal pressure, the synergistic promotion of the upgrading of industrial structure is stronger. Thirdly, further research indicates that green finance and technology innovation impact the upgrading of industrial structure variably under command-and-control, market-incentive, and voluntary environmental-regulation tools. The most effective policy is the voluntary regulation tool, which involves higher levels of public participation. This study offers valuable insights for fostering green technology innovation, refining environmental policies, and enhancing the optimization and upgrading of industrial structure. Full article

Background: This study aimed to compare the clinical outcomes of using two different devices to treat upper palatal discrepancies evaluated with a digital intraoral scanner. Methods: A total of 64 patients were enrolled and treated with either an elastodontic expansion device (32 patient test group, 16 females and 16 males, mean age 7.08 ± 0.44) or Haas expander (32 patient control group, 16 females and 16 males, mean age 7.32 ± 0.50). The two groups exhibited similar orthodontic features. The orthodontic criteria were: skeletal class I relationship; molar class I relationship; complete eruption of upper sixths; presence of unilateral or bilateral cross bite. All dental casts were examined and subsequently scanned with an intraoral scanner (I-Tero) pre-treatment (T0) and 12 months after the onset of therapy (T1) to assess the distance between the decidous upper canines (ICW, intercanine width) and the distance between the mesiopalatal cusps of the upper first molars (IMW, intermolar width). For statistical analysis, the t-test for continous variables and the chi-square test for categorical variables were used, respectively. Results: There were no statistically significant differences between the mean and SD of the expansions that resulted from the Haas expander and the elastodontic devices (Haas expander vs. Eptamed: ICW_T1 (Haas) = 42.34 (3.09), ICW_T1 (Eptamed) = 42.69 (2.77); p = 0.743; IMW_T1 (Haas) = 34.22 (2.29), IMW_T1 (Eptamed) = 34.00 (2.56); p = 0.800). The two devices were similarly effective. Conclusions: Elastodontic devices and the Haas expander can successfully help the orthodontist to conduct upper arch expansion treatment. However, elastodontic devices are more comfortable during the resolution of palatal discrepancies compared to palatal expander devices. Full article

Currently, the process of creating industrial installations is associated with digital technologies and must involve the stage of developing digital models. It is also necessary to combine installations with different properties, functions, and operational principles into a single system. Some tasks require the use of predictive modeling and the creation of “digital twins”. The main processes during the fuel cell modeling involve electrochemical transformations as well as the movement of heat and mass flows, including monitoring and control processes. Numerical methods are utilized in addressing various challenges related to fuel cells, such as electrochemical modeling, collector design, performance evaluation, electrode microstructure impact, thermal stress analysis, and the innovation of structural components and materials. A digital model of the membrane-electrode unit for a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) is presented in the article, incorporating factors like fluid dynamics, mass transfer, and electrochemical and thermal effects within the cell structure. The mathematical model encompasses equations for momentum, mass, mode, heat and charge transfer, and electrochemical and reforming reactions. Experimental data validates the model, with a computational mesh of 55 million cells ensuring numerical stability and simulation capability. Detailed insights on chemical flow distribution, temperature, current density, and more are unveiled. Through a numerical model, the influence of various fuel types on SOFC efficiency was explored, highlighting the promising performance of petrochemical production waste as a high-efficiency, low-reagent consumption fuel with a superior fuel utilization factor. The recommended voltage range is 0.6–0.7 V, with operating temperatures of 900–1300 K to reduce temperature stresses on the cell when using synthesis gas from petrochemical waste. The molar ratio of supplied air to fuel is 6.74 when operating on synthesis gas. With these parameters, the utilization rate of methane is 0.36, carbon monoxide CO is 0.4, and hydrogen is 0.43, respectively. The molar ratio of water to synthesis gas is 2.0. These results provide an opportunity to achieve electrical efficiency of the fuel cell of 49.8% and a thermal power of 54.6 W when using synthesis gas as fuel. It was demonstrated that a high-temperature fuel cell can provide consumers with heat and electricity using fuel from waste from petrochemical production. Full article

