Tunghai University

• Self-powered TEG-TEC system enables simultaneous cooling and energy harvesting. • The Taguchi method is used to optimize four key design parameters efficiently. • Achieved maximum heat dissipation of 53.91 W, far surpassing standalone TEG. • COP increased dramatically, reaching up to 50.38 in the optimal configuration. • Predictions without the Thomson effect overestimate performance by 45%. Efficient thermal management is essential for the performance and reliability of compact energy and electronic systems. This study proposes a self-powered thermoelectric generation-cooling (TEG-TEC) system that integrates a thermoelectric generator (TEG) with a thermoelectric cooler (TEC) to enhance heat dissipation using only available waste heat. The TEG converts part of the temperature difference into electrical power that directly drives the TEC, eliminating the need for external electricity. A Taguchi-based three-dimensional numerical model is employed to optimize four design factors: TEC thermoelectric couples, heat-transfer surface area, element length, and convection coefficient, each at four levels. An L16 orthogonal array requires only 16 simulations to explore the design space. Under the prescribed thermal boundary conditions, the optimized configuration achieves a maximum cooling capacity of 53.91 W, whereas a standalone TEG module delivers only 0.99 W. The internal power-amplification coefficient of performance, defined as COP P = Q C , T E G / P TEG , reaches 50.38 for the best self-powered loop. In addition, the maximum thermal stress in the TEG module is reduced from 957.46 MPa in the standalone case to 936.69 MPa with the coupled TEG-TEC configuration, improving mechanical reliability. The Thomson effect reduces cooling performance by approximately 45%, underscoring the importance of incorporating Thomson heating into accurate TEG-TEC modeling. The proposed TEG-TEC configuration thus provides a compact, energy-efficient solution for low-load, space-constrained cooling while conceptually bridging waste-heat-driven power generation and active thermoelectric cooling.

Precise regulation of Notch signalling is essential for proper eye development in Drosophila. Although the core components of Notch signalling are well characterised, the mechanisms modulating ligand activity remain less understood. Here, we identified microRNA miR-133 as a positive regulator of Notch signalling in a Drosophila eye model. In a Notch-sensitised background, miR-133 overexpression rescued the small-eye phenotype induced by fringe (fng), while miR-133 knockdown exacerbated this defect. miR-133 directly targets Synaptobrevin (Syb), a vesicle-associated SNARE protein, through a conserved site in its 3'UTR. Loss of Syb phenocopied miR-133 overexpression, whereas Syb overexpression enhanced Notch-related defects. miR-133 and Syb exhibited complementary expression patterns, and both miR-133 overexpression and Syb knockdown induced non-autonomous activation of Notch targets and accumulation of Delta and Serrate ligands at the plasma membrane. Furthermore, we show that the E3 ligase Godzilla (Gzl) and Rab11-dependent recycling are essential for Notch activation. Together, our findings revealed a miR-133/Syb/gzl/Rab11 regulatory axis that enhances Notch signalling by modulating ligand trafficking and distribution during development.

Chemotherapy remains central to cancer management, but its effectiveness is often limited by multidrug resistance (MDR), largely mediated by the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporter ABCB1 (P-glycoprotein; P-gp). As no clinically approved inhibitors are available to overcome ABCB1-mediated MDR, this study aimed to evaluate befotertinib (D-0316), a third-generation epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) tyrosine kinase inhibitor approved by the National Medical Products Administration, for its potential to modulate ABCB1 activity. Cytotoxicity and apoptosis assays were used to assess chemosensitization in multidrug-resistant cancer cells. Drug efflux inhibition was examined, while vanadate-sensitive ATPase activity and molecular docking analyses were performed to characterize interactions between befotertinib and ABCB1. Befotertinib significantly enhanced anticancer drug-induced apoptosis and resensitized resistant cells in a concentration-dependent manner. It inhibited ABCB1-mediated efflux, stimulating ATPase activity and demonstrating direct binding to key residues within the ABCB1 substrate-binding pocket. These results identify befotertinib as a functional inhibitor of ABCB1 with the capacity to reverse MDR. The findings support its potential as a repurposed agent for combination therapy in tumors with high ABCB1 expression, offering a practical strategy to enhance chemotherapy efficacy.

This paper presents the Assimilation Modified Emotional (AME) algorithm, which is an enhanced version of the traditional label propagation algorithm (LPA) designed to address key challenges in social network analysis and emotional feature extraction. Traditional LPA methods, such as asynchronous label propagation and the Louvain algorithm, do not incorporate emotional representations and are often limited by local structural dependencies. The AME algorithm addresses these limitations by applying spectral algorithms, Markov chains, graph coarsening, and link prediction to simulate and optimize emotional transitions within the network. In addition, the AME algorithm enhances label representation through multi-label encoding, which allows for more accurate simulation of dynamic emotional states. Experimental results show that the AME algorithm achieves better performance than traditional LPA methods in terms of both accuracy and loss values. These findings indicate that the AME algorithm has strong potential for improving AI models used in social network analysis and emotional feature extraction.

