Academic literature on the topic 'Xin wen bao guan'

Abstract PURPOSE Neoadjuvant immunotherapy (IO) combined with concurrent chemoradiotherapy (cCRT) showed a good efficacy in treatment of locally advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma (G/GEJC) patients. However, the mechanism of therapeutic efficacy on tumor cells and the tumor microenvironment are still unknown. We aimed to characterize the microenvironment of immune cell infiltration at baseline and post-treatment of the patients in SHARED trial (ChiCTR1900024428). METHODS We prospectively enrolled 18 advanced G/GEJC patients who received IO (sintilimab, anti-PD-L1) in combination with cCRT therapy and resection in Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital. The pre-treatment tumor biopsies samples and post-treatment surgical specimens of all patients were measured for dynamic tumor microenvironment (TME) using mIHC (immune cell markers: CD3, CD4, CD8, FoxP3, CD20, CD56, CD68, CD163, PD-1, PD-L1) in a CLIA-certified laboratory. Twenty-five samples were successfully examined,including 10 paired pre-treatment biopsies and post-treatment specimens, three sole pre-treatment biopsies and two sole post-treatment specimens. RESULTS Among 18 patients who completed neoadjuvant treatment and resection, eight (44.4%) achieved pathological complete response (pCR), and 10 (55.6%) achieved non-pCR (six MPR and four non-MPR). Evaluable pre-treatment samples revealed a significantly higher CD56 dim+ immune infiltration (P=0.018) in pCR tumors compared with non-pCR tumors. Three patients harbored tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) in pre-treatment biopsies, two out of three achieved pCR and one achieved MPR. Another one patient harbored TLSs in post-treatment specimens and achieved pCR. No difference was found in all evaluable post-treatment specimens, when compared with paired pretreatment biopsies. Strikingly, significant post-treatment increases in CD3+ immune infiltration (P=0.0366) and CD4+FoxP3+ immune infiltration (P=0.0277) were observed in pCR tumors, with no significant difference in non-pCR tumors. CONCLUSIONS The different response to IO plus cCRT therapy in locally advanced G/GEJC patients and be explained by the difference in TME including the baseline CD56 dim+ immune infiltration, TLSs status and the reprogrammed immune infiltration induced by IO PLUS cCRT therapy. Further large population based studies are warranted to validate the response mechanism. Citation Format: Jia Wei, Qin Liu, Hui Chen, Xin Zhang, Feilong Zhao, Yao Fu, Ju Yang, Yue Wang, Shiqing Chen, Xiaochen Zhao, Yuezong Bai, Wenxian Guan, Baorui Liu. CD56 dim+ immune infiltration and reprogrammed TMEs associated with response to neoadjuvant anti-PD-1 immunotherapy plus concurrent chemoradiotherapy in locally advanced gastric or gastroesophageal junction adenocarcinoma [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2022; 2022 Apr 8-13. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2022;82(12_Suppl):Abstract nr 6176.

COVID-19 Pandemic resulted in social mobility and travel restrictions to contain the infection. It has been reported that there happened post-pandemic surge in the use of the internet and social media as people rely on it more often for entertainment, work, and learning purposes. It is also been used as an unhealthy coping strategy for pandemic related stress. The smartphone was found to be the most common gadget used for accessing internet-based services. Owing to the postural alterations related to the small screen size of smartphones, neck pain was reported very commonly among smartphone users. Neck pain among smartphone users is a public health concern needing immediate attention in the pandemic time. Many of the risk factors leading to neck pain among smartphone users are modifiable. The authors outline preventive strategies that are mostly self- regulated. The strategies recommended include reducing Smartphone usage time (Smartphone-Free Time, Smartphone-Free Zone), maintaining ideal posture (Focus Breaks, Mobility Breaks, How am I keeping my posture?, Hands-free alternatives), doing regular exercises, preparing and following an activity schedule, and inculcating healthy habits. References Sohrabi C, Alsafi Z, O’Neill N, Khan M, Kerwan A, Al-Jabir A, et al. World Health Organization declares global emergency: A review of the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Int J Surg 2020; 76: 71–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijsu.2020.02.034 Király O, Potenza MN, Stein DJ, King DL, Hodgins DC, Saunders JB, et al. Preventing problematic internet use during the COVID-19 pandemic: Consensus guidance. Compr Psychiatry 2020; 100:152180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comppsych.2020.152180 Sun Y, Li Y, Bao Y, Meng S, Sun Y, Schumann G, et al. Brief Report: Increased Addictive Internet and Substance Use Behavior During the COVID‐19 Pandemic in China. Am J Addict 2020 ;29(4):268–70. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajad.13066 Varga E. How does the Internet Influences the Readers’ Behavior. Procedia Manuf. 2020; 46:949–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.promfg.2020.05.013 Zhuang L, Wang L, Xu D, Wang Z, Liang R. Association between excessive smartphone use and cervical disc degeneration in young patients suffering from chronic neck pain. J Orthop Sci. 2020; https://doi.org/1016/j.jos.2020.02.009 Davey S, Davey A. Assessment of smartphone addiction in indian adolescents: a mixed method study by systematic-review and meta-analysis approach. Int J Prev Med.2014;5(12):1500–11. Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25709785 Smetaniuk P. A preliminary investigation into the prevalence and prediction of problematic cell phone use. J Behav Addict 2014 Mar;3(1):41–53. https://doi.org/1556/JBA.3.2014.004 Lee H, Seo MJ, Choi TY. The Effect of Home-based Daily Journal Writing in Korean Adolescents with Smartphone Addiction. J Korean Med Sci. 2016;31(5):764. https://doi.org/3346/jkms.2016.31.5.764 Yu S, Sussman S. Does Smartphone Addiction Fall on a Continuum of Addictive Behaviors? Int J Environ Res Public Health.2020;17(2):422. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17020422.10. Kwon M, Kim D-J, Cho H, Yang S. The smartphone addiction scale: development and validation of a short version for adolescents. PLoS One2013;8(12): e83558. https://doi.org/1371/journal.pone.0083558 Ding D, Li J. Smartphone Overuse – A Growing Public Health Issue. J Psychol Psychother.2017;07(289):1-3. https://doi.org/0.4172/2161-0487.1000289 Boumosleh JM, Jaalouk D. Depression, anxiety, and smartphone addiction in university students- A cross sectional study. PLoS One 2017;12(8): e0182239. https://doi.org/1371/journal.pone.0182239 Xie Y, Szeto G, Dai J. Prevalence and risk factors associated with musculoskeletal complaints among users of mobile handheld devices: A systematic review. Appl Ergon.2017 Mar;59:132–42. https://doi.org/1016/j.apergo.2016.08.020 Alsalameh AM, Harisi MJ, Alduayji MA, Almutham AA, Mahmood FM. Evaluating the relationship between smartphone addiction/overuse and musculoskeletal pain among medical students at Qassim University. J Fam Med Prim care. 2019;8(9):2953–9. https://doi.org/4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_665_19 Toh SH, Coenen P, Howie EK, Smith AJ, Mukherjee S, Mackey DA, et al. A prospective longitudinal study of mobile touch screen device use and musculoskeletal symptoms and visual health in adolescents. Appl Ergon. 