Important metapopulation dynamics are disrupted by factors such as habitat loss, climate change, and human-induced mortality, culminating in isolated wildlife populations and threatening species survival. Source populations, where birth rates exceed mortality and connectivity facilitates dispersal, contrast with sink populations, where mortality outstrips births, risking localised extinction. Recolonisation by individuals from source populations is pivotal for species survival. The leopard is the last free-roaming apex predator in South Africa and plays an important ecological role. In the Eastern and Western Cape provinces in South Africa, leopard populations have low densities and fragmented population structures. We identified a leopard population that, after being locally extinct for a century, appeared to recolonise an ‘island’ of mountainous habitat. We aimed to understand potential factors driving this recolonisation using recent camera trapping surveys and historical statutory destruction permits. We employed spatially explicit capture–recapture (SECR) methods to estimate the leopard density and explore potential factors which best explain density. We found that the recently recolonised Piketberg population now exhibits some of the highest densities reported in the region (~1.8 leopards/100 km²; CI 1.4–2.5). Livestock, human presence, elevation, and the camera trap grid appeared to explain leopard detection rates. When considering the historic data, the re-emergence of leopards in the Piketberg coincided with the cessation of the extensive state-sponsored and state-enabled culling of the species, and the change in land use from livestock production to crop agriculture, which likely contributed to the recolonisation. Elucidating these factors deepens our understanding of leopard metapopulation dynamics in relation to land use and species management and highlights the crucial role of private land and state agencies and associated policies in species persistence. Full article

Precast ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) has emerged as indispensable in the engineering sector due to its cost-effectiveness and superior performance. Currently, precast UHPC grapples with challenges pertaining to slow setting times and insufficient early strength, largely attributed to its high water-reducing agent content. Effective utilization of early strength agents to augment UHPC’s early strength is pivotal in addressing this issue. This study investigates the efficacy of two distinct concrete early strength agents, namely calcium formate (Ca(HCO₂)₂) and aluminum sulfate (Al₂(SO₄)₃). A UHPC system with a water/cement ratio of 0.17 was used; both single and compound doping experiments were conducted using varied dosages of the aforementioned early strength agents. Our results show that both early strength agents significantly reduce setting time and enhance early strength at appropriate dosages. Specifically, the addition of 0.3% Ca(HCO₂)₂ led to a 33.07% decrease in setting time for UHPC. Moreover, the incorporation of 0.3% Ca(HCO₂)₂ and 0.5% Al₂(SO₄)₃ resulted in a strength of 81.9 MPa at 1.5 days, representing a remarkable increase of 118.4%. It is noteworthy that excessive use of Ca(HCO₂)₂ inhibits the hydration process, whereas an abundance of Al₂(SO₄)₃ diminishes the early strength effect. Simultaneously, this article provides recommendations regarding the dosage of two distinct early strength agents, offering a novel solution for expediting the production of prefabricated UHPC with a low water/cement ratio and high water-reducing agent content. Full article

This review’s objective is to examine the findings from various studies on oral signs and symptoms related to vitamin deficiency. In October 2023, two electronic databases (Scopus and PubMed) were searched for published scientific articles following PRISMA principles. Articles eligible for inclusion in this review had to be published in English between 2017 and 2023, be original studies, and involve human subjects. Fifteen studies were included in this review: three examining oral symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency; one assessing vitamin B complex and vitamin E for recurrent oral ulcers; one investigating serum vitamin D levels in recurrent aphthous stomatitis patients; three exploring hypovitaminosis effects on dental caries; two measuring blood serum vitamin D levels; one evaluating vitamin B12 hypovitaminosis; three investigating hypovitaminosis as indicative of gingival disease; one focusing on vitamin deficiencies and enamel developmental abnormalities; one assessing vitamin deficiencies in oral cancer patients; one examining vitamin K as an oral anticoagulant and its role in perioperative hemorrhage; and one evaluating vitamin effects on burning mouth syndrome. Despite some limitations, evidence suggests a correlation between vitamin deficiencies and oral symptoms. This systematic review was registered in the International Platform of Registered Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Protocols (INPLASY) database (202430039). Full article

