Controls on anomalously high porosity/permeability of Middle Jurassic deeply buried tight sandstones in the Taibei Sag, Turpan-Hami Basin, northwestern China: Implications for reservoir quality prediction

The lower member of the Middle Jurassic Xishanyao Formation (J2x1+2) sandstones are significant exploratory targets for hydrocarbon resources in the Taibei Sag of the Turpan-Hami Basin, northwestern China. Formation of anomalously high porosity/permeability in deeply buried J2x1+2 sandstones and reservoir quality prediction were investigated using a variety of petrographic analyses. These results show that the J2x1+2 sandstones are mostly feldspathic litharenites and litharenites, which are characterized by moderate-to good sorting, silty to medium granularity, and point- to long grain contacts. The J2x1+2 sandstone has low porosity (avg 6.0%) and permeability (avg 1.12 mD), but shows anomalously high porosity/permeability at depth interval of 3850–4050 m. There is a noticeable variation in pore types and sizes from intergranular-intragranular dissolution pores with a size mode of 2.0 μm in anomalously high porosity (AHP) sandstones, to major intragranular dissolution pores with a size mode of 0.5 μm in normally high porosity (NHP) sandstones, to most micropores with a size mode of 0.25 μm occurred in the normally low porosity (NLP) sandstones. The compaction is the main cause of porosity destruction, resulting in an average porosity loss of 89.6%. However, the authigenic minerals have relatively little influence on reservoir quality. The combination of nappe tectonics and well-sorted particles alleviated the compaction and thus preserved more intergranular pores in the AHP sandstones. Dissolution further increases the porosity and eventually forms the AHP sandstones. The strong carbonate-cemented facies (SCC), tightly compacted facies (TC), moderately compacted with moderate dissolution facies (MCMD), and weakly compacted with strong dissolution facies (WCSD) are determined in the J2x1+2 sandstones. The sandstones with SCC and TC are recognized as the NLP reservoirs. The MCMD and WCSD correspond to the NHP and AHP reservoirs, respectively. The reservoir quality predicted using the constructed diagenetic facies charts is in good agreement with the photomicrograph observations and physical property tests. Additionally, the AHP reservoirs are still developed in the deeply buried sandstones with depths larger than 4000 m

Primary lipoblastic nerve sheath tumor in an inguinal lymph node mimicking metastatic tumor: a case report and literature review

Lipoblastic nerve sheath tumors of soft tissue are characterized as schwannoma tumors that exhibit adipose tissue and lipoblast-like cells with signet-ring morphology. They have been documented to arise in various anatomic locations, including the thigh, groin, shoulder, and retroperitoneum. However, to our knowledge, this tumor has not been previously reported as a lymph node primary. We present herein the first case of a benign primary lipoblastic nerve sheath tumor arising in an inguinal lymph node in a 69-year-old man. Microscopic examination revealed a multinodular tumor comprising fascicles of spindle cells, as well as adipocytic and lipoblast-like signet-ring cell component in the context of schwannoma. Despite the presence of some bizarre cells with nuclear atypia, no obvious mitotic activity or necrosis was observed. Immunohistochemical analysis showed strong and diffuse expression of S-100, SOX10, CD56, and NSE in the spindle cells as well as in the signet-ring lipoblast-like cells and the mature adipocytes. Sequencing analysis of the neoplasm identified six non-synonymous single nucleotide variant genes, specifically NF1, BRAF, ECE1, AMPD3, CRYAB, and NPHS1, as well as four nonsense mutation genes including MRE11A, CEP290, OTOA, and ALOXE3. The patient remained alive and well with no evidence of recurrence over a period of ten-year follow-up

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is associated with a worse prognosis in patients with heart failure: A pool analysis

Background and aimsNon-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is associated with a higher risk of heart failure (HF) than those without NAFLD. However, the prognostic impact of NAFLD in HF is still controversial. This meta-analysis aimed to explore the association between NAFLD and the risk of adverse outcomes in patients with HF.MethodsWe searched multiple electronic databases (Embase, PubMed, and Google Scholar) for potentially related studies up to June 30, 2022. Cohort studies reported multivariable adjusted relative risks and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of adverse outcomes in HF patients with NAFLD comparing those without NAFLD were included for analysis.ResultsA total of six studies involving 12,374 patients with HF were included for analysis, with a median follow-up duration of 2.5 years. The pooled analysis showed that HF patients with NAFLD were associated with a significantly increased risk of major composite adverse outcomes (HR 1.61, 95% CI 1.25-2.07), all-cause mortality (HR 1.66, 95% CI 1.39-1.98), and HF hospitalization or re-hospitalization (HR 1.71, 95% CI 1.03-2.86).ConclusionNAFLD is associated with a worse prognosis in patients with HF. Effective screening and treatment strategies are needed to improve the prognosis in HF patients with NAFLD

