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Background. Sepsis is a leading cause of mortality among severe burns. This study was conducted to investigate the predictive role of C-reactive protein-to-albumin ratio (CAR) for sepsis and prognosis in severe burns. Methods. Patients with severe burn injuries from 2013 to 2017 were enrolled and divided into septic and nonseptic groups based on the presence of sepsis within 30 days postburn. Independent risk factors for sepsis were performed by the univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. The association between CAR level at admission and postburn 30-day mortality was designed via the Kaplan–Meier method. Results. Of all the 196 enrolled patients, 83 patients developed sepsis within 30 days postburn injury, with an incidence of 42.3%. TBSA percentage (OR: 1.65, 95% CI: 1.17-2.32, P=0.014) and CAR at admission (OR: 2.25, 95% CI: 1.33-3.56, P=0.009) were the two independent risk factors for sepsis in severe burns by the multivariate logistic regression analysis. A higher CAR level (≥1.66) at admission was associated with a lower postburn 30-day survival rate (P=0.005). Conclusions. The CAR level at admission was an independent risk factor for sepsis and prognosis in severe burns.

As one of the largest Phanerozoic orogens in the world, the Central Asian Orogenic Belt (CAOB) is a natural laboratory for studies of continental dynamics and metallogenesis. This paper summarizes the research progresses of the accretionary processes and metallogenesis of the CAOB since the People’s Republic of China was founded, and puts forward the prospect for future research. During the early period (1950s–1970s), several geological theories were applied to explain the geological evolution of Central Asia. In the early period of China’s reform and opening-up, the plate tectonics theory was applied to explain the evolution of the northern Xinjiang and Xingmeng regions, and the opinion of subduction-collision between Siberian, Kazakhstan, and China-North Korea-Tarim plates was proposed. The idea of the Solonker-Yanbian suture zone was established. In the 1990s, the study of the CAOB entered a period of rapid development. One school of scholars including geologists from the former Soviet Union proposed a multi-block collision model for the assemblage of the CAOB. In contrast, another school of scholars, led by a Turkish geologist, Celal Şengör, proposed that the Altaids was formed through the growth and strike-slip duplicates of a single island arc, and pointed out that the Altaids is a special type of collisional orogen. During this period, Chinese geologists carried out a lot of pioneering researches on ophiolites and high-pressure metamorphic rocks in northern China, and confirmed the main suture zones accordingly. In 1999, the concept of “Central Asian metallogenic domain” was proposed, and it became one of the three major metallogenic domains in the world. Since the 21st century, given the importance for understanding continental accretion and metallogenic mechanism, the CAOB has become the international academic forefront. China has laid out a series of scientific research projects in Central Asia. A large number of important scientific research achievements have been spawned, including the tectonic attribution of micro-continents, timing and tectonic settings of ophiolites, magmatic arcs, identification and anatomy of accretionary wedges, regional metamorphism-deformation, (ultra)high-pressure metamorphism, ridge subduction, plume-plate interaction, archipelagic paleogeography and spatio-temporal framework of multiple accretionary orogeny, continental growth, accretionary metallogenesis, structural superposition and transformation, etc. These achievements have made important international influences. There still exist the following aspects that need further study: (1) Early evolution history and subduction initiation of the Paleo-Asian Ocean; (2) The accretionary mechanism of the extroversion Paleo-Asian Ocean; (3) The properties of the mantle of the Paleo-Asian Ocean and their spatiotemporal distribution; (4) The interaction between the Paleo-Asian Ocean and the Tethys Ocean; (5) Phanerozoic continental growth mechanism and its global comparison; (6) Accretionary metallogenic mechanism of the Central Asian metallogenic domain; and (7) Continental transformation mechanism.

Burn injuries are prevalent and have a significant effect on patients' quality of life and healthcare costs. Current treatment modalities, such as wound care and surgical interventions, often face challenges due to complications like infection and inadequate healing. This study adopted single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to investigate the cellular landscape of the burn microenvironment. After rigorous quality control filtering, 9,248 cells were retained for analysis. Using UMAP dimensionality reduction, these cells were annotated into 14 subpopulations, including Neutrophils, Macrophages, and T cells. Differential gene analysis and machine learning techniques, such as LASSO regression and random forest selection, were employed to identify marker genes. Macrophages exhibited significant interactions with other cell types, indicating their pivotal role in immune signaling within the burn microenvironment. A total of 155 genes were identified as markers for Macrophages, with AP2A2, CCL7, and TF emerging as key features. Immune infiltration analysis also revealed notable differences in the proportions of immune cells, particularly Mast cells and Neutrophils, highlighting on their involvement in disease progression. This study provides novel insights into the immunological microenvironment of burn injuries. Despite limitations including a modest sample size and lack of experimental validation, our findings establish a foundation for future investigations into targeted immunotherapeutic strategies, potentially improving clinical outcomes and advancing personalized treatment approaches for burn patients.

The tectonic setting of Mesozoic magmatic complexes in the northeastern margin of the Tibet plateau is disputed, and hence gives rise to uncertainty concerning the tectonic evolution of the northeastern Tibet Plateau and the timing of the closure of the Palaeo-Tethys ocean. The Gangcha complex is typical of these complexes, consisting of andesite, dacite, gabbro, gabbroic diorite, granodiorite, quartz diorite, and diorite with typical chemical traits of continental margin arc rocks. Andesite, gabbroic diorite, and mineralization-associated potassic-altered diorite yield weighted mean 206Pb/238U ages of 242.1±1.2 Ma, 243.8±1.0 Ma and 234.0±0.6 Ma respectively. Zircon εHf(t) for magmatic grains ranges from -3.5 to +5.7, interpreted to demonstrate that the Gangcha complex contains crustally contaminated mantle magmas. Inherited zircons in the complex yield similar U-Pb ages (777-310 Ma) to the A'nyemaqen composite ophiolite assemblage with εHf(t) of -17.4 to +11.6. This suggests that components of this older ophiolite melted and contributed to the Gangcha complex magmas. Hence the Gangcha complex is considered to have formed as a continental margin arc in northeastern Tibet by northward subduction during consumption of the Palaeo-Tethys ocean. Regionally, it corresponds to the arc magmatism along the eastern and western Kunlun sutures to the west and the Mianlue suture to the east.

Triglyceride-glucose (TyG) index has emerged as a novel biomarker for detecting insulin resistance (IR) and has been proven to be associated with various diseases. However, its correlation with the prognosis of severe sepsis remains unraveled. This retrospective cohort study utilized patient records from the Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care (MIMIC-IV, version 2.2) to examine the outcomes of patients with sepsis. The primary outcomes were hospital mortality and intensive care unit (ICU) mortality. The correlation between the TyG index and outcomes was evaluated through the Kaplan-Meier method, the Log-rank test, and univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses. Additionally, restricted cubic spline (RCS) regression analysis was employed to delve into the nonlinear relationship between baseline TyG index and outcomes, with trend significance assessed through quartile levels. Subgroup analyses were conducted to evaluate the consistency of the TyG index’s prognostic value across various influencing factors. The study included 1,742 patients with sepsis requiring intensive care. The in-hospital mortality rate was 19.75% (344/1,742), and the ICU mortality rate was 14.75% (257/1,742). Cox regression analysis revealed that, in comparison to the first quartile (Q1), patients in the fourth quartile (Q4) had a 63% higher risk of in-hospital mortality (HR 1.63 [95% CI 1.22 to 2.18], P  < 0.01) and a 79% higher risk of ICU mortality (HR 1.79 [95% CI 1.28 to 2.51], P  < 0.001). Model 3 showed that ICU mortality risks for Q4, Q3, and Q2 were 240%, 75%, and 33% higher, respectively (HR 3.40 [95% CI 2.24 to 5.16], P  < 0.001; HR 1.75 [95% CI 1.16 to 2.63], P  = 0.007; HR 1.33 [95% CI 1.20 to 1.53], P  < 0.001). RCS regression analysis identified a nonlinear association between the TyG index and mortality (overall P  < 0.001; P for nonlinearity < 0.001, with an inflection point at 8.9). Subgroup analysis showed that the effect size and direction were consistent across different subgroups, suggesting the stability of the results. This study demonstrates that a higher TyG index is significantly associated with increased in-hospital and ICU mortality risk in critically ill sepsis patients, with evidence of non-linear correlation. Therefore, the TyG index helps identify the mortality prognosis of sepsis patients in the ICU.

The present study used publicly available genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary data to perform three two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) studies, aiming to examine the causal links between gut microbiome and BCC, melanoma skin cancer, ease of skin tanning. SNPs associated with exposures to basal cell carcinoma, melanoma skin cancer and ease of skin tanning from the genome-wide association study data of UK Biobank and MRC-IEU (MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit), and the meta-analysis data from Biobank and MRC-IEU were used as instrumental variables (IVs). The casual estimates were assessed with a two-sample Mendelian randomisation test using the inverse-variance-weighted (IVW) method, Wald ratio, MR-Egger method, maximum likelihood, weighted median, simple mode, and weighted mode. After the application of MR analysis, diffirent effects of multiple groups of gut microbiota was observed for BCC, melanoma skin cancer and ease of skin tanning. The relationships between the gut microbiome and BCC, melanoma skin cancer, ease of skin tanning were supported by a suite of sensitivity analyses, with no statistical evidence of instrument heterogeneity or horizontal pleiotropy. Further investigation is required to explore the relationship between between the gut microbiome and BCC, melanoma skin cancer, ease of skin tanning. Our study initially identified potential causal roles between the gut microbiome and BCC, melanoma skin cancer, ease of skin tanning, and highlighted the role of gut microbiome in the progression of basal cell carcinoma, melanoma skin cancer, ease of skin tanning.

We have examined the Triassic sediments in the west Qinling terrane, northeastern Tibet. These sediments consist mainly of flysch and shallow-sea and fluvial deposits with abundant lithic and heavy mineral detritus, sandwiched between and overlying Late Paleozoic and Early-Middle Triassic ophiolitic mélanges. Volcanic and metamorphic detritus dominates the lithic component of Lower Triassic sandstones accompanied by high Cr-spinel, pyroxene, and magnetite contents, indicating a mixed ophiolite and metamorphic source. Detrital mineral geochemistry further suggests that ophiolitic, high-grade metamorphic, basic, and intermediate-acidic igneous rocks must have been exposed and deeply eroded in their source area. Abundances of zircon, rutile, garnet, tourmaline, and epidote are greater in the Middle Triassic samples, and granitic and volcanic sources are the major contributors of detrital clasts. Considering these new observations on sedimentary petrography and detrital heavy mineral geochemistry, along with published data on paleocurrents, detrital zircon U-Pb ages, sedimentary facies, and regional magmatism, we suggest that these Triassic sediments represent the sedimentary fill of a forearc basin that overlies a late Paleozoic ophiolitic complex. A south-facing Andean-type convergent continental margin system developed along the southern margin of the North China block during the Triassic, in response to northward subduction of the Paleotethyan Ocean.

Deep second-degree burns impair skin regeneration and carry high risks of scarring and infection. Achieving healing with minimal immune rejection remains challenging. Platelet-rich fibrin (PRF), an autologous biomaterial, promotes angiogenesis and repair via sustained growth factor release. CTLA4Ig, an immunomodulatory agent, can suppress T-cell-mediated rejection. We hypothesized that combining PRF with CTLA4Ig gene-transfected porcine skin would synergistically enhance wound healing by concurrently stimulating regeneration and modulating local immunity. A standardized deep second-degree burn was created on the dorsum of 32 Sprague-Dawley rats, randomly divided into four groups (n=8): Vaseline group, PRF group, Pigskin group, and PRF+pigskin group. Wound closure was tracked macroscopically for 21 days. Histological analysis (H&E, Masson's trichrome), immunohistochemistry for CD31, VEGF, the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and TNF-α, and immunofluorescence staining for the antioxidant enzymes catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) were performed on days 4, 7, 14, and 21. The combination treatment (PRF+pigskin group) demonstrated a significant acceleration in wound closure compared to all other groups, with near-complete re-epithelialization observed by day 14. Statistical analysis confirmed a significant interaction between Treatment and Time (p<0.001), suggesting a synergistic healing pattern. Histological examination revealed more organized and dense collagen fibers, with the most pronounced effect in PRF+pigskin group. Immunohistochemical and immunofluorescence analyses indicated a marked upregulation of CD31-positive vessels, VEGF expression, and antioxidant enzymes (CAT and SOD1) in the combination group, indicating a trend towards enhanced angiogenesis and an augmented capacity to mitigate oxidative stress. Concurrently, immunohistochemistry for IL-6 and TNF-α revealed a significant attenuation of these pro-inflammatory cytokines in the PRF+pigskin group and the pigskin group, particularly at the later stages of healing (D14, D21), indicating a modulation of the local inflammatory response. The concomitant application of PRF and CTLA4Ig gene-transfected porcine skin suggests a synergistic effect, creating a pro-regenerative, immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidative microenvironment. This resulted in significantly accelerated and improved healing of deep second-degree burn wounds, representing a promising and innovative therapeutic paradigm for the management of severe burns.

Keap1 is a negative controller of the transcription factor Nrf2 for its activity. The Keap1/Nrf2 signaling pathway has been considered as a master regulator of cytoprotective genes, and exists in many cell types including osteoblasts and osteoclasts. Our previous study shows Nrf2 deletion decreases bone formation. Recent studies show hyperactivation of Nrf2 causes osteopenia in Keap1 −/− mice, and Keap1 −/− osteoblasts have significantly less proliferative potential than Keap1 +/− osteoblasts. We aimed to examine if moderate Nrf2 activation by disruption of Keap1 impacts bone metabolism. We examined bone phenotype of Keap1 heterozygotic mice (Ht) in comparison with Keap1 wild type (WT) mice. Deletion or knockdown of Keap1 enhanced the gene expression of Nrf2, ALP and wnt5a in cultured primary osteoblasts compared to WT control. In male mice, compared with their age-matched littermate WT controls, Keap1 Ht mice showed significant increase in bone formation rate (+30.7%, P  = 0.0029), but did not change the ultimate force ( P  < 0.01). The osteoclast cell numbers (−32.45%, P = 0.01) and surface (−32.58%, P = 0.03) were significantly reduced by Keap1 deficiency in male mice. Compared to male WT mice, serum bone resorption marker in male Keap1 Ht mice was significantly decreased. Our data suggest that moderate Nrf2 activation by disruption of Keap1 improved bone mass by regulating bone remodeling in male mice.

Edge computing builds relevant services and applications on the edge server near the user side, which enables a faster service response. However, the lack of large-scale hardware resources leads to weak defense for edge devices. Therefore, proactive defense security mechanisms, such as Intrusion Detection Systems (IDSs), are widely deployed in edge computing. Unfortunately, most of those IDSs lack causal analysis capabilities and still suffer the threats from Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) attacks. To effectively detect APT attacks, we propose a heterogeneous graph neural networks threat detection model based on the provenance graph. Specifically, we leverage the powerful analysis and tracking capabilities of the provenance graph to model the long-term behavior of the adversary. Moreover, we leverage the predictive power of heterogeneous graph neural networks to embed the provenance graph by a node-level and semantic-level heterogeneous mutual attention mechanism. In addition, we also propose a provenance graph reduction algorithm based on the semantic similarity of graph substructures to improve the detection efficiency and accuracy of the model, which reduces and integrates redundant information by calculating the semantic similarity between substructures. The experimental results demonstrate that the prediction accuracy of our method reaches 99.8% on the StreamSpot dataset and achieves 98.13% accuracy on the NSL-KDD dataset.