Abstract: The genus Aeromonas includes well-known pathogenic species for fishes and humans that are widely distributed in the aquatic environment and foods. Nowadays, one of the main issues related to wild Aeromonas isolates is their identification at the species level, which is challenging using classical microbiological and biomolecular methods. This study aims to test MALDI-TOF MS technology in the identification of Aeromonas strains isolated from n. 60 retail sushi and sashimi boxes using an implemented version of the SARAMIS software V4.12. A total of 43 certified Aeromonas strains were used to implement the SARAMIS database by importing the spectra obtained from their identification. The original SARAMIS version (V4.12) failed to recognize 62.79% of the certified strains, while the herein-implemented version (V4.12_plus) allowed the identification of all the certified strains at least to the genus level with a match of no less than 85%. Regarding the sushi and sashimi samples, Aeromonas spp. was detected in n. 18 (30%) boxes. A total of 127 colonies were identified at the species level, with A. salmonicida detected as the most prevalent species, followed by A. bestiarum and A. caviae. Based on the results of the present study, we could speculate that MALDI-TOF technology could be a useful tool both for the food industry to monitor product contamination and for clinical purposes to make diagnoses effectively and quickly. Full article

The role of the extracellular matrix (ECM) in Parkinson’s disease (PD) is not well understood, even though it is critical for neuronal structure and signaling. This systematic review identified the top deregulated ECM-related pathways in studies that used gene set enrichment analyses (GSEA) to document transcriptomic, proteomic, or genomic alterations in PD. PubMed and Google scholar were searched for transcriptomics, proteomics, or genomics studies that employed GSEA on data from PD tissues or cells and reported ECM-related pathways among the top-10 most enriched versus controls. Twenty-seven studies were included, two of which used multiple omics analyses. Transcriptomics and proteomics studies were conducted on a variety of tissue and cell types. Of the 17 transcriptomics studies (16 data sets), 13 identified one or more adhesion pathways in the top-10 deregulated gene sets or pathways, primarily related to cell adhesion and focal adhesion. Among the 8 proteomics studies, 5 identified altered overarching ECM gene sets or pathways among the top 10. Among the 4 genomics studies, 3 identified focal adhesion pathways among the top 10. The findings summarized here suggest that ECM organization/structure and cell adhesion (particularly focal adhesion) are altered in PD and should be the focus of future studies. Full article

We consider an optimal control problem with the boundary functional for a Schrödinger equation describing the motion of a charged particle. By using the existence of an optimal solution, we search the necessary optimality conditions for the examined control problem. First, we constitute an adjoint problem by a Lagrange multiplier that is related to constraints of theory on symmetries and conservation laws. The adjoint problem obtained is a boundary value problem with a nonhomogeneous boundary condition. We prove the existence and uniqueness of the solution of the adjoint problem. Then, we demonstrate the differentiability of the objective functional in the sense of Frechet and get a formula for its gradient. Finally, we give a necessary optimality condition in the form of a variational inequality. Full article

This study proposes a hybrid pitching motion for oscillating flat plates aimed at augmenting the energy extraction efficiency of an energy harvester. The proposed hybrid pitching motion, within the first half cycle, integrates a non−sinusoidal movement starting at t/T = 0 and progressing to t/T = 0.25, with a sinusoidal movement initiating after t/T > 0.25 and continuing to t/T = 0.5. The second half of the cycle is symmetric to the first half but in the opposite direction. The calculated results show that the proposed hybrid pitching motion outperforms both the sinusoidal and the non−sinusoidal motions. The hybrid pitching motion merges the merits of both the sinusoidal and non−sinusoidal motions to optimize pitch angle variation. This integration is pivotal for enhancing the overall power output performance of an oscillating energy harvester characterized by momentum change that enhances the orientation of the heaving movement, smoother motion transitions, and consistent energy harvesting. The power generation is obtained at wing pitch angles of 55°, 65°, 70°, 75°, and 80° during a hybrid pitching motion. The proposed hybrid pitching motion, set at a pitch angle of 70°, achieves a maximum power output that exceeds the oscillating flat plate using a sinusoidal pitching motion by 16.0% at the same angle. Full article

