University of Technology

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) play a crucial role in food fermentation and human health. This study introduces Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (L. plantarum) QL-19, a novel probiotic strain isolated from traditional Hunan pickles and characterized via whole-genome sequencing and in vitro functional assays. The 3,396,702 genome contains 3236 predicted coding sequences, including genes associated with stress tolerance, adhesion, and cholesterol metabolism (cbh, cfa, and hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA synthase). Genomic analysis further revealed biosynthetic gene clusters encoding antimicrobial and antioxidant compounds, emphasizing its functional versatility. A comprehensive safety assessment confirmed that QL-19 is non-pathogenic and non-hemolytic, meeting probiotic safety standards. In HepG2 cell-based experiments, L. plantarum QL-19 reduced intracellular total cholesterol levels. RT-qPCR and Western blotting were employed to evaluate the expression of genes and proteins involved in cholesterol metabolism. The results demonstrated that QL-19 enhanced cholesterol metabolism by upregulating the expression of SREBP2, LDLR, and CYP7A1, while downregulating NPC1L1 and HMGCR. The results suggest that QL-19 facilitates cholesterol metabolism through multiple pathways. Taken together with its 75.4% in vitro cholesterol degradation rate, these findings highlight the potential of QL-19 as a cholesterol-lowering probiotic candidate for cardiovascular health applications.

P-type AgSbSe2-based thermoelectric materials are promising candidates for power generation due to their high Seebeck coefficient, low thermal conductivity, and earth-abundant constituent elements. However, their intrinsically low electrical conductivity limits further improvement in thermoelectric performance. Herein, a stepwise atom-site tuning strategy is employed to progressively enhance the electrical properties and decouple electrical-phonon transport. Cd doping at the Sb site raises carrier concentration and mobility via acceptor doping and the formation of grain boundary phases, achieving a high σ of ∼90 S cm-1 at 323K. Subsequent Se enrichment introduces interstitial atoms, enabling counter-doping while maintaining grain growth, thereby optimizing carrier concentration. As a result, AgSb0.96Cd0.04Se2.02exhibits a significantly enhanced power factor over the entire temperature range, reaching 7.84 µW cm-1 K-2 at 673 K. Moreover, the synergistic effect of Ag5Cd8 grain boundary phases, Ag-rich nanoprecipitates, and dislocations strengthen phonon scattering, leading to an ultralow κL that decreases from 0.49W m-1 K-1 at 323 K to 0.35W m-1 K-1 at 673 K. Consequently, a peak zT of ∼1.23 and average zT of ∼0.73 are achieved between 323 and 673 K in AgSb0.96Cd0.04Se2.02. This work demonstrates an effective strategy to decouple the electron and phonon transport, thereby improving the thermoelectric performance of AgSbSe2-based materials.

This article introduces the maximum coverage of shortest paths under limited cost (MCLC) problem, a novel optimization task focused on deploying nodes to cover the maximum number of shortest paths within a network under a strict budget. While crucial in many real-world scenarios, this problem is computationally challenging. We propose a novel hybrid greedy (HG) algorithm, which integrates two novel greedy operations—coverage-first and contribution-first—with new refinement techniques. We prove that the proposed HG algorithm achieves a worst case approximation ratio that doubles the state-of-the-art lower bound, a significant theoretical improvement for large-scale networks. To guide practical application, we analyze the tradeoff between coverage and cost-efficiency. We derive a new Pearson correlation-based criterion that accurately predicts when and why our proposed HG approach will outperform other methods, providing a valuable guideline for algorithm selection. Extensive experiments on both synthetic and real-world networks validate our theoretical findings and confirm the practical superiority of our approach.

Mycotoxins, among the most extensively studied biological toxins, pose significant health risks to humans and animals, causing substantial economic losses in the agricultural sector. Numerous conventional enzymes isolated from microorganisms have been reported to detoxify mycotoxin, but their stability is questionable for detoxifying mycotoxin and the direct industrial production of enzymes. Currently, few commercial enzymes are available for the detoxification of mycotoxins. Enhancing enzyme stability is essential to ensure effective detoxification under feed-appropriate temperature and pH conditions. To overcome this challenge, the amalgamation of numerous fields, such as bioinformatics and protein engineering, is crucial for improving the enzyme for industrial production. Computational tools are crucial for determining the nucleotides of the sequence for modification using site-directed mutagenesis (SDM) for the existing conventional enzyme. The SDM technique offers a promising approach for modifying conventional enzymes for commercial purposes. Therefore, focusing on identifying, modifying, and producing enzymes that effectively detoxify mycotoxins is crucial for mitigating their effects on animals and preventing economic losses. Also, a fusion of modified enzymes involved in the cascade detoxification of mycotoxin and its derivatives should be focused on. This review provides an overview of the computational tools and protein engineering approaches, focusing on SDM and cascade catalysis for enhanced mycotoxin detoxification. We also discuss the future directions for incorporating these engineered enzyme systems on a commercial scale.

Uncertainty among healthcare providers about patients' ability to make care decisions is a barrier to shared decision-making. We aimed to assess the self-reported decision-making ability of patients with cancer at the end of life. Data from 11 countries of adults with a limited life expectancy and cancer as the primary diagnosis were used. Participants completed a questionnaire, including one item on decision-making ability and two on decision-making preferences. Correlations between self-reported ability and preferences were tested using Kendall's tau. Associations between decision-making ability and patient characteristics were determined using mixed-effects ordinal regression models. The sample (n = 1076, 53 % identified as men) had a mean age of 69 years (SD: 11.5). Among them, 80 % reported being able to make decisions about their life and care most of the time, 14 % some of the time, 5 % only a little of the time, and 2 % never. Regarding preferences, 95 % preferred to be involved in decision-making and 44 % preferred the doctors to make the decisions. These preferences were weakly correlated with decision-making ability (Kendall's tau: 0.13 and -0.11, respectively). Feeling able to make decisions was less likely for those institutionalized (versus living with relatives, OR: 0.26, 95 % CI: 0.12;0.55), those with tertiary education (versus primary/no education, OR: 0.43, 95 % CI: 0.22;0.85) and those without clear understanding of their health (versus those with understanding, OR: 0.29, 95 % CI: 0.16;0.52). Although most patients felt able to make decisions about their care, two out of every ten did not. About five out of ten preferred their doctors to make decisions. As almost all patients want to be involved in decisions, we suggest that providers discuss with patients how decisions will be made. This may enable providers to identify patients' needs and adapt the decision-making process to their abilities and preferences.

Manganese selenide (MnSe), as a typical electrode material, has garnered significant attention due to its high theoretical specific capacity and cost-effectiveness. However, persistent challenges, including sluggish reaction kinetics and inadequate cycling stability, remain to be addressed. Anion-doping-induced defect engineering is regarded as a promising strategy to achieve superior sodium storage performance by modulating the electronic configuration of MnSe. In this work, electronegative sulfur (S) is incorporated into nitrogen-rich metal-organic framework-derived MnSe via sulfuration treatment. Various characterizations and theoretical calculations reveal that doping of S into the MnSe lattice can introduce defect levels, optimize ion diffusion pathways, and reduce Na+ diffusion barrier, thereby enhancing the electrochemical performance of the MnSe anode. As expected, the optimal material exhibits excellent rate performance and long-term cyclability, delivering a specific capacity of 402.7 mAh g-1 at 2.0 A g-1 after 300 cycles and retaining 353.1 mAh g-1 after 800 cycles at 5.0 A g-1. Furthermore, ex situ X-ray diffraction patterns and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy are employed to analyze the sodium storage mechanism.