About

Zhuan Pei joined the Department of Policy Analysis and Management at Cornell University in July 2015 as an assistant professor. His research investigates the effect and design of social and employment programs and studies applied micro-econometric methods in causal inference. Prior to his tenure at Cornell, he was a postdoctoral economist at the W. E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research from 2012 to 2013 and served as an assistant professor of economics at Brandeis University between 2013 and 2015.

Research topics

• Computer Science
• Applied mathematics
• Statistics
• Econometrics
• Mathematical optimization
• Mathematics

Selected publications

• Supercompliers

  Journal of Public Economics · 2026-05-15

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  In an instrumental variable framework, we define supercompliers as the subpopulation whose treatment take-up positively responds to eligibility and whose outcome positively responds to take-up. Supercompliers are the only subpopulation to benefit from treatment eligibility and, hence, are important for policy evaluation. We propose conditions for characterizing supercompliers, and show how estimation and inference can be conducted with instrumental variable regression. In two job training experiments, we demonstrate our machinery’s utility, particularly in incorporating social welfare weights into marginal value of public funds analyses. • Supercompliers take up treatment when eligible and benefit from treatment. • Supercomplier characteristics are identified by a Wald-type estimand. • Estimation and inference use standard IV regression. • Supercomplier profiles enable welfare-weighted MVPF calculations. • Two job training experiments illustrate the method’s utility.

  PublisherDOI

• Stage‐Dependent Dyslipidemia in Spinocerebellar Ataxia Type 3 Masked by Disease‐Associated Low Body Mass Index

  Movement Disorders · 2026-05-05

  article

  BACKGROUND: Central lipid dysregulation is implicated in spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3), but peripheral lipid profiles remain poorly understood. Disease-associated low body mass index (BMI) may confound interpretation. OBJECTIVE: The aim was to characterize peripheral lipid profiles across SCA3 disease stages and unmask intrinsic metabolic alterations. METHODS: This cross-sectional study analyzed the lipid profiles of 37 preataxic carriers, 229 ataxic patients, and 316 controls using BMI-adjusted analysis of covariance (ANCOVA), mediation analysis, hierarchical regression, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. RESULTS: After adjustment, ataxic patients exhibited elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and reduced high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). Mediation analysis revealed these alterations were substantially masked by BMI. HDL-C exhibited a stage-dependent pattern-elevated in preataxic carriers but depleted in ataxic patients. Lower HDL-C independently predicted higher Scale for the Assessment and Rating of Ataxia (SARA) (β = -2.881, P = 0.006). HDL-C improved ataxic-preataxic discrimination, achieving an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.837. CONCLUSIONS: SCA3 exhibits dyslipidemia with elevated LDL-C and reduced HDL-C, partially masked by BMI. HDL-C depletion accompanies phenoconversion and correlates with severity, representing a candidate peripheral biomarker. © 2026 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.

  PublisherDOI

• Traditional Chinese Medicinal Leech Induces Apoptosis and Autophagy in Glioblastoma by <scp>SGK1</scp> /Caspase‐3 and <scp>PI3K</scp> / <scp>AKT</scp> / <scp>mTOR</scp> Pathway

  CNS Neuroscience & Therapeutics · 2025-12-01

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Glioblastoma (GBM) represents the most lethal form of high-grade glioma, with current therapeutic options proving largely ineffective. Consequently, there is an urgent need for novel treatment strategies. Recent studies have indicated that the medicinal leech exhibits notable anticancer properties. However, the precise mechanisms underlying these effects remain to be elucidated. METHODS: To investigate the impact of leech drug-containing serum (LDS) on the proliferation, migration, and invasion of GBM cells, a series of assays including CCK-8, ethynyl deoxyuridine (EdU), colony formation, scratch, and transwell assays were employed. Additionally, the apoptosis and autophagy of GBM cells were analyzed using flow cytometry, monodansylcadaverine staining and the immunofluorescence assay. Transcriptomic sequencing of the cells was conducted to identify differentially expressed genes. In vivo, anticancer activity was assessed by developing tumor xenograft models. Western blot analysis was utilized to identify proteins associated with apoptosis and autophagy. RESULTS: Leech drug-containing serum (LDS) significantly inhibited proliferation, migration, and invasion. Furthermore, it induced autophagy and apoptosis in GBM. Differential gene enrichment analysis and pathway validation indicated that LDS exerts anti-GBM effects by modulating the PI3K/AKT pathway. Leech extracts effectively inhibit the growth of GBM in a subcutaneous xenograft tumor model. CONCLUSION: The leech-derived compounds may induce apoptosis and autophagy in GBM by modulating the PI3K/AKT/mTOR signaling pathway, without eliciting significant adverse effects, thereby presenting itself as a promising therapeutic agent.

  PublisherDOI

• Panax Notoginseng Saponins promotes the meningeal lymphatic system-mediated hematoma absorption in intracerebral hemorrhage

  Phytomedicine · 2024-10-11 · 11 citations

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  PublisherDOI

• Xuefu Zhuyu decoction promotes synaptic plasticity by targeting miR-191a-5p/BDNF-TrkB axis in severe traumatic brain injury

  Phytomedicine · 2024-03-23 · 21 citations

  article1st author
  PublisherDOI

• Disability Insurance Income Saves Lives

  Journal of Political Economy · 2023-03-29 · 34 citations

  articleOpen access

  We show that higher payments from US Social Security Disability Insurance (DI) reduce mortality. Using administrative data on new DI beneficiaries, we exploit discontinuities in the benefit formula through a regression kink design. We estimate that $1,000 more in annual DI payments decreases the annual mortality rate of lower-income beneficiaries by approximately 0.18–0.35 percentage points, implying an elasticity of mortality with respect to DI income of around −0.6 to −1.0. We find no robust evidence of an effect of DI income on the mortality of higher-income beneficiaries.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Replication Data for "Disability Insurance Income Saves Lives"

  Harvard Dataverse · 2023-02-27

  datasetOpen access

  Gelber, Alexander, Timothy Moore, Zhuan Pei, and Alexander Strand. 2023. “Disability Insurance Income Saves Lives.” Journal of Political Economy 131 (11): 3156–3185, https://doi.org/10.1086/725172.

  PublisherDOI

• Replication Data for "Disability Insurance Income Saves Lives"

  Harvard Dataverse · 2023-02-27

  datasetOpen access

  This is the replication package for "Disability Insurance Income Saves Lives," accepted in 2023 by the &lt;i&gt;Journal of Political Economy.&lt;/i&gt;

  PublisherDOI

• Further Education During Unemployment

  arXiv (Cornell University) · 2023-12-28 · 4 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Evidence on the effectiveness of retraining U.S. unemployed workers primarily comes from evaluations of training programs, which represent one narrow avenue for skill acquisition. We use high-quality records from Ohio and a matching method to estimate the effects of retraining, broadly defined as enrollment in postsecondary institutions. Our simple method bridges two strands of the dynamic treatment effect literature that estimate the treatment-now-versus-later and treatment-versus-no-treatment effects. We find that enrollees experience earnings gains of six percent three to four years after enrolling, after depressed earnings during the first two years. The earnings effects are driven by industry-switchers, particularly to healthcare.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• N-methyladenosine profiling reveals that Xuefu Zhuyu decoction upregulates METTL14 and BDNF in a rat model of traumatic brain injury

  Journal of Ethnopharmacology · 2023-06-20 · 48 citations

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  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• David Card

  University of California, Berkeley

  180 shared

• Andrea Weber

  163 shared

• David Lee

  104 shared

• David Lee

  Loma Linda University

  36 shared

• Pauline Leung

  11 shared

• Shen Yi

  9 shared

• Yang Wang

  China Medical University

  9 shared

• Teng Li

  Zhejiang Gongshang University

  9 shared