The restriction on the use of antibiotics in poultry has led to an increase in the use of natural products that could serve as alternatives to antibiotics. Mushrooms contain bioactive compounds that exhibit antifungal, antiparasitic, antibacterial, antioxidant, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and cytotoxic properties. Hence, they are being tested, revealing as performance-enhancing natural feed additives for livestock. This review focused on the role of different species of mushrooms commonly used in poultry on the performance, immunomodulatory actions, cholesterolemic properties, and meat quality of poultry birds. Different studies reviewed show that mushrooms could positively impact poultry production, improve growth performance, modulate immune response, exert tissue antioxidant activity, influence intestinal morphology, enhance gut microbiome, and improve lipid profile. The variations in their efficacy could be attributed to the variations in physicochemical properties of different species and dosage levels applied in the experiments. However, the use of mushrooms as a natural product supplement is in its infancy, and more basic, pilot and large-scale research is required to make it a viable approach for improving immune responses in the poultry industry. Full article

Background: Having an infant in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) can disrupt parent well-being, the transition to parenthood, and the typical trajectories of infant and child health. For lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or other sexual and gender minority identity (LGBTQ+) parents, this stress may be compounded by health disparities and fear of stigma and discrimination; however, research is lacking about LGBTQ+ parents of infants in the NICU. Objectives: The purpose of this integrative review was to better understand the experiences of LGBTQ+ parents of NICU infants, with a focus on experiences of stigma and discrimination, sources of strength and resilience, and provision of family-centered care. Method: We searched EBSCOHost, ProQuest, Web of Science, and Google Scholar between 30 May 2023 and 18 September 2023 for empirical studies published in English in peer-reviewed scholarly journals in which LGBTQ+ parents shared their experiences with having infants admitted to the NICU. Results: We identified six articles that met inclusion criteria, all of which were qualitative studies that included 12–14 LGBTQ+ parents of NICU infants. Conclusions: LGBTQ+ parents in all studies reported instances of perceived stigma and discrimination while their infants were in the NICU, whereas parents in two studies mentioned strength and resilience, and parents in three studies described elements of family-centered care. There is a need for rigorous research on family-centered NICU care that includes questions about sources of strength and resilience in addition to challenges. We propose that future researchers use community engaged methods to center perspectives of LGBTQ+ parents. Full article

¹H fast field-cycling and time-domain nuclear magnetic resonance relaxometry studies have been performed for 15 samples of sugar of different kinds and origins (brown, white, cane, beet sugar). The extensive data set, including results for crystal sugar and sugar/water mixtures, has been thoroughly analyzed, with a focus on identifying relaxation contributions associated with the solid and liquid fractions of the systems and non-exponentiality of the relaxation processes. It has been observed that ¹H spin–lattice relaxation rates for crystal sugar (solid) vary between 0.45 s⁻¹ and 0.59 s⁻¹, and the relaxation process shows only small deviations from exponentiality (a quantitative measure of the exponentiality has been provided). The ¹H spin–lattice relaxation process for sugar/water mixtures has turned out to be bi-exponential, with the relaxation rates varying between about 13 s⁻¹–17 s⁻¹ (for the faster component) and about 2.1 s⁻¹–3.5 s⁻¹ (for the slower component), with the ratio between the amplitudes of the relaxation contributions ranging between 2.8 and 4.2. The narrow ranges in which the parameters vary make them a promising marker of the quality and authenticity of sugar. Full article

