Search Results (61,905)

Photobacterium damselae subsp. damselae (PDD), a marine fish pathogen, has an unclear contribution of tonB genes to iron acquisition and pathogenicity. ΔtonB1-PDD and ΔtonB2-PDD mutants as well as their complemented strains were generated via homologous recombination from the virulent strain PDD1605. Growth was evaluated by monitoring OD₆₀₀ with viable-count calibration, intracellular iron was measured using a colorimetric assay, biofilm was detected by crystal violet staining, transcription was analyzed through qRT-PCR, and pathogenicity was assessed via an 8-day intramuscular challenge in black rockfish (Sebastes schlegelii). Under iron limitation induced by 100 μM 2,2′-dipyridyl, the maximum density decreased from 4.51 × 10⁸ CFU/mL in wild-type (WT-PDD) to 4.00 × 10⁸ and 3.64 × 10⁸ CFU/mL in ΔtonB1-PDD and ΔtonB2-PDD respectively, and was largely restored after complementation. The intracellular iron content declined from 3.75 × 10⁻⁴ ± 4.00 × 10⁻⁶ nmol/10⁶ cells in WT-PDD to 3.13 × 10⁻⁴ ± 1.05 × 10⁻⁵ nmol/10⁶ cells in ΔtonB1-PDD and 2.55 × 10⁻⁴ ± 2.00 × 10⁻⁵ nmol/10⁶ cells in ΔtonB2-PDD. Compared with WT-PDD, biofilm formation was reduced by 22.1% in ΔtonB1-PDD and by 24.8% in ΔtonB2-PDD. Deletion of tonB2 induced mild yet statistically significant transcriptional alterations in multiple iron acquisition and virulence-related genes, while colony morphology, swarming motility, hemolysis, phospholipase activity, biochemical traits, and antimicrobial susceptibility remained unchanged. In the high-dose challenge assay, WT-PDD caused 100% mortality within 2 days, whereas ΔtonB1-PDD and ΔtonB2-PDD caused 17/20 and 18/20 deaths respectively; all infected groups reached 100% mortality by day 3. In the low-dose challenge assay, WT-PDD, ΔtonB1-PDD, and ΔtonB2-PDD caused 12/20, 12/20, and 13/20 deaths by day 2, with cumulative mortalities reaching 80%, 70%, and 80% by day 8, respectively. Kaplan–Meier analysis detected no significant differences among the survival curves at either challenge dose. These findings suggest that tonB1 and tonB2 play roles in iron acquisition, low-iron adaptation, and biofilm formation, with tonB2 deletion exerting greater effects on growth and intracellular iron accumulation under iron-limited conditions. Full article

Introduction: The Kumamoto sub-breed of Japanese Brown cattle is a small population facing increasing inbreeding and declining effective population size driven by the intensive use of a limited number of elite sires. Methods: We analyzed 811 Japanese Brown cows genotyped using a 30K SNP array, retaining 19,745 SNPs after quality control. We calculated and compared ten genomic inbreeding estimators, including SNP-by-SNP and segment-based measures. Population structure was first assessed by rearing region using principal component analysis (PCA) and was then evaluated using ADMIXTURE-based clustering and distance-based hierarchical clustering, from which representative subsets were retained under predefined filtering criteria and further examined using PCA and neighbor-joining (NJ) tree analyses. Finally, we calculated the contribution of each ADMIXTURE group to total gene and allelic diversity, and integrated these two measures into a final conservation index after Z-score standardization. Results: ROH- and HBD-based estimators showed high concordance, whereas allele-frequency-dependent SNP-by-SNP estimators exhibited distinct distributions. Rearing region did not explain the main genetic structure. Instead, four representative ADMIXTURE-based groups, supported by independently identified family groups, captured the major genetic structure associated with paternal backgrounds. ADMIXTURE group 2 made the largest contribution to both gene and allelic diversity, and showed lowest genomic inbreeding. Conclusions: These findings suggest that ROH- and HBD-based estimators may serve as valuable indicators of genomic inbreeding in the Kumamoto sub-breed of Japanese Brown cattle; paternal background has played an important role in shaping the current genomic structure; and ADMIXTURE group 2, mainly associated with the Haru-yama-to/-sakae sire background, may provide a valuable breeding resource for limiting future inbreeding accumulation and maintaining genetic diversity. Full article