Abstract The increasing energy consumption and carbon emissions in Indonesia, which are still predominantly derived from fossil fuels, highlight the urgent need for the development of sustainable and environmentally friendly renewable energy sources. This study aimed to enhance lipid production through genetic engineering of the oleaginous yeast Rhodosporidium toruloides . The natural lipid yield of R. toruloides remains suboptimal, necessitating optimization through genetic modification. Genetic engineering was performed by integrating the gene encoding diacylglycerol acyltransferase ( DGA1 ), a key enzyme involved in triacylglycerol (TAG)-synthesizing gene, diacylglycerol acyltransferase (DGA1), using the pKLAC2 plasmid via electrophoration-based transformation. Successful integration was confirmed by colony PCR, which revealed a DNA fragment corresponding to the expected size of the DGA1 gene (554 bp). Fermentation experiments were conducted using recombinant R. toruloides and wild-type strains with glucose as the carbon source at concentrations of 30 g/L, 60 g/L, and 90 g/L. The results demonstrated that genetic recombination significantly increased lipid productivity in R. toruloides compared to the wild-type strain. Furthermore, variations in glucose concentration significantly affected lipid production in the recombinant yeast (p < 0.05), with an optimal glucose concentration of 30 g/L yielding the highest a lipid titer of 1,02 g/L and a lipid content of 58.58%. These findings indicate that recombinant R. toruloides has strong potential as an efficient host for TAG production using glucose as a carbon source through genetic engineering, thereby supporting the development of sustainable and environmentally friendly biofuels.

Abstract This article reports an empirical study investigating third language (L3) knowledge of German in the initial state. Adult Chinese speakers of advanced L2 English were investigated to explore the role of previously acquired linguistic knowledge in learning the structure of the German Determiner Phrase ( DP ) and the placement of adjectives. Both English and German use articles with nouns; however, unlike in German, nouns are not marked for grammatical gender in English. In contrast to English and German, an article system does not exist in Chinese. With respect to adjective placement, all three languages allow adjectives to appear attributively and predicatively, but only in German are attributive adjectives inflected for gender, number, and case. The results indicate that perceived typological similarity between the L3 and the previously acquired languages may not be a deterministic factor in L3 acquisition, contrary to Rothman’s Typological Primacy Model . Although the Chinese speakers of advanced L2 English responded to L3 German articles in definite contexts in a target-like way, their poorer performance with indefinite contexts and with attributive adjectives suggests that certain uninterpretable syntactic features not selected during primary language acquisition may cease to operate in subsequent language acquisition, supporting the Interpretability Hypothesis of Tsimpli and Dimitrakopoulou.

To compare the patency outcomes and safety profile between the modified TR Band and the PreludeSYNC DISTAL (PSD) for hemostasis following distal transradial access (dTRA) for transarterial chemoembolization (TACE). This prospective randomized trial enrolled 104 participants undergoing TACE via dTRA (143 procedures, all performed using a 4-Fr catheter. Participants achieved hemostasis with either the modified TR Band (n = 74) or PSD (n = 69). The primary endpoint was the incidence of radial artery occlusion (RAO) assessed by Doppler ultrasonography at 4h, 24h, and > 1week. Outcome assessors were blinded. Secondary endpoints included hemostatic performance and complications. No complete RAO occurred in either group (0/143). Partial RAO (mural thrombus with preserved flow) peaked at 4h (TR Band: 28.4% vs. PSD: 18.8%; risk difference 9.5%, 95% CI -4.3 to 23.3%, p = 0.181) and declined to 4.1% vs. 2.9% by final follow-up (p = 1.000), representing a spontaneous resolution rate of 85.3%. Generalized estimating equations showed no significant difference in overall incidence. The TR Band group had a numerically higher rate of delayed hemostasis (> 4h) compared with PSD (5.4% vs. 0.0%, p = 0.121). Complication rates (hematoma, pseudoaneurysm) did not differ significantly. The modified TR Band and PSD demonstrated comparable rates of partial radial artery occlusion and access-site complications following dTRA for TACE.

ABSTRACT The adoption of hotel service robots is increasing; however, research has yet to examine the role played by emotional ambivalence. We examine consumers’ approach and avoid intentions towards hotel service robots from attitude and personal innovativeness perspectives. We conceptualise attitudes as task-technology fit, social presence and emotional ambivalence. Results show individual innovativeness positively influences task-technology fit and social presence, while reducing emotional ambivalence. Conversely, avoidance positively associates with emotional ambivalence and negatively with social presence.