Do COVID-19 pandemic-related policy shocks flatten the bid-rent curve? Evidence from real estate markets in Shanghai.

The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically affected the socioeconomic activities and peoples' daily life, resulting in a change in locational preferences in the real estate markets. Although enormous efforts have been devoted to examining the housing price impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, little is known about the responses of the real estate markets to the evolving pandemic control measures. This study investigates the price gradient effects of various pandemic-related policy shocks using a hedonic price model on the district-level property transaction data in Shanghai, China over a 48-month period from 2018 to 2021. We found that these shocks have significantly altered the bid-rent curves. The price gradient for residential property units decreased in absolute value to - 0.433 after Wuhan's lockdown, demonstrating peoples' preferences to avoid the high infection risks in districts closer to the city center. However, in the post-reopening and post-vaccine periods, the price gradient increased to - 0.463 and - 0.486, respectively, implying rational expectations of a recovering real estate market for the low infection and mortality rates. In addition, we discovered that Wuhan's lockdown has steepened the price gradient for commercial property units, suggesting a decline in business volumes and an increase in operating costs in the low-density districts imposed by the strict pandemic control measures. This study contributes to the empirical literature on the price gradient effects of the COVID-19 pandemic by extending the study period to the post-vaccine era.

A20 targets PFKL and glycolysis to inhibit the progression of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Abnormal expression of the E3 ubiquitin ligase A20 has been found in some malignant cancers, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Here, we discovered that A20 is an E3 ubiquitin ligase for phosphofructokinase, liver type (PFKL) in HCC A20 interacts with PFKL and promotes its degradation, therefore inhibiting glycolysis in HCC cell lines. Downregulation of A20 in HCC cells promotes proliferation, migration, and glycolysis, all of which can be inhibited by targeting PFKL with RNA interference. Importantly, A20 is downregulated in advanced HCC tissues and inversely correlated with PFKL expression. Thus, our findings establish A20 as a critical regulator of glycolysis and reveal a novel mechanism for A20 in tumor suppression and PFKL regulation. Given that an increased level of glycolysis is linked with HCC, this study also identifies potential therapeutic targets for HCC treatment.