Association between systemic lupus erythematosus and inflammatory bowel disease in European and East Asian populations: a two-sample Mendelian randomization study

BackgroundPrevious studies have shown a coexistence phenomenon between systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), but the causal relationship between them is still unclear. Therefore, we conducted a two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis using publicly available summary statistics data to evaluate whether there was a causal relationship between the two diseases.MethodsSummary statistics for SLE and IBD were downloaded from the Open Genome-Wide Association Study and the International Inflammatory Bowel Disease Genetics Consortium. European and East Asian populations were included in this MR work. We adopted a series of methods to select instrumental variables that are closely related to SLE and IBD. To make the conclusion more reliable, we applied a variety of different analysis methods, among which the inverse variance–weighted (IVW) method was the main method. In addition, heterogeneity, pleiotropy, and sensitivity were assessed to make the conclusions more convincing.ResultsIn the European population, a negative causal relationship was observed between SLE and overall IBD (OR = 0.94; 95% CI = 0.90, 0.98; P < 0.004) and ulcerative colitis (UC) (OR = 0.93; 95% CI = 0.88, 0.98; P = 0.006). After removing outliers with Mendelian Randomization Pleiotropy RESidual Sum and Outlier (MR-PRESSO), the results remained consistent with IVW. However, there was no causal relationship between SLE and Crohn’s disease. In the East Asian population, no causal relationship was found between SLE and IBD.ConclusionOur results found that genetic susceptibility to SLE was associated with lower overall IBD risk and UC risk in European populations. In contrast, no association between SLE and IBD was found in East Asian populations. This work might enrich the previous research results, and it may provide some references for research in the future

Coupling non-thermal plasma with Ni catalysts supported on BETA zeolite for catalytic CO2 methanation

Catalytic carbon dioxide (CO2) methanation is a promising and effective process for CO2 utilisation and the production of CH4 as an alternative to using natural gas. Non-thermal plasma (NTP) activation has been proven to be highly effective in overcoming the thermodynamic limitation of reactions under mild conditions and intensifying the CO2 hydrogenation process greatly. Herein, we present an example of NTP-assisted catalytic CO2 methanation over Ni catalysts (15 wt%) supported on BETA zeolite employing lanthana (La) as the promoter. It was found that a NTP-assisted system presents remarkable catalytic performance in catalytic CO2 methanation without an external heat source. Significantly, the use of Na-form BETA zeolite and the addition of La (i.e. 15Ni–20La/Na-BETA catalyst) resulted in an improvement in CO2 conversions, surpassing the 15Ni/H-BETA catalyst, i.e. a seven-fold increase in the turnover frequency, TOF (1.45 s−1vs. 0.21 s−1), and selectivity towards CH4 (up to ca. 97%). In addition, the developed catalyst also exhibited excellent stability under NTP conditions, i.e. a stable performance over a 15 h longevity test (with a TOF of 1.44 ± 0.01 s−1). Comparative in situ diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) characterisation of the developed catalysts revealed that the introduction of La2O3 to the Ni catalyst provides more surface hydroxyl groups, and hence enhances CO2 methanation. Additionally, by analysing the surface species over 15Ni–20La/Na-BETA comparatively under thermal and NTP conditions (by in situ DRIFTS analysis), it is proposed that both the Langmuir–Hinshelwood and Eley–Rideal mechanisms co-exist in the NTP system due to the presence of dissociated H species in the gas phase. Conversely, for the thermal system, the reaction has to go through reactions between the surface-dissociated H and carbonate-like adsorbed CO2via the Langmuir–Hinshelwood mechanism. The current mechanistic understanding of the NTP-activated system paves the way for the exploration of the reaction mechanisms/pathways of NTP-assisted catalytic CO2 methanation