Withering is a critical but poorly understood step in yellow tea processing. This study integrated metabolomics (ultra-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry, UPLC-MS/MS), transcriptomics (RNA sequencing, RNA-seq), and sensory evaluation to investigate dynamic changes in key metabolites and gene expression during withering (0–10 h) of Niangniang tea (NNT). Transcriptomic analysis was performed on leaves sampled directly during withering, while metabolomic profiling and sensory evaluation were conducted on finished teas processed from the corresponding withered leaves. A total of 1064 metabolites were identified. Sensory evaluation showed that 8 h of withering yielded the highest sweet-mellow taste scores. Theanine, L-aspartic acid, and L-arginine peaked at 8 h, while galloylated catechins decreased. Key regulatory genes (CsTA, CsSCPL, CsPDX2.1) were identified, with expression patterns correlating with sweet-related amino acid accumulation and catechin conversion. Integrative analysis delineated a molecular roadmap in which downregulation of CsPDX2.1 after 6 h was associated with reduced theanine hydrolysis, and upregulation of CsTA correlated with galloylated catechin conversion, collectively contributing to sweet-mellow taste. These findings provide a scientific basis for optimizing withering duration in large-leaf yellow tea production. Full article

Accurately predicting high-energy laser propagation toward fast-moving aerial targets is not straightforward, since the slant range, elevation angle, atmospheric path, accumulated turbulence, and thermal blooming all change along with target motion. Because of this coupled evolution, fixed-path or quasi-static models can hardly describe, in a complete way, the time-varying loss of beam transmission and the weakening of energy concentration. To address this problem, this paper builds on established wave-optics propagation methods to develop a dynamic multi-physics framework for high-speed moving-target engagements. The central idea is to rebuild the propagation environment at every time step according to the instantaneous target position so that the optical path can be linked with height-dependent extinction, refractive-index structure, and absorption profiles; meanwhile, relative motion is represented as an effective transverse sweeping velocity, which helps reduce the accumulation effect of thermal blooming. Based on a unified split-step Fourier method, the model combines Beer–Lambert path attenuation, Kolmogorov-spectrum multilayer phase screens, and thermal-blooming phase modulation, yielding time-resolved indicators such as transmittance, received power, peak irradiance, Strehl ratio, scintillation index, pointing error, and beam-quality factor. Simulation results show that, in a 500 m static horizontal path, the attenuation module reduces to the Beer–Lambert solution, with the maximum relative error kept below ${10}^{-14}$; the turbulence phase-screen implementation is validated against the absolute Kolmogorov prediction. Over the resolved inertial interval, the ensemble-averaged structure function yields a fitted exponent $p_{\mathrm{f}\mathrm{i}\mathrm{t}}=1.671$ (theoretical: $5/3=1.667$) and a relative normalization error of $2.5\mathrm{\%}$, confirming that the generated screens reproduce both the Kolmogorov scaling and the prescribed turbulence strength. For a 1.064 μm, 2 kW Gaussian beam propagating over a 50 s trajectory of about 8 km, when the target speed increases from 0 to 300 m/s, the thermal-blooming-related beam-quality factor decreases from roughly 1.8 to 1.2, which indicates that dynamic geometry, turbulence, attenuation, and thermal blooming need to be considered together when evaluating laser propagation performance. Full article