2020; 85:103028. https://doi.org/1016/j.apergo.2019.103028 Lee S, Kang H, Shin G. Head flexion angle while using a smartphone. Ergonomics. 2015 Feb 17;58(2):220–6. https://doi.org/1080/00140139.2014.967311 Guan X, Fan G, Chen Z, Zeng Y, Zhang H, Hu A, et al. Gender difference in mobile phone use and the impact of digital device exposure on neck posture. Ergonomics. 2016;59(11):1453–61. https://doi.org/10.1080/00140139.2016.1147614 Han H, Shin G. Head flexion angle when web-browsing and texting using a smartphone while walking. Appl Ergon. 2019; 81:102884. https://doi.org/1016/j.apergo.2019.102884 Singla D, Veqar Z. Association between forward head, rounded shoulders, and increased thoracic kyphosis: a review of the literature. J Chiropr Med. 2017;16(3):220–9. https://doi.org/1016/j.jcm.2017.03.004 Park J-H, Kang S-Y, Lee S-G, Jeon H-S. The effects of smart phone gaming duration on muscle activation and spinal posture: Pilot study. Physiother Theory Pract. 2017;33(8):661–9. https://doi.org/10.1080/09593985.2017.1328716 Xie Y, Szeto GPY, Dai J, Madeleine P. A comparison of muscle activity in using touchscreen smartphone among young people with and without chronic neck–shoulder pain. Ergonomics. 2016;59(1):61–72. https://doi.org/10.1080/00140139.2015.1056237 Hansraj KK. Assessment of stresses in the cervical spine caused by posture and position of the head. Surg Technol Int. 2014; 25:277–9. Li W, Yang Y, Liu Z-H, Zhao Y-J, Zhang Q, Zhang L, et al. Progression of mental health services during the COVID-19 outbreak in China. Int J Biol Sci. 2020;16(10):1732–8. https://doi.org/7150/ijbs.45120 Namwongsa S, Puntumetakul R, Neubert MS, Boucaut R. Factors associated with neck disorders among university student smartphone users. Work. 2018;61(3):367–78. https://doi.org/3233/WOR-182819 Ko P-H, Hwang Y-H, Liang H-W. Influence of smartphone use styles on typing performance and biomechanical exposure. Ergonomics. 2016;59(6):821–8. https://doi.org/10.1080/00140139.2015.1088075

This study develops procedures for cloning ITS and matK genes on six specimens in order to exploit and conserve the genetic resources of H. nepalensis and evaluate its genetic diversity based on molecular markers. The study methods include DNA extraction from dried leaf samples, amplification of ITS and matK regions using PCR, sequencing and comparing with the sequences on Genbank. The study results include a successfully-established process of cloning ITS and matK genes; successful amplification and sequencing of the ITS and matK regions. The results also show that four samples (N1-N4) were 100% homologous to H. nepalensis and H1and H2 samples were 100% homologous to H. helix. The results provide data and tools for further studies of exploitation and development of the H. nepalensis K. Koch genetic resources in Vietnam. Keywords ITS, matK, Hedera nepalensis K. Koch, PCR References [1] V.V. Chi. Dictionary of Vietnamese Medicinal Plants, Publ. House Medicine, Ho Chi Minh City, 2012 (in Vietnamese).[2] D.H. Bich, D.Q. Cuong, B.X. Chuong, N. Thuong, D. T. Dam. The medicinal plants and animals in Vietnam, Hanoi Sci. Technol. Publ. House Hanoi, 2006 (in Vietnamese).[3] A. Sadat, M. Alam, A. Rauf, W. Ullah, Biological screening of ethyl acetate extract of Hedera nepalensis stem, Afr J Pharm Pharmacol, 6 (2012) 2934-2937. https://doi.org/10.5897/AJPP12.828.[4] T. Li, H. Pan, Y. Feng, H. Li, Y. Zhao, Bioactivity-guided isolation of anticancer constituents from Hedera nepalensis K. Koch, S Afr J Bot, 100 (2015) 87-93. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sajb.2015.05.011.[5] L. Jafri, S. Saleem, N. Ullah, B. Mirza, In vitro assessment of antioxidant potential and determination of polyphenolic compounds of Hedera nepalensis K. Koch, Arab J Chem, 10 (2017) 3699-3706. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.arabjc.2014.05.002. [6] S. Saleem, L. Jafri, I. ul Haq, L.C. Chang, D. Calderwood, B.D. Green, B. Mirza, Plants Fagonia cretica L. and Hedera nepalensis K. Koch contain natural compounds with potent dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitory activity, J Ethnopharmacol, 156 (2014) 26-32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2014.08.017.[7] W.J. Hashmi, H. Ismail, F. Mehmood, B. Mirza, Neuroprotective, antidiabetic and antioxidant effect of Hedera nepalensis and lupeol against STZ+ AlCl 3 induced rats model, DARU, 26 (2018) 179-190. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40199-018-0223-3.[8] H. Ismail, A. Rasheed, I.-u. Haq, L. Jafri, N. Ullah, E. Dilshad, M. Sajid, B. Mirza, Five indigenous plants of Pakistan with Antinociceptive, anti-inflammatory, antidepressant, and anticoagulant properties in Sprague Dawley rats, Evid Based Complement Alternat Med, 2017 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1155/2017/7849501[9] N.D. Thanh. DNA marker techniques in study and selection of plant. Journal of Biology. 36 (2014) 265-294 (in Vietnamese). https://doi.org/10.15625/0866-7160/v36n3.5974.[10] P.Z. Goldstein, R. DeSalle, Review and interpretation of trends in DNA barcoding, Front Ecol Evol, 7 (2019) 302. https://doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2019.00302.[11] S. Abugalieva, L. Volkova, Y. Genievskaya, A. Ivaschenko, Y. Kotukhov, G. Sakauova, Y. Turuspekov, Taxonomic assessment of Allium species from Kazakhstan based on ITS and matK markers, BMC plant biol, 17 (2017) 258. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12870-017-1194-0.[12] R.M. Bhagwat, B.B. Dholakia, N.Y. Kadoo, M. Balasundaran, V.S. Gupta, Two new potential barcodes to discriminate Dalbergia species, PloS one, 10 (2015) e0142965. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0142965[13] D. Grivet, R. Petit, Phylogeography of the common ivy (Hedera sp.) in Europe: genetic differentiation through space and time, Mol Ecol, 11 (2002) 1351-1362. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365294x.2002.01522.x.[14] R. Li, J. Wen, Phylogeny and biogeography of Dendropanax (Araliaceae), an amphi-Pacific disjunct genus between tropical/subtropical Asia and the Neotropics, Syst Bot, 38 (2013) 536-551. https://doi.org/10.1600/036364413X666606.[15] Y. Sun, D. Skinner, G. Liang, S. Hulbert, Phylogenetic analysis of Sorghum and related taxa using internal transcribed spacers of nuclear ribosomal DNA, ‎Theor Appl Genet, 89 (1994) 26-32. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00226978[16] P. Cuénoud, V. Savolainen, L.W. Chatrou, M. Powell, R.J. Grayer, M.W. Chase, Molecular phylogenetics of Caryophyllales based on nuclear 18S rDNA and plastid rbcL, atpB, and matK DNA sequences, Am J Bot, 89 (2002) 132-144. https://doi.org/10.3732/ajb.89.1.132.[17] D. Bošeľová, J. Žiarovská, L. Hlavačková, K. Ražná, M. Bežo, Comparative analysis of different methods of Hedera helix DNA extraction and molecular evidence of the functionality in PCR Acta fytotechn zootechn, 19 (2016) 144-149. https://doi.org/10.15414/afz.2016.19.04.144-149.