Vegetative Ecological Characteristics of Restored Reed (Phragmites australis) Wetlands in the Yellow River Delta, China

In this study, we compared ecological characteristics of wetland vegetation in a series of restoration projects that were carried out in the wetlands of Yellow River Delta. The investigated characteristics include plant composition structure, species diversity and community similarity in three kinds of Phragmites australis wetlands, i.e. restored P. australis wetlands (R1, R2, R3 and R4: restored in 2002, 2005, 2007 and 2009, respectively), natural P. australis wetland (N) and degraded P. australis wetland (D) to assess the process of wetlands restoration. The coverage of the R1 was 99%, which was similar to natural wetland. Among all studied wetlands, the highest and lowest stem density was observed in R1 and R2, respectively, Plant height and stem diameter show the same trend as N > R2 > R1 > R3 > D > R4. Species diversity of restored P. australis wetlands became closed to natural wetland. Both species richness and Shannon–Wiener index had similar tendency: increased first and then decreased with restored time. The highest species richness and species diversity were observed in R2, while the lowest values of those parameters were found in natural P. australis wetland. Similarity indexes between restored wetlands and natural wetland increased with the restoration time, but they were still less than 50%. The results indicate that the vegetation of P. australis wetlands has experienced a great improvement after several years’ restoration, and it is feasible to restored degraded P. australis wetlands by pouring fresh water into those wetlands in the Yellow River Delta. However, it is notable that costal degraded P. australis wetland in this region may take years to decades to reach the status of natural wetland

Submicroscopic metallic iron in lunar soils estimated from the in situ spectra of the Chang’E-3 mission

Submicroscopic metallic iron (SMFe) created by space weathering has strong effects on the optical properties of the lunar surface. Spectra measured in situ by the visible-near-infrared spectrometer (VNIS) on board the Chang’E-3 Yutu rover were used to investigate optical maturity differences at the CE-3 landing site caused by lander exhaust. SMFe abundances were estimated using Hapke’s radiative transfer model. Analysis of the spectrum for a minimally disturbed soil indicates that it contains 0.368 wt % SMFe, corresponding to an Is/FeO maturity index of ~53 and indicating that the landing site is submature. The soil at a location that was more disturbed contains 0.217 wt % SMFe, suggesting that the material removed by the rocket blast is more weathered than the regolith that remained behind. We conclude that maturity differences related to removal of the finest, highly mature particles play a major role in the observed reflectance changes associated with rocket blast.…This research was supported by the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (863 Program: 2015AA123704), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41422110 and 41490633), the Science and Technology Development Fund of Macau (020/2014/A1), and Minor Planet Foundation of Purple Mountain Observatory. The contribution of D.T.B. was made possible by the Chinese Academy of Sciences President’s International Fellowship Initiative, grant 2015VEB057 and by NASA Lunar Data Analysis Program grant NNX16AN55G. E.A.C. thanks NSERC and the Canadian Space Agency for supporting this study.https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/2017GL07265

Clofazimine Inhibits Human Kv1.3 Potassium Channel by Perturbing Calcium Oscillation in T Lymphocytes

The Kv1.3 potassium channel plays an essential role in effector memory T cells and has been implicated in several important autoimmune diseases including multiple sclerosis, psoriasis and type 1 diabetes. A number of potent small molecule inhibitors of Kv1.3 channel have been reported, some of which were found to be effective in various animal models of autoimmune diseases. We report herein the identification of clofazimine, a known anti-mycobacterial drug, as a novel inhibitor of human Kv1.3. Clofazimine was initially identified as an inhibitor of intracellular T cell receptor-mediated signaling leading to the transcriptional activation of human interleukin-2 gene in T cells from a screen of the Johns Hopkins Drug Library. A systematic mechanistic deconvolution revealed that clofazimine selectively blocked the Kv1.3 channel activity, perturbing the oscillation frequency of the calcium-release activated calcium channel, which in turn led to the inhibition of the calcineurin-NFAT signaling pathway. These effects of clofazimine provide the first line of experimental evidence in support of a causal relationship between Kv1.3 and calcium oscillation in human T cells. Furthermore, clofazimine was found to be effective in blocking human T cell-mediated skin graft rejection in an animal model in vivo. Together, these results suggest that clofazimine is a promising immunomodulatory drug candidate for treating a variety of autoimmune disorders