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Abstract The mechanism of spinal cord injury (SCI) is highly complex, and an increasing number of studies have indicated the involvement of pyroptosis in the physiological and pathological processes of secondary SCI. However, there is limited bioinformatics research on pyroptosis-related genes (PRGs) in SCI. This study aims to identify and validate differentially expressed PRGs in the GEO database, perform bioinformatics analysis, and construct regulatory networks to explore potential regulatory mechanisms and therapeutic targets for SCI. We obtained high-throughput sequencing datasets of SCI in rats and mice from the GEO database. Differential analysis was conducted using the “limma” package in R to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs). These genes were then intersected with previously reported PRGs, resulting in a set of PRGs in SCI. GO and KEGG enrichment analyses, as well as correlation analysis, were performed on the PRGs in both rat and mouse models of SCI. Additionally, a protein–protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed using the STRING website to examine the relationships between proteins. Hub genes were identified using Cytoscape software, and the intersection of the top 5 hub genes in rats and mice were selected for subsequent experimentally validated. Furthermore, a competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) network was constructed to explore potential regulatory mechanisms. The gene expression profiles of GSE93249, GSE133093, GSE138637, GSE174549, GSE45376, GSE171441_3d and GSE171441_35d were selected in this study. We identified 10 and 12 PRGs in rats and mice datasets respectively. Six common DEGs were identified in the intersection of rats and mice PRGs. Enrichment analysis of these DEGs indicated that GO analysis was mainly focused on inflammation-related factors, while KEGG analysis showed that the most genes were enriched on the NOD-like receptor signaling pathway. We constructed a ceRNA regulatory network that consisted of five important PRGs, as well as 24 miRNAs and 34 lncRNAs. This network revealed potential regulatory mechanisms. Additionally, the three hub genes obtained from the intersection were validated in the rat model, showing high expression of PRGs in SCI. Pyroptosis is involved in secondary SCI and may play a significant role in its pathogenesis. The regulatory mechanisms associated with pyroptosis deserve further in-depth research.

Summary: Hydrides of alkaline-earth and rare-earth metals have garnered significant interest in high-temperature superconductor research due to their excellent electron-phonon coupling and high Tc upon pressurization. This study explores the electronic structures and electron-phonon coupling of metal hydrides XHn (n = 4,6), where X includes Ca, Mg, Sc, and Y. The involvement of d-orbital electrons alters the Fermi surface, leading to saddle-point nesting and a charge density wave (CDW) phase transition, which opens the superconducting gap. For instance, in YH6, the exchange coupling between Y-4d and H-1s holes in the phonon softening region results in Tc values up to 230 K. The study suggests that factors, such as the origin of the CDW order, hydrogen concentration, and d-orbital contributions are crucial to superconductivity. This work proposes a new rule for high Tc superconductors, emphasizing the importance of double gaps and electron-phonon interactions at exchange coupling sites, and predicts potential high-quality superconductors among rare-earth hydrides.