[18] D.D. Long, Comparative analysis of different DNA extraction methods and preliminary analysis of genetic diversity of Hedera nepalensis K. Koch. in Vietnam based on GBSSI marker, VNU Journal of Science: Medical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, 35 (2019) 88-95 (in Vietnamese). https://doi.org/10.25073/2588-1132/vnumps.4165 [19] J.H. Cota-Sánchez, K. Remarchuk, K. Ubayasena, Ready-to-use DNA extracted with a CTAB method adapted for herbarium specimens and mucilaginous plant tissue, Plant Mol Biol Rep, 24 (2006)161. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02914055.[20] S. Xu, D. Li, J. Li, X. Xiang, W. Jin, W. Huang, X. Jin, L. Huang, Evaluation of the DNA barcodes in Dendrobium (Orchidaceae) from mainland Asia, PloS one, 10 (2015) e0115168. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0115168.[21] P. Vargas, H.A. McAllister, C. Morton, S.L. Jury, M.J. Wilkinson, Polyploid speciation in Hedera (Araliaceae): Phylogenetic and biogeographic insights based on chromosome counts and ITS sequences, Pl Syst Evol, 219 (1999) 165-179. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00985577[22] X. Lei, Y.W. Wang, S.Y. Guan, L.J. Xie, L. Xin, C.Y. Sun, Prospects and problems for identification of poisonous plants in China using DNA barcodes, Biomed Environ Sci, 27 (2014) 794-806. https://doi.org/10.3967/bes2014.115.[23] H. Sun, W. McLewin, M.F. Fay, Molecular phylogeny of Helleborus (Ranunculaceae), with an emphasis on the East Asian‐Mediterranean disjunction, Taxon, 50 (2001) 1001-1018. https://doi.org/10.2307/1224717.

The globe is engulfed by one of the most extensive public health crises as COVID-19 has become a leading cause of death worldwide. COVID-19 was first detected in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, causing the severe acute respiratory syndrome. This review discusses issues related to Covid-19 vaccines, such as vaccine development targets, vaccine types, efficacy, limitations and development prospects. Keywords: Covid-19, SARS-CoV-2, vaccine, spike protein. References [1] C. Wang, P. W. Horby, F. G. Hayden, G. F. Gao, A Novel Coronavirus Outbreak of Global Health Concern, The Lancet, Vol. 395, No. 10223, 2020, pp. 470-473, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30185-9.[2] T. Singhal, A Review of Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19), The Indian Journal of Pediatrics, Vol. 87, 2020, pp. 281-286, https://doi.org/10.1007/s12098-020-03263-6.[3] World Health Organization, WHO Coronavirus (COVID-19) Dashboard, https://covid19.who.int/, (accessed on: August 21st, 2021).[4] A. Alimolaie, A Review of Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19), Biological Science Promotion Vol. 3, No. 6, 2020, pp. 152-157.[5] J. Yang, Y. Zheng, X. Gou, K. Pu, Z. Chen, Q. Guo et al., Prevalence of Comorbidities and Its Effects in Patients Infected with SARS-Cov-2: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis, International Journal of Infectious Diseases, Vol. 94, 2020, pp. 91-95, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2020.03.017.[6] H. E. Randolph, L. B. Barreiro, Herd Immunity: Understanding COVID-19, Immunity, Vol. 52, No. 5, 2020, pp. 737-741, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.immuni.2020.04.012.[7] F. Jung, V. Krieger, F. Hufert, J. H. Küpper, Herd Immunity or Suppression Strategy to Combat COVID-19, Clinical Hemorheology and Microcirculation, Vol. 75, No. 1, 2020, pp. 13-17, https://doi.org/10.3233/CH-209006.[8] O. Sharma, A. A. Sultan, H. Ding, C. R. 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Three compounds were isolated from the rhizome part of Canna edulis for the first time including liquiritigenin, methyl caffeate and uracil. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods as MS and NMR. Keywords Canna edulis Ker Gawl, liquiritigenin, methyl caffeate, uracil. References [1] T. H. Vu, Q. U. Le, Edible Canna (Canna edulis Ker), A Potential Crop for Vietnam Food Industry, International Journal of Botany Studies, Vol. 4, No. 4, 2019, pp. 58–59.[2] N. Tanakar, The Utilization of Edible Canna Plants in Southeastern Asia and Southern China, Economic Botany, Vol. 58, No. 1, 2004, 112–114.[3] A. S. A. Snafi, Bioactive Components and Pharmacological Effects of Canna indica - an Overview, International Journal of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Vol. 5, No. 2, 2015, pp. 71–75.[4] X. J. Zhang, Z. W. Wang, Q. Mi, Phenolic Compounds from Canna edulis Ker Residue and Their Antioxidant Activity, LWT - Food Science Technology, Vol. 44, No. 10, 2011, pp. 2091–2096, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lwt.2011.05.021. [5] F. Xie, S. Gong, W. Zhang, J. Wu, Z. Wang, Potential of Lignin from Canna edulis Ker Residue in The Inhibition of α-d-glucosidase: Kinetics and Interaction Mechanism Merging with Docking Simulation, International Journal of Biology and Macromolecules, Vol. 95, 2017, pp. 592–602, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2016.11.100.[6] J. Zhang, Z. W. Wang, Soluble Dietary Fiber from Canna edulis Ker By-product and Its Physicochemical Properties, Carbohydrates Polymers, Vol. 92, No. 1, 2013, pp. 289–296, http:/doi.org/10.1016/j.carbpol.2012.09.067.[7] T. M. H. Nguyen, H. L. Le, T. T. Ha, B. H. Bui, N. T. Le, V. H. Nguyen, T. V. A. Nguyen, Inhibitory Effect on Human Platelet Aggregation and Coagulation and Antioxidant Activity of Canna edulis Ker Gawl Rhizhomes and Its Secondary Metabolites, Journal of Ethnopharmacology, Vol. 263, 2020, pp. 113-136, https:/doi.org/10.1016/j.jep.2020.113136.[8] T. A. Y. Diaa, M. A. Ramada, A. A. Khalifa, Acetophenones, a Chalcone, a Chromone and Flavonoids from Pancratium Maritimum, Phytochemistry, Vol. 49, No. 8, pp. 1998, pp. 2579-2583, http:/doi.org/10.1016/S003109422(98)00429-4. [9] W. Koji, Y. Osanai, T. Imaizumi, S. Kanno, M. Takeshita, M. Ishikawa, Inhibitory Effect of The Alkyl Side Chain of Caffeic Acid Analogues on Lipopolysaccharide-induced Nitric Oxide Production in RAW264.7 Macrophages, Bioorganic Med. Chem., Vol. 16, No. 16, 2008, pp. 7795–7803, https:/doi.org/10.1016/j.bmc.2008.07.006.[10] C. Y. Wang, L. Han, K. Kang, C. L. Shao, Y. X. Wei, C. J. Zheng, H. S Guan, Secondary Metabolites From Green Algae Ulva Pertusa, Chemistry of Natural Compounds Vol. 46, No. 5, 2010, pp. 828-830.[11] C. T. Inh, N. T. H. Van, P. M. Quan, T. T. Q. Trang, T. A. Vien, N. T. Thuy, D. T. Thao, New Diterpenoid Isolated from Medicinal Plant Euphorbia tithymaloides (P.), Vietnam J. Chem., Vol. 54, 2016, pp. 274-279, https:/doi.org/10.15625/0866-7144.2016-00304 (in Vietnamese).[12] Q. Y. Li, H. Liang, B. Wang, Z. Z. Zhao, Chemical Constituents of Momordica charantia L, Yao Xue Xue Bao, Vol. 44, No. 9, 2009, pp. 1014-1018.[13] V. T. Diep, L. T. Loan, N. T. Thu, T. T. Ha, N. M. Khoi, N. H. Tuan, D. T. Ha, Triterpen, Flavonoid and Pyrimidine Compounds from The Aerial Parts of Dregea volubilis, Journal of Medicinal Materials, Vol. 24, No. 6, 2019, pp. 329-332.[14] H. M. Eid, D. Vallerand, A. Muhammad, T. Durst, P. S. Haddad, L. C. Martineau, Structural Constraints and the Importance of Lipophilicity for the Mitochondrial Uncoupling Activity of Naturally Occurring Caffeic Acid Esters with Potential for the Treatment of Insulin Resistance, Biochemical Pharmacology, Vol. 79, No. 3, 2010, pp. 444–454, https:/doi.org/10.1016/j.bcp.2009.08.026.[15] K. Takahashi, Y. Yoshioka, E. Kato, S. Katsuki, O. Iida, K. Hosokawa, J. Kawabata, Methyl Caffeate as a Glucosidase Inhibitor from Solanum Torvum fruits and the Activity of Related Compounds, Bioscience, Biotechnology and Biochemistry, Vol. 74, No. 4, 2010, pp. 741–745, https:/doi.org/10.1271/bbb.9087.[16] S. M. Fiuza, C. Gomes, L. J. Teixeira, M. T. G. D. Cruz, M. N. Cordeiro, N. Milhazes, F. Borges, M. P. Marques, Phenolic Acid Derivatives with Potential Anticancer Properties, a Structure-Activity Relationship Study Part 1: Methyl, Propyl and Octyl Esters of Caffeic and Gallic Acids, Bioorgan Med Chem, Vol. 12, No. 13, 2004, pp. 3581-3589, https:/doi.org/10.1016/j.bmc.2004.04.026.[17] S. P. Lee, G. Jun, E. Yoon, S. Park, C. Yang, Inhibitory Effect of Methyl Caffeate on Fos-Jun-DNA Complex Formation and Suppression of Cancer Cell Growth, Bulletin of Korean Chemical Society, Vol. 22, No. 10, 2001, pp. 1131-1135.

The curtain rose. The howling of desert wind filled the performance hall in the Shanghai Grand Theatre. Into the center stage, where a scenic construction of a mountain cliff and a desert landscape was dimly lit, entered the character of the Daoist priest Wang Yuanlu (1849–1931), performed by Chen Yizong. Dressed in a worn and dusty outfit of dark blue cotton, characteristic of Daoist priests, Wang began to sweep the floor. After a few moments, he discovered a hidden chambre sealed inside one of the rock sanctuaries carved into the cliff.Signaled by the quick, crystalline, stirring wave of sound from the chimes, a melodious Chinese ocarina solo joined in slowly from the background. Astonished by thousands of Buddhist sūtra scrolls, wall paintings, and sculptures he had just accidentally discovered in the caves, Priest Wang set his broom aside and began to examine these treasures. Dawn had not yet arrived, and the desert sky was pitch-black. Priest Wang held his oil lamp high, strode rhythmically in excitement, sat crossed-legged in a meditative pose, and unfolded a scroll. The sound of the ocarina became fuller and richer and the texture of the music more complex, as several other instruments joined in.Below is the opening scene of the award-winning, theatrical dance-drama Dunhuang, My Dreamland, created by China’s state-sponsored Lanzhou Song and Dance Theatre in 2000. Figure 1a: Poster Side A of Dunhuang, My Dreamland Figure 1b: Poster Side B of Dunhuang, My DreamlandThe scene locates the dance-drama in the rock sanctuaries that today are known as the Dunhuang Mogao Caves, housing Buddhist art accumulated over a period of a thousand years, one of the best well-known UNESCO heritages on the Silk Road. Historically a frontier metropolis, Dunhuang was a strategic site along the Silk Road in northwestern China, a crossroads of trade, and a locus for religious, cultural, and intellectual influences since the Han dynasty (206 B.C.E.–220 C.E.). Travellers, especially Buddhist monks from India and central Asia, passing through Dunhuang on their way to Chang’an (present day Xi’an), China’s ancient capital, would stop to meditate in the Mogao Caves and consult manuscripts in the monastery's library. At the same time, Chinese pilgrims would travel by foot from China through central Asia to Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, playing a key role in the exchanges between ancient China and the outside world. Travellers from China would stop to acquire provisions at Dunhuang before crossing the Gobi Desert to continue on their long journey abroad. Figure 2: Dunhuang Mogao CavesThis article approaches the idea of “abroad” by examining the present-day imagination of journeys along the Silk Road—specifically, staged performances of the various Silk Road journey-themed dance-dramas sponsored by the Chinese state for enhancing its cultural and foreign policies since the 1970s (Kuang).As ethnomusicologists have demonstrated, musicians, choreographers, and playwrights often utilise historical materials in their performances to construct connections between the past and the present (Bohlman; Herzfeld; Lam; Rees; Shelemay; Tuohy; Wade; Yung: Rawski; Watson). The ancient Silk Road, which linked the Mediterranean coast with central China and beyond, via oasis towns such as Samarkand, has long been associated with the concept of “journeying abroad.” Journeys to distant, foreign lands and encounters of unknown, mysterious cultures along the Silk Road have been documented in historical records, such as A Record of Buddhist Kingdoms (Faxian) and The Great Tang Records on the Western Regions (Xuanzang), and illustrated in classical literature, such as The Travels of Marco Polo (Polo) and the 16th century Chinese novel Journey to the West (Wu). These journeys—coming and going from multiple directions and to different destinations—have inspired contemporary staged performance for audiences around the globe.Home and Abroad: Dunhuang and the Silk RoadDunhuang, My Dreamland (2000), the contemporary dance-drama, staged the journey of a young pilgrim painter travelling from Chang’an to a land of the unfamiliar and beyond borders, in search for the arts that have inspired him. Figure 3: A scene from Dunhuang, My Dreamland showing the young pilgrim painter in the Gobi Desert on the ancient Silk RoadFar from his home, he ended his journey in Dunhuang, historically considered the northwestern periphery of China, well beyond Yangguan and Yumenguan, the bordering passes that separate China and foreign lands. Later scenes in Dunhuang, My Dreamland, portrayed through multiethnic music and dances, the dynamic interactions among merchants, cultural and religious envoys, warriors, and politicians that were making their own journey from abroad to China. The theatrical dance-drama presents a historically inspired, re-imagined vision of both “home” and “abroad” to its audiences as they watch the young painter travel along the Silk Road, across the Gobi Desert, arriving at his own ideal, artistic “homeland”, the Dunhuang Mogao Caves. Since his journey is ultimately a spiritual one, the conceptualisation of travelling “abroad” could also be perceived as “a journey home.”Staged more than four hundred times since it premiered in Beijing in April 2000, Dunhuang, My Dreamland is one of the top ten titles in China’s National Stage Project and one of the most successful theatrical dance-dramas ever produced in China. With revenue of more than thirty million renminbi (RMB), it ranks as the most profitable theatrical dance-drama ever produced in China, with a preproduction cost of six million RMB. The production team receives financial support from China’s Ministry of Culture for its “distinctive ethnic features,” and its “aim to promote traditional Chinese culture,” according to Xu Rong, an official in the Cultural Industry Department of the Ministry. Labeled an outstanding dance-drama of the Chinese nation, it aims to present domestic and international audiences with a vision of China as a historically multifaceted and cosmopolitan nation that has been in close contact with the outside world through the ancient Silk Road. Its production company has been on tour in selected cities throughout China and in countries abroad, including Austria, Spain, and France, literarily