Conventional few-shot learning (FSL) mainly focuses on knowledge transfer from a single source dataset to a recognition scenario with only a few training samples available but still similar to the source domain. In this paper, we consider a more practical FSL setting where multiple semantically different datasets are available to address a wide range of FSL tasks, especially for some recognition scenarios beyond natural images, such as remote sensing and medical imagery. It can be referred to as multi-source cross-domain FSL. To tackle the problem, we propose a two-stage learning scheme, termed learning and adapting multi-source representations (LAMR). In the first stage, we propose a multi-head network to obtain efficient multi-domain representations, where all source domains share the same backbone except for the last parallel projection layers for domain specialization. We train the representations in a multi-task setting where each in-domain classification task is taken by a cosine classifier. In the second stage, considering that instance discrimination and class discrimination are crucial for robust recognition, we propose two contrastive objectives for adapting the pre-trained representations to be task-specialized on the few-shot data. Careful ablation studies verify that LAMR significantly improves representation transferability, showing consistent performance boosts. We also extend LAMR to single-source FSL by introducing a dataset-splitting strategy that equally splits one source dataset into sub-domains. The empirical results show that LAMR can achieve SOTA performance on the BSCD-FSL benchmark and competitive performance on mini-ImageNet, highlighting its versatility and effectiveness for FSL of both natural and specific imaging. Full article

The seasonal fluctuations of the copepod Eodiaptomus japonicus, which dominates the zooplankton community of Lake Biwa, have been disrupted several times over the past 45 years. The aim of this study was to clarify the primary environmental factor that caused the disrupted seasonal cycle in population density of E. japonicus. Here, we tested the hypothesis that the disruption in their seasonal cycle was due to the impacts of water temperature, food conditions, and predator pressure, using an individual-based model (IBM). Based on the experimental data from the literature, we described the growth and reproduction of E. japonicus using temperature- and food-dependent functions. Previously, the developmental time of this species was expressed using Bělehrádek’s equation. In this study, we applied the Kontodimas equation, which successfully reproduced the effects of food scarcity at higher temperatures. Additionally, the influence of predators was incorporated into the survival rate of adult individuals. The long-term data set of Lake Biwa was input into the developed model to simulate the population fluctuations during the disruption period (1975–1979) and stable period (1995–1999) of their seasonal cycle. The combination of environmental data to be input was (1) water temperature, food availability, and predators; (2) water temperature and food availability; and (3) water temperature and predators. Disruptions in the seasonal cycle of the population were only observed in scenario (1) during the disruption period simulation, suggesting that the disrupted seasonal cycle of this species in Lake Biwa may have been caused by the effects of both food condition and predators. The results of simulation scenarios (2) and (3) indicated that predators have a stronger impact on the population than food availability. This time, we used common and simple indicators to describe food conditions and predators, but the model can be improved to be more complex and accurate as more data become available. Such models are important tools for understanding the relationship between environmental factors and the dynamics of diaptomid copepod populations. Full article

In the process of tissue engineering, several types of stresses can influence the outcome of tissue regeneration. This outcome can be understood by designing hydrogels that mimic this process and studying how such hydrogel scaffolds and cells behave under a set of stresses. Here, a hydrogel formulation is proposed to create biomimetic scaffolds suitable for fibroblast cell culture. Subsequently, we examine the impact of external stresses on fibroblast cells cultured on both solid and porous hydrogels. These stresses included mechanical tension and altered-gravity conditions experienced during the 83rd parabolic flight campaign conducted by the European Space Agency. This study shows distinct cellular responses characterized by cell aggregation and redistribution in regions of intensified stress concentration. This paper presents a new biomimetic hydrogel that fulfills tissue-engineering requirements in terms of biocompatibility and mechanical stability. Moreover, it contributes to our comprehension of cellular biomechanics under diverse gravitational conditions, shedding light on the dynamic cellular adaptations versus varying stress environments. Full article

In Apis mellifera, csd is the primary gene involved in sex determination: haploid hemizygous eggs develop as drones, while females develop from eggs heterozygous for the csd gene. If diploid eggs are homozygous for the csd gene, diploid drones will develop, but will be eaten by worker bees before they are born. Therefore, high csd allelic diversity is a priority for colony survival and breeding. This study aims to investigate the variability of the hypervariable region (HVR) of the csd gene in bees sampled in an apiary under a selection scheme. To this end, an existing dataset of 100 whole-genome sequences was analyzed with a validated pipeline based on de novo assembly of sequences within the HVR region. In total, 102 allelic sequences were reconstructed and translated into amino acid sequences. Among these, 47 different alleles were identified, 44 of which had previously been observed, while 3 are novel alleles. The results show a high variability in the csd region in this breeding population of honeybees. Full article

