About

Aitong Li, Ph.D., is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Teachers College, Columbia University, affiliated with the Organization & Leadership and Social-Organizational Psychology departments. She holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Social-Organizational Psychology from Columbia University, as well as an M.A. in Political Science & Government from Columbia University and a B.M.S. in Public Management from Nanjing University. Her scholarly interests include conducting cutting-edge research on leadership behaviors, women's roles in the workplace, and management methodologies. As a people analytics practitioner, she leverages advanced analytics on organizational data to inform business decisions, aiming to drive distinctive and lasting changes at the individual, team, and organizational levels. Her professional experience includes roles such as People Analytics Researcher at Google, Associate Director of People & Workforce Analytics at Kyndryl, and Data Science Specialist at McKinsey & Company.

Research topics

• Political Science
• International trade
• Computer Science
• Economics
• Economic system
• Business
• Market economy
• Economic geography
• Biochemistry
• Nanotechnology
• Environmental resource management
• Finance
• Chemistry
• Chromatography
• International economics
• Optics
• Engineering
• Industrial organization

Selected publications

• Case Report: A case of Joubert syndrome in twin pregnancy: MRI manifestations and literature review

  Frontiers in Pediatrics · 2026-03-18

  articleOpen access

  Introduction: Joubert syndrome (JS) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder belonging to the ciliopathies and can cause a series of neurological symptoms after birth. Prenatal diagnosis of this disease is rare, as the results from prenatal ultrasonography for JSRD are relatively nonspecific. Prenatal MRI is usually the preferred diagnostic method. On fetal MRI, it presents as a typical midbrain-hindbrain malformation characterized by the molar tooth sign (MTS). Currently, reports of prenatal MRI diagnosis for JS are rare, with no documented twin gestations. Herein, we report a case of JSRD in a twin pregnancy detected at the 25th gestational week through prenatal MRI, with a review of the etiology, imaging features, and differential diagnosis of JS. Patient presentation: A 31-year-old woman was pregnant at the 25th gestational week with fetal cerebellar vermis hypoplasia suspected from prenatal US. Fetal MRI demonstrated the characteristic MTS, which is the hallmark of JS, and strongly supported the diagnosis at our hospital. The amniotic fluid prenatal diagnosis revealed that the twins had compound heterozygous TMEM67 variants classified as Variants of Uncertain Significance (VUS). The couple finally opted to terminate the pregnancy. Conclusions: Currently, the diagnosis of JS is typically made postnatally. MRI is extremely advantageous for evaluating posterior fossa structural anomalies prenatally. In combination with genetic testing, it can provide guidance for early diagnosis and prenatal counseling.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Development of a simplified MRI model for diagnosing placenta accreta spectrum disorders

  Placenta · 2026-05-04

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Effects of Ohmic Heating on Enzyme Inactivation Patterns, Tomato Juice Quality, and Microbial Diversity During Storage

  Journal of Food Science · 2025-11-01

  article

  This study investigated the inhibitory effect of ohmic heating (OH) on pectin methylesterase (PME) and polygalacturonase (PG) and its effects on tomato juice quality and microbial diversity. Combining the effects of voltage gradient and electric field frequency on the activities of PME and PG, the voltage gradient of 10 V/cm and the frequency of 150 Hz had the best inactivation effect. At 65°C and 150 Hz, the activities of PME and PG can be reduced by more than 10% and 7%, respectively. With storage time, the color of tomato juice gradually deteriorated. The color in OH treatment group with high temperature was worse than low temperature. The contents of lycopene, total phenol, vitamin C, and soluble pectin decreased with storage time. Compared to control group, 65°C OH treatment can increase vitamin C by 2 mg at 25 days. The total number of colonies in 65°C OH treatment exceeded the standard at 18 days of storage. The total number of colonies decreased by 65% compared with the control group. In terms of microbial diversity treated with OH (10 V/cm, 150 Hz, 65°C), Delftia and Paleobacterium were the dominate genus. Panobacterium gradually became the dominant group due to interspecific competition, so the microbial diversity decreased at the end of storage. These results systemically provided a theoretical basis for the subsequent targeted industrial application of reducing spoilage microorganisms using OH technology.

  PublisherDOI

• Case Report: A rare case of primary hepatic paraganglioma: a mimicker of hepatocellular carcinoma

  Frontiers in Oncology · 2025-09-04

  articleOpen access1st author

  Paragangliomas (PGLs) are pheochromocytomas outside the adrenal glands, most commonly found in the retroperitoneal space, head and neck, bladder, and mediastinum. However, PGL occurring in the liver are extremely rare. We present a case of a 70-year-old woman who presented to our hospital with right upper abdominal pain, persisting for 2 years. Abdominal contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) revealed a 3.8 x 2.7 cm hypervascular nodule in the caudate lobe of the liver, demonstrating arterial phase hyperenhancement and portal/delayed phase washout. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) further demonstrated diffusion restriction and low signal intensity in the hepatobiliary phase (HBP) of the nodule. Based on these imaging features, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) was initially diagnosed radiologically. Surgical resection was performed, and immunohistochemical staining revealed positivity for chromogranin A (CgA), synaptophysin (Syn), and S - 100 protein, confirming the diagnosis of primary hepatic PGL (HPGL). This case highlights that hypervascular lesions with washout and HBP hypointensity may mimic HCC. Pathological verification is crucial, especially in patients without typical HCC risk factors. Although exceedingly rare, HPGL should be considered in the differential diagnosis of hypervascular hepatic nodules demonstrating typical arterial phase hyperenhancement and portal/delayed washout on CT/MRI, particularly in female patients presenting with nonspecific symptoms and lacking typical HCC risk factors such as hepatitis, alcohol abuse, or elevated tumor markers.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• A novel polyp retrieval bag reduces the polyp fragmentation rate in colon polypectomy: a single-blind randomized controlled study