The heterogeneous occurrence of coal-seam thickness represents a common geological characteristic in underground mining. Variations in coal thickness can directly alter the instability-failure behavior of coal–rock systems, thereby triggering various dynamic disasters. Therefore, revealing failure and disaster-inducing mechanisms of coal–rock systems dominated by coal-thickness effects is critical for deep mining engineering design as well as dynamic disaster prevention and control. To this end, uniaxial compression tests combined with acoustic emission (AE) monitoring were performed on coal–rock combinations with different coal thicknesses. The evolution laws of characteristic strengths (uniaxial compressive strength, initiation strength, and damage strength) versus coal thickness were systematically analyzed. Using full-process spatial localization of internal damage derived from absolute AE energy, an instability evolution model for coal–rock combinations was established. Furthermore, intrinsic disaster-inducing mechanisms governing coal–rock system instability under coal-thickness regulation were summarized, with corresponding engineering prevention-control suggestions put forward. The results show that: (1) UCS, initiation strength, and damage strength of specimens exhibit a nonlinear negative correlation with coal thickness. Initiation strength and damage strength account for approximately 50% and 75% of UCS, respectively; (2) Increasing coal thickness weakens the confinement effect of upper- and lower-sandstone, which shifts the dominant failure zone gradually from coal–rock interfaces to coal interiors. Meanwhile, internal energy accumulation-release processes of combinations present staged evolution characteristics; (3) Different coal thicknesses produce distinct disaster-evolution paths for coal–rock systems. Larger coal thickness corresponds to higher risks of high-energy dynamic disasters. Accordingly, a differentiated hierarchical prevention strategy of “thin protection, medium pressure relief, and thick control” was proposed. These findings provide a theoretical basis for mine engineering design and dynamic disaster prevention-control under dominant coal-thickness effects. Full article

Background: Insulin resistance (IR) indices—C-reactive protein–triglyceride–glucose index (CTI), triglyceride–glucose (TyG) index, and weight-adjusted waist index (WWI)—are linked to cardiovascular disease (CVD), but their comparative utility in prediabetic populations remains unclear. To evaluate the associations and exploratory mediating roles of CTI, TyG and WWI with prevalent CVD in middle-aged and elderly patients with prediabetes. Methods: The study included 3121 NHANES participants aged ≥45 with prediabetes. Four machine learning algorithms identified key variables. Multivariable logistic regression and restricted cubic spline analyses examined the associations between IR and CVD. Model performance was assessed via receiver operating characteristic curves, net reclassification improvement, integrated discrimination improvement, calibration, and decision curve analysis. Subgroup analyses tested robustness. Mediation analysis assessed the mediating roles of IR in the WWI–CVD relationship. External validation used CHARLS. Results: Individuals in the highest tertiles of TyG, TyG–WWI, and CTI had approximately twofold higher CVD risk (ORs: 1.80–1.97). RCS showed a significant linear increase in CVD risk with higher IR index levels. In fully adjusted models, AUCs improved markedly over baseline: TyG–WWI 0.771 vs. 0.579. Mediation analyses indicated that CTI and TyG mediated 22.13–26.30% of the WWI–CVD association. Subgroup analyses and external validation in CHARLS supported the robustness. Conclusions: IR, as captured by TyG, TyG–WWI, and CTI, independently elevates CVD risk among middle-aged and older adults with prediabetes. WWI is associated with greater odds of prevalent CVD, potentially driven by adiposity accumulation, with CTI and TyG partially mediating this effect. Full article

Postharvest lignification and microbial spoilage limit the shelf life of arrow bamboo shoots. This study evaluated the effects of electrolyzed functional water (EFW) combined with spontaneous modified-atmosphere (MA) packaging (EFW+MA) on postharvest quality and associated physiological, metabolic, and microbial changes. EFW+MA reduced weight loss, decay incidence, and browning while maintaining firmness and color. It also reduced lignin and cellulose accumulation, accompanied by lower activities of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), peroxidase (POD), and polyphenol oxidase (PPO). Untargeted liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) metabolomics showed that storage-associated metabolic changes were moderated by EFW+MA, including lower abundances of phenylalanine and tyrosine in the treated samples. In addition, EFW+MA enhanced superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activities, reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) accumulation, and alleviated membrane lipid peroxidation. 16S ribosomal RNA (16S rRNA) gene sequencing showed that EFW+MA reduced operational taxonomic unit (OTU) richness and altered bacterial community composition, including lower relative abundances of Campylobacterota and Enterobacteriaceae and a higher relative abundance of Lactobacillaceae. Overall, EFW+MA delayed postharvest quality deterioration of arrow bamboo shoots, accompanied by changes in lignification-related physiology, oxidative defense, metabolite profiles, and bacterial communities. Full article

The nature of solar radiation and the high penetration of photovoltaic (PV) systems in the smart electrical grid necessitate the development of models driven by historical operational data capable of precisely estimating the performance of PV systems. In this work, six proposed models are applied to predict the conversion efficiency of a 7.98 kWp rