A systematic review protocol: Efficacy and safety of nitrous oxide in analgesia in burn patients with dressing change

by Weifeng Wang, Xianli Meng, Yan Zhao, Wei Gong, Xiaochen Jiang, Wenjuan Cao, Xueling Qiu, Chenxi Sun, Fan Sun, Yuchen Wang, Lu Tang

To alleviate pain in burn patients during dressing changes, it is necessary to identify an effective analgesic method. Conventional opioid analgesics have many limitations. Nitrous oxide is a fast-acting, safe and reversible inhaled analgesic gas. This systematic review will evaluate the effectiveness and safety of nitrous oxide in the treatment of pain during dressing changes in burn patients.

The protocol was developed according to the PRISMA-P checklist and registered on PROSPERO (CRD42024550197). A systematic search will be performed in the following databases: PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library to identify clinical trials comparing nitrous oxide inhalation with standard care in pain management during dressing changes in burn wounds. The search of all databases will be conducted on October 15, 2025.Our search scope will include studies published between each database creation and search date.Two researchers will independently screen studies, extract data, and evaluate study quality using the Risk of Bias2 tool. Primary outcomes will include pain, anxiety, side effects, among others.R statistical software (version 4.3.1) and R studio will be used to perform meta-analyses.Effect size will be expressed by 95% confidence interval (Cl) of weighted mean difference (MD) and risk ratio (RR). Subgroup analyses and sensitivity analyses will be performed to explore sources of heterogeneity and assess the robustness of the results.Publication bias will be assessed using funnel plot and Egger test. We will use the Grading of Recommendation, Evaluation, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) to assess the quality of the evidence.

Operative pain has always been a difficult problem for burn patients. This study will evaluate the analgesic effect of nitrous oxide on dressing change in burn patients through comprehensive search and rigorous methods, and provide evidence support for clinical decision-making.

Multi-omics analysis reveals diagnostic and therapeutic biomarkers for aging phenotypes in ulcerative colitis

by Lei Guo, Jun Ge, Li Cheng, Xinyi Zhang, Zhengzheng Wu, Meili Liu, Hanmei Jiang, Wei Gong, Yi Liu

The incidence of ulcerative colitis (UC) remains high, with an increasing prevalence among elderly patients. Cellular senescence has been widely recognized as a contributor to UC susceptibility; however, the underlying molecular mechanisms remain incompletely understood. This study aimed to identify senescence-associated biomarkers in UC to provide new insight for diagnosis and treatment.

By integrating transcriptomic data from UC patients with established aging-related databases, we identified aging-associated differentially expressed genes (DEGs). Using weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) and Cytoscape, we pinpointed the core genes involved. A diagnostic model for UC was then developed based on these core genes, and their expression patterns were characterized at single-cell resolution. The roles of these genes were ultimately validated through in vitro and animal experiments.

We identified 24 aging-related DEGs in UC, which were primarily implicated in inflammatory responses and cytokine-receptor interactions. Further analyses pinpointed three core genes (CXCL1, MMP9, and STAT1) that were predominantly expressed in macrophages. A diagnostic model constructed using these genes exhibited robust predictive performance. Experimental validation confirmed that the expression levels of all three core genes were significantly upregulated in both a UC mouse model and in macrophages compared to controls. Additionally, pathway analyses revealed elevated levels of CXCL12 and VEGFA in the enriched pathways.

Our findings underscore the pivotal roles of CXCL1, MMP9, and STAT1 in UC-associated cellular senescence. The analysis positions these molecules as promising macrophage-mediated diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets. Collectively, this work provides novel insights into UC pathogenesis and lays a foundation for developing precision medicine strategies that target senescence pathways.