  International Journal of Colorectal Disease · 2024-07-24

  articleOpen access

  PURPOSE: The fragmentation of polyps affects complete resection confirmation. The primary aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of a novel polyp retrieval bag for reducing the fragmentation rate of colon polyps. METHODS: Patients with a 5-15 mm colon polyp were recruited and randomized into two groups at a 1:1 ratio. After polyp resection, polyps obtained from patients in the treatment group were extracted via a novel polyp retrieval bag without traversing the instrument channel, whereas polyps obtained from patients in the control group were collected through the instrument channel, attaching the polyp trap to the instrument channel port, and applying suction. RESULTS: From January to July 2022, 225 patients were assessed for eligibility. The study participants included 204 patients, and seven patients whose samples were not retrieved were excluded. Polyp fragmentation was significantly lower in the treatment group than in the control group (3.0% [3/100] vs. 17.5% [17/97], P = 0.001). The retrieval failure rates in the treatment group and control group were not significantly different (2.0% [2/102] vs. 4.9% [5/102], P = 0.442). There were fewer colonoscope insertions in the treatment group than in the control group (102 vs. 110), but a significant difference was not present (P = 0.065). No significant adverse events were observed during the follow-up. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that the polyp retrieval bag was safe and feasible for reducing the fragmentation rate of retrieved polyps. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05189912, 1/12/2021).

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• A Novel Polyp Retrieval Bag Reduces the Polyp Fragmentation Rate in Colon Polypectomy : A Single-Blind Randomized Controlled Study

  Research Square · 2024-05-09

  preprintOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Enablers or barriers: The multifaceted tales of power generation companies in China's energy transition

  Energy Research & Social Science · 2024-10-31

  articleCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Continuous suture technique increases the complete closure rate of colorectal mucosal defects after endoscopic resection: a single-blind, randomized controlled trial

  Surgical Endoscopy · 2023-09-08 · 4 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Gradual improvement and reactive intervention: China's policy pathway for developing the wind power industry

  Renewable Energy · 2023-07-19 · 9 citations

  article1st author
  PublisherDOI

• The pending commitment and ongoing political divide on carbon pricing in Japan

  Climate Policy · 2023-08-01 · 1 citations

  article1st authorCorresponding

  New discussions on carbon pricing are underway in Japan. In 2012, Japan introduced a nationwide carbon tax named the Global Warming Countermeasure Tax. However, a gap remains between the price level set by this tax and the levels needed for Japan to achieve its 2050 carbon neutrality goal. Combining perspectives from an Advocacy Coalition Framework (ACF) with insights on brokerage mechanisms in social network analysis (SNA), this study reviews the history of the carbon pricing debate in Japan and also analyzes the dynamics between different advocacy coalitions in the policy network. The evolution of the carbon-pricing debate in Japan is divided into four historical stages: (I) the first attempt to establish a carbon pricing system (from the early 2000s to 2015); (II) fierce debate on the necessity of readjusting the carbon pricing system (from 2016 to 2017); (III) efforts to sustain the carbon pricing discussion (from 2017 to 2019); and (IV) the reopened discussion on carbon pricing under new climate pledge (from 2020 to 2021). The unbridgeable gap between advocacy coalitions and the subsequent long-lasting political stalemate on carbon pricing, to some extent, reflects limited policy learning and related capacities that are deeply entrenched in Japan’s vertically segmented bureaucracy. Barriers and challenges to advancing carbon pricing decisions are discussed together with recommendations on how to create better brokerage mechanisms to strengthen communication, facilitate policy learning and ultimately improve policy decisions.Two advocacy coalitions constitute two separate poles in Japan’s climate policy networks.Weak brokerage and limited policy learning have led to a long-lasting political stalemate in Japan on carbon pricing.The strengthening of brokerage functions can improve inter-coalition communication and create a more centrist position, which will subsequently help to advance national carbon pricing systems in Japan.Brokerage mechanisms – facilitated by either governmental or non-governmental organizations – can be used to negotiate between different advocacy coalitions to promote learning and advance decision-making on contentious policies like carbon pricing.

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Masaru Yarime

  Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

  10 shared

• Xueting Zhang

  Peking University

  8 shared

• Hanqing Zhang

  6 shared

• Teng Yang

  4 shared

• Min Min

  First Affiliated Hospital of Chinese PLA General Hospital

  3 shared

• Zheng Lu

  Chinese PLA General Hospital

  3 shared

• Caryn J. Block

  Columbia University

  3 shared

• Yuan Xu

  3 shared

Education

• Ph.D., Social-Organizational Psychology

  Columbia University

• M.A., Social-Organizational Psychology

  Columbia University

• M.A., Political Science & Government

  Columbia University

• Other, Public Management

  Nanjing University

Awards & honors

• The Provost Doctoral Dissertation Grant
• Research Methods Certification with Distinction (Statistics,…