making the young pilgrim painter’s “journey along the Silk Road” a new journey abroad, off stage and in reality.Dunhuang, My Dreamland was not the first, nor is it the last, staged performances that portrays the Chinese re-imagination of “journeying abroad” along the ancient Silk Road. It was created as one of many versions of Dunhuang bihua yuewu, a genre of music, dance, and dramatic performances created in the early twentieth century and based primarily on artifacts excavated from the Mogao Caves (Kuang). “The Mogao Caves are the greatest repository of early Chinese art,” states Mimi Gates, who works to increase public awareness of the UNESCO site and raise funds toward its conservation. “Located on the Chinese end of the Silk Road, it also is the place where many cultures of the world intersected with one another, so you have Greek and Roman, Persian and Middle Eastern, Indian and Chinese cultures, all interacting. Given the nature of our world today, it is all very relevant” (Pollack). As an expressive art form, this genre has been thriving since the late 1970s contributing to the global imagination of China’s “Silk Road journeys abroad” long before Dunhuang, My Dreamland achieved its domestic and international fame. For instance, in 2004, The Thousand-Handed and Thousand-Eyed Avalokiteśvara—one of the most representative (and well-known) Dunhuang bihua yuewu programs—was staged as a part of the cultural program during the Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece. This performance, as well as other Dunhuang bihua yuewu dance programs was the perfect embodiment of a foreign religion that arrived in China from abroad and became Sinicized (Kuang). Figure 4: Mural from Dunhuang Mogao Cave No. 45A Brief History of Staging the Silk Road JourneysThe staging of the Silk Road journeys abroad began in the late 1970s. Historically, the Silk Road signifies a multiethnic, cosmopolitan frontier, which underwent incessant conflicts between Chinese sovereigns and nomadic peoples (as well as between other groups), but was strongly imbued with the customs and institutions of central China (Duan, Mair, Shi, Sima). In the twentieth century, when China was no longer an empire, but had become what the early 20th-century reformer Liang Qichao (1873–1929) called “a nation among nations,” the long history of the Silk Road and the colourful, legendary journeys abroad became instrumental in the formation of a modern Chinese nation of unified diversity rooted in an ancient cosmopolitan past. The staged Silk Road theme dance-dramas thus participate in this formation of the Chinese imagination of “nation” and “abroad,” as they aestheticise Chinese history and geography. History and geography—aspects commonly considered constituents of a nation as well as our conceptualisations of “abroad”—are “invariably aestheticized to a certain degree” (Bakhtin 208). Diverse historical and cultural elements from along the Silk Road come together in this performance genre, which can be considered the most representative of various possible stagings of the history and culture of the Silk Road journeys.In 1979, the Chinese state officials in Gansu Province commissioned the benchmark dance-drama Rain of Flowers along the Silk Road, a spectacular theatrical dance-drama praising the pure and noble friendship which existed between the peoples of China and other countries in the Tang dynasty (618-907 C.E.). While its plot also revolves around the Dunhuang Caves and the life of a painter, staged at one of the most critical turning points in modern Chinese history, the work as a whole aims to present the state’s intention of re-establishing diplomatic ties with the outside world after the Cultural Revolution. Unlike Dunhuang, My Dreamland, it presents a nation’s journey abroad and home. To accomplish this goal, Rain of Flowers along the Silk Road introduces the fictional character Yunus, a wealthy Persian merchant who provides the audiences a vision of the historical figure of Peroz III, the last Sassanian prince, who after the Arab conquest of Iran in 651 C.E., found refuge in China. By incorporating scenes of ethnic and folk dances, the drama then stages the journey of painter Zhang’s daughter Yingniang to Persia (present-day Iran) and later, Yunus’s journey abroad to the Tang dynasty imperial court as the Persian Empire’s envoy.Rain of Flowers along the Silk Road, since its debut at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People on the first of October 1979 and shortly after at the Theatre La Scala in Milan, has been staged in more than twenty countries and districts, including France, Italy, Japan, Thailand, Russia, Latvia, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and recently, in 2013, at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York.“The Road”: Staging the Journey TodayWithin the contemporary context of global interdependencies, performing arts have been used as strategic devices for social mobilisation and as a means to represent and perform modern national histories and foreign policies (Davis, Rees, Tian, Tuohy, Wong, David Y. H. Wu). The Silk Road has been chosen as the basis for these state-sponsored, extravagantly produced, and internationally staged contemporary dance programs. In 2008, the welcoming ceremony and artistic presentation at the Olympic Games in Beijing featured twenty apsara dancers and a Dunhuang bihua yuewu dancer with long ribbons, whose body was suspended in mid-air on a rectangular LED extension held by hundreds of performers; on the giant LED screen was a depiction of the ancient Silk Road.In March 2013, Chinese president Xi Jinping introduced the initiatives “Silk Road Economic Belt” and “21st Century Maritime Silk Road” during his journeys abroad in Kazakhstan and Indonesia. These initiatives are now referred to as “One Belt, One Road.” The State Council lists in details the policies and implementation plans for this initiative on its official web page, www.gov.cn. In April 2013, the China Institute in New York launched a yearlong celebration, starting with "Dunhuang: Buddhist Art and the Gateway of the Silk Road" with a re-creation of one of the caves and a selection of artifacts from the site. In March 2015, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China’s top economic planning agency, released a new action plan outlining key details of the “One Belt, One Road” initiative. Xi Jinping has made the program a centrepiece of both his foreign and domestic economic policies. One of the central economic strategies is to promote cultural industry that could enhance trades along the Silk Road.Encouraged by the “One Belt, One Road” policies, in March 2016, The Silk Princess premiered in Xi’an and was staged at the National Centre for the Performing Arts in Beijing the following July. While Dunhuang, My Dreamland and Rain of Flowers along the Silk Road were inspired by the Buddhist art found in Dunhuang, The Silk Princess, based on a story about a princess bringing silk and silkworm-breeding skills to the western regions of China in the Tang Dynasty (618-907) has a different historical origin. The princess's story was portrayed in a woodblock from the Tang Dynasty discovered by Sir Marc Aurel Stein, a British archaeologist during his