Loss of hand functions, often manifesting in the form of weakness or spasticity from conditions like stroke or multiple sclerosis, poses challenges in performing activities of daily living (ADLs). The broad area of rehabilitation robotics provides the tools and knowledge necessary for implementing efficient restorative therapies. These therapies aim to improve hand functionality with minimal therapist intervention. However, the human hand evolved for various precision and power gripping tasks, with its intricate anatomy featuring a large number of degrees of freedom—up to 31—which hinder its modeling in many rehabilitation scenarios. In the process of designing prosthetic devices, instrumented gloves, and rehabilitation devices, there is a clear need to obtain simplified rehabilitation-oriented hand models without compromising their representativeness across the population. This is where the concept of kinematic reduction, focusing on specific grasps, becomes essential. Thus, the objective of this study is to uncover the intra-finger dependencies during finger flexion/extension by analyzing a comprehensive database containing recorded trajectories for 23 different functional movements related to ADLs, involving 77 test subjects. The initial phase involves data wrangling, followed by correlation analysis aimed at selecting 116 dependency-movement relationships across all grasps. A regularized generalized linear model is then applied to select uncorrelated predictors, while a linear mixed-effect model, with reductions based on both predictor significance and effect size, is used for modeling the dependencies. As a final step, agglomerative clustering of models is performed to further facilitate flexibility in tradeoffs in hand model accuracy/reduction, allowing the modeling of finger flexion extensions using 5–15 degrees of freedom only. Full article

Abstract: With the rapid growth of the new energy vehicle market, efficient management of the closed-loop supply chain of power batteries has become an important issue. Effective closed-loop supply chain management is very critical, which is related to the efficient utilization of resources, environmental responsibility, and the realization of economic benefits. In this paper, the Markov Decision Process (MDP) is used to model the decision-making and coordination mechanism of the closed-loop supply chain of power batteries in order to cope with the challenges in the management process, such as cost, quality, and technological progress. By constructing the MDP model for different supply chain participants, this paper investigates the optimization strategy of the supply chain and applies two solution methods: dynamic programming and reinforcement learning. The case study results show that the model can effectively identify optimized supply chain decisions, improve the overall efficiency of the supply chain, and coordinate the interests among parties. The contribution of this study is to provide a new modeling framework for power battery recycling and to demonstrate the practicality and effectiveness of the method with empirical data. This study demonstrates that the Markov decision-making process can be a powerful tool for closed-loop supply chain management, promotes a deeper understanding of the complex decision-making environment of the supply chain, and provides a new solution path for decision-making and coordination in the supply chain. Full article

Malnutrition remains a critical global health challenge, especially in rural areas, where it significantly impacts the health and economic stability of households. This study explores (1) the relationship between labor migration and dietary protein intake in households remaining in economically disadvantaged rural regions and (2) the influence of remittance income, farm earnings, self-produced food, and changes in family size due to migration on their dietary protein. Panel data were collected through a three-wave household survey of 1368 rural households across six counties in the provinces of Guizhou, Yunnan, and Shaanxi during 2012, 2015, and 2018. Employing a two-way fixed effects model, we found that labor migration positively affects the protein consumption of families left behind. The mediated effects model indicated that decreases in family size had the most significant impact on protein intake, with a value of 8.714, accounting for 0.729 of the total effect; followed by the mediating effect through crop income, at 2.579, representing 0.216 of the total effect; and livestock income, at 0.772, contributing 0.073 of the total effect. However, the mediating effects of remittance income and self-production were found to be insignificant. In conclusion, our study found that migration improves protein intake primarily through increased crop and livestock production and decreased family size. These results highlight the critical role of family structure and farm productivity in enhancing the nutrition of families affected by labor migration, offering valuable insights for policymakers. Full article