expedition to Xinjiang (now Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region) in the early 19th century, and in a temple mural discovered during a 2002 Chinese-Japanese expedition in the Dandanwulike region. Figure 5: Poster of The Silk PrincessIn January 2016, the Shannxi Provincial Song and Dance Troupe staged The Silk Road, a new theatrical dance-drama. Unlike Dunhuang, My Dreamland, the newly staged dance-drama “centers around the ‘road’ and the deepening relationship merchants and travellers developed with it as they traveled along its course,” said Director Yang Wei during an interview with the author. According to her, the show uses seven archetypes—a traveler, a guard, a messenger, and so on—to present the stories that took place along this historic route. Unbounded by specific space or time, each of these archetypes embodies the foreign-travel experience of a different group of individuals, in a manner that may well be related to the social actors of globalised culture and of transnationalism today. Figure 6: Poster of The Silk RoadConclusionAs seen in Rain of Flowers along the Silk Road and Dunhuang, My Dreamland, staging the processes of Silk Road journeys has become a way of connecting the Chinese imagination of “home” with the Chinese imagination of “abroad.” Staging a nation’s heritage abroad on contemporary stages invites a new imagination of homeland, borders, and transnationalism. Once aestheticised through staged performances, such as that of the Dunhuang bihua yuewu, the historical and topological landscape of Dunhuang becomes a performed narrative, embodying the national heritage.The staging of Silk Road journeys continues, and is being developed into various forms, from theatrical dance-drama to digital exhibitions such as the Smithsonian’s Pure Land: Inside the Mogao Grottes at Dunhuang (Stromberg) and the Getty’s Cave Temples of Dunhuang: Buddhist Art on China's Silk Road (Sivak and Hood). They are sociocultural phenomena that emerge through interactions and negotiations among multiple actors and institutions to envision and enact a Chinese imagination of “journeying abroad” from and to the country.ReferencesBakhtin, M.M. The Dialogic Imagination: Four Essays. Austin, Texas: University of Texas Press, 1982.Bohlman, Philip V. “World Music at the ‘End of History’.” Ethnomusicology 46 (2002): 1–32.Davis, Sara L.M. Song and Silence: Ethnic Revival on China’s Southwest Borders. New York: Columbia University Press, 2005.Duan, Wenjie. “The History of Conservation of Mogao Grottoes.” International Symposium on the Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Property: The Conservation of Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes and the Related Studies. Eds. Kuchitsu and Nobuaki. Tokyo: Tokyo National Research Institute of Cultural Properties, 1997. 1–8.Faxian. A Record of Buddhistic Kingdoms. Translated by James Legge. New York: Dover Publications, 1991.Herzfeld, Michael. 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Sep. 2016 <http://news.getty.edu/press-materials/press-releases/cave-temples-dunhuang-buddhist-art-chinas-silk-road>.Stromberg, Joseph. “Video: Take a Virtual 3D Journey to Visit China's Caves of the Thousand Buddhas.” Smithsonian, December 2012. Sep. 2016 <http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/video-take-a-virtual-3d-journey-to-visit-chinas-caves-of-the-thousand-buddhas-150897910/?no-ist>.Tian, Qing. “Recent Trends in Buddhist Music Research in China.” British Journal of Ethnomusicology 3 (1994): 63–72.Tuohy, Sue M.C. “Imagining the Chinese Tradition: The Case of Hua’er Songs, Festivals, and Scholarship.” Ph.D. Dissertation. Indiana University, Bloomington, 1988.Wade, Bonnie C. Imaging Sound: An Ethnomusicological Study of Music, Art, and Culture in Mughal India. 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IntroductionIn this article, I set out to accomplish two tasks. The first is to map coffee and cafés in Mainland China in different historical periods. The second is to focus on coffee and cafés in the socio-cultural milieu of contemporary China in order to understand the symbolic value of the emerging coffee/café-scape. Cafés, rather than coffee, are at the centre of this current trend in contemporary Chinese cities. With instant coffee dominating as a drink, the Chinese have developed a cultural and social demand for cafés, but have not yet developed coffee palates. Historical Coffee Map In 1901, coffee was served in a restaurant in the city of Tianjin. This restaurant, named Kiessling, was run by a German chef, a former solider who came to China with the eight-nation alliance. At that time, coffee was reserved mostly for foreign politicians and military officials as well as wealthy businessmen—very few ordinary Chinese drank it. (For more history of Kiessling, including pictures and videos, see Kiessling). Another group of coffee consumers were from the cultural elites—the young revolutionary intellectuals and writers with overseas experience. It was almost a fashion among the literary elite to spend time in cafés. However, this was negatively judged as “Western” and “bourgeois.” For example, in 1932, Lu Xun, one of the most important twentieth century Chinese writers, commented on the café fashion during 1920s (133-36), and listed the reasons why he would not visit one. He did not drink coffee because it was “foreigners’ food”, and he was too busy writing for the kind of leisure enjoyed in cafés. Moreover, he did not, he wrote, have the nerve to go to a café, and particularly not the Revolutionary Café that was popular among cultural celebrities at that time. He claimed that the “paradise” of the café was for genius, and for handsome revolutionary writers (who he described as having red lips and white teeth, whereas his teeth were yellow). His final complaint was that even if he went to the Revolutionary Café, he would hesitate going in (Lu Xun 133-36). From Lu Xun’s list, we can recognise his nationalism and resistance to what were identified as Western foods and lifestyles. It is easy to also feel his dissatisfaction with those dilettante revolutionary intellectuals who spent time in cafés, talking and enjoying Western food, rather than working. In contrast to Lu Xun’s resistance to coffee and café culture, another well-known writer, Zhang Ailing, frequented cafés when she lived in Shanghai from the 1920s to 1950s. She wrote about the smell of cakes and bread sold in Kiessling’s branch store located right next to her parents’ house (Yuyue). Born into a wealthy family, exposed to Western culture and food at a very young age, Zhang Ailing liked to spend her social and writing time in cafés, ordering her favourite cakes, hot chocolate, and coffee. When she left Shanghai and immigrated to the USA, coffee was an important part of her writing life: the smell and taste reminding her of old friends and Shanghai (Chunzi). However, during Zhang’s time, it was still a privileged and elite practice to patronise a café when these were located in foreign settlements with foreign chefs, and served mainly foreigners, wealthy businessmen, and cultural celebrities. After 1949, when the Chinese Communist Party established the People’s Republic of China, until the late 1970s, there were no coffee shops in Mainland China. It was only when Deng Xiaoping suggested neo-liberalism as a so-called “reform-and-open-up” economic policy that foreign commerce and products were again seen in China. In 1988, ten years after the implementation of Deng Xiaoping’s policy, the Nestlé coffee company made the first inroads into the mainland market, featuring homegrown coffee beans in Yunnan province (China Beverage News; Dong; ITC). Nestlé’s bottled instant coffee found its way into the Chinese market, avoiding a direct challenge to the tea culture. Nestlé packaged its coffee to resemble health food products and marketed it as a holiday gift suitable for friends and relatives. As a symbol of modernity and “the West”, coffee-as-gift meshed with the traditional Chinese cultural custom that values gift giving. It also satisfied a collective desire for foreign products (and contact with foreign cultures) during the economic reform era. Even today, with its competitively low price, instant coffee dominates coffee consumption at home, in the workplace, and on Chinese airlines. While Nestlé aimed their product at native Chinese consumers, the multinational companies who later entered China’s coffee market, such as Sara Lee, mainly targeted international hotels such as IHG, Marriott, and Hyatt. The multinationals also favoured coffee shops like Kommune in Shanghai that offered more sophisticated kinds of coffee to foreign consumers and China’s upper class (Byers). If Nestlé introduced coffee to ordinary Chinese families, it was Starbucks who introduced the coffee-based “third space” to urban life in contemporary China on a signficant scale. Differing from the cafés before 1949, Starbucks stores are accessible to ordinary Chinese citizens. The first in Mainland China opened in Beijing’s China World Trade Center in January 1999, targeting mainly white-collar workers and foreigners. Starbucks coffee shops provide a space for informal business meetings, chatting with friends, and relaxing and, with its 500th store opened in 2011, dominate the field in China. Starbucks are located mainly in the central business districts and airports, and the company plans to have 1,500 sites by 2015 (Starbucks). Despite this massive presence, Starbucks constitutes only part of the café-scape in contemporary Chinese cities. There are two other kinds of cafés. One type is usually located in universities or residential areas and is frequented mainly by students or locals working in cultural professions. A representative of this kind is Sculpting in Time Café. In November 1997, two years before the opening of the first Starbucks in Beijing, two newlywed college graduates opened the first small Sculpting in Time Café near Beijing University’s East Gate. This has been expanded into a chain, and boasts 18 branches on the Mainland. (For more about its history, see Sculpting in Time Café). Interestingly, both Starbucks and Sculpting in Time Café acquired their names from literature, Starbucks from Moby Dick, and Sculpting in Time from the Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky’s film diary of the same name. For Chinese students of literature and the arts, drinking coffee is less about acquiring more energy to accomplish their work, and more about entering a sensual world, where the aroma of coffee mixes with the sounds from the coffee machine and music, as well as the lighting of the space. More importantly, cafés with this ambience become, in themselves, cultural sites associated with literature, films, and music. Owners of this kind of café are often lovers of foreign literatures, films, and cultures, and their cafés host various cultural events, including forums, book clubs, movie screenings, and music clubs. Generally speaking, coffee served in this kind of café is simpler than in the kind discussed below. This third type of café includes those located in tourist and entertainment sites such as art districts, bar areas, and historical sites, and which are frequented by foreign and native tourists, artists and other cultural workers. If Starbucks cultivates a fast-paced business/professional atmosphere, and Sculpting in Time Cafés an artsy and literary atmosphere, this third kind of café is more like an upscale “bar” with trained baristas serving complicated coffees and emphasising their flavour. These coffee shops are more expensive than the other kinds, with an average price three times that of Starbucks. Currently, cafés of this type are found only in “first-tier” cities and usually located in art districts and tourist areas—such as Beijing’s 798 Art District and Nanluo Guxiang, Shanghai’s Tai Kang Road (a.k.a. “the art street”), and Hangzhou’s Westlake area. While Nestlé and Starbucks use coffee beans grown in Yunnan provinces, these “art cafés” are more inclined to use imported coffee beans from suppliers like Sara Lee. Coffee and Cafés in Contemporary China After just ten years, there are hundreds of cafés in Chinese cities. Why has there been such a demand for coffee or, more accurately, cafés, in such a short period of time? The first reason is the lack of “third space” environments in Mainland China. Before cafés appeared in the late 1990s, stores like KFC (which opened its first store in 1987) and McDonald’s (with its first store opened in 1990) filled this role for urban residents, providing locations where customers could experience Western food, meet friends, work, or read. In fact, KFC and McDonald’s were once very popular with college students looking for a place to study. Both stores had relatively clean food environments and good lighting. They also had air conditioning in the summer and heating in the winter, which are not provided in most Chinese university dormitories. However, since neither chain was set up to be a café and customers occupying seats for long periods while ordering minimal amounts of food or drink affected profits, staff members began to indirectly ask customers to leave after dining. At the same time, as more people were able to afford to eat at KFC and McDonald’s, their fast foods were also becoming more and more popular, especially among young people. As a consequence, both types of chain restaurant were becoming noisy and crowded and, thus, no longer ideal for reading, studying, or meeting with friends. Although tea has been a traditional drink in Chinese culture, traditional teahouses were expensive places more suitable for business meetings or for the cultural or intellectual elite. Since almost every family owns a tea set and can readily purchase tea, friends and family would usually make and consume tea at home. In recent years, however, new kinds of teahouses have emerged, similar in style to cafés, targeting the younger generation with more affordable prices and a wider range of choices, so the lack of a “third space” does not fully explain the café boom. Another factor affecting the popularity of cafés has been the development and uptake of Internet technology, including the increasing use of laptops and wireless Internet in recent years. The Internet has been available in China since the late 1990s, while computers and then laptops entered ordinary Chinese homes in the early twenty-first century. The IT industry has created not only a new field of research and production, but has also fostered new professions and demands. Particularly, in recent years in Mainland China, a new socially acceptable profession—freelancing in such areas as graphic design, photography, writing, film, music, and the fashion industry—has emerged. Most freelancers’ work is computer- and Internet-based. Cafés provide suitable working space, with wireless service, and the bonus of coffee that is, first of all, somatically stimulating. In addition, the emergence of the creative and cultural industries (which are supported by the Chinese government) has created work for these freelancers and, arguably, an increasing demand for café-based third spaces where such people can meet, talk and work. Furthermore, the flourishing of cafés in first-tier cities is part of the “aesthetic economy” (Lloyd 24) that caters to the making and selling of lifestyle experience. Alongside foreign restaurants, bars, galleries, and design firms, cafés contribute to city branding, and link a city to the global urban network. Cafés, like restaurants, galleries and bars, provide a space for the flow of global commodities, as well as for the human flow of tourists, travelling artists, freelancers, and cultural specialists. Finally, cafés provide a type of service that contributes to friendly owner/waiter-customer relations. During the planned-economy era, most stores and hotels in China were State-owned, staff salaries were not related to individual performance, and indifferent (and even unfriendly) service was common. During the economic reform era, privately owned stores and shops began to replace State-owned ones. At the same time, a large number of people from the countryside flowed into the cities seeking opportunities. Most had little if any professional training and so could only find work in factories or in the service industry. However, most café employees are urban, with better educational backgrounds, and many were already familiar with coffee culture. In addition, café owners, particularly those of places like Sculpting in Time Cafe, often invest in creating a positive, community atmosphere, learning about their customers and sharing personal experiences with their regular clients. This leads to my next point—the generation of the 1980s’ need for a social community. Cafés’ Symbolic Value—Community A demand for a sense of community among the generation of the 1980s is a unique socio-cultural phenomenon in China, which paradoxically co-exists with their desire for individualism. Mao Zedong started the “One Child Policy” in 1979 to slow the rapid population growth in China, and the generations born under this policy are often called “the lonely generations,” with both parents working full-time. At the same time, they are “the generation of me,” labelled as spoiled, self-centred, and obsessed with consumption (de Kloet; Liu; Rofel; Wang). The individuals of this generation, now aged in their 20s and 30s, constitute the primary consumers of coffee in China. Whereas individualism is an important value to them, a sense of community is also desirable in order to compensate for their lack of siblings. Furthermore, the 1980s’ generation has also benefitted from the university expansion policy implemented in 1999. Since then, China has witnessed a surge of university students and graduates who not only received scientific and other course-based knowledge, but also had a better chance to be exposed to foreign cultures through their books, music, and movies. With this interesting tension between individualism and collectivism, the atmosphere provided by cafés has fostered a series of curious temporary communities built on cultural and culinary taste. Interestingly, it has become an aspiration of many young college students and graduates to open a community-space style café in a city. One of the best examples is the new Henduoren’s (Many People’s) Café. This was a project initiated by Wen Erniu, a recent college graduate who wanted to open a café in Beijing but did not have sufficient funds to do so. She posted a message on the Internet, asking people to invest a minimum of US$316 to open a café with her. With 78 investors, the café opened in September 2011 in Beijing (see pictures of Henduoren’s Café). In an interview with the China Daily, Wen Erniu stated that, “To open a cafe was a dream of mine, but I could not afford it […] We thought opening a cafe might be many people’s dream […] and we could get together via the Internet to make it come true” (quoted in Liu 2011). Conclusion: Café Culture and (Instant) Coffee in China There is a Chinese saying that, if you hate someone—just persuade him or her to open a coffee shop. Since cafés provide spaces where one can spend a relatively long time for little financial outlay, owners have to increase prices to cover their expenses. This can result in fewer customers. In retaliation, cafés—particularly those with cultural and literary ambience—host cultural events to attract people, and/or they offer food and wine along with coffee. The high prices, however, remain. In fact, the average price of coffee in China is often higher than in Europe and North America. For example, a medium Starbucks’ caffè latte in China averaged around US$4.40 in 2010, according to the price list of a Starbucks outlet in Shanghai—and the prices has recently increased again (Xinhua 2012). This partially explains why instant coffee is still so popular in China. A bag of instant Nestlé coffee cost only some US$0.25 in a Beijing supermarket in 2010, and requires only hot water, which is accessible free almost everywhere in China, in any restaurant, office building, or household. As an habitual, addictive treat, however, coffee has not yet become a customary, let alone necessary, drink for most Chinese. Moreover, while many, especially those of the older generations, could discern the quality and varieties of tea, very few can judge the quality of the coffee served in cafés. As a result, few Mainland Chinese coffee consumers have a purely somatic demand for coffee—craving its smell or taste—and the highly sweetened and creamed instant coffee offered by companies like Nestlé or Maxwell has largely shaped the current Chinese palate for coffee. Ben Highmore has proposed that “food spaces (shops, restaurants and so on) can be seen, for some social agents, as a potential space where new ‘not-me’ worlds are encountered” (396) He continues to expand that “how these potential spaces are negotiated—the various affective registers of experience (joy, aggression, fear)—reflect the multicultural shapes of a culture (its racism, its openness, its acceptance of difference)” (396). Cafés in contemporary China provide spaces where one encounters and constructs new “not-me” worlds, and more importantly, new “with-me” worlds. While café-going communicates an appreciation and desire for new lifestyles and new selves, it can be hoped that in the near future, coffee will also be appreciated for its smell, taste, and other benefits. Of course, it is also necessary that future Chinese coffee consumers also recognise the rich and complex cultural, political, and social issues behind the coffee economy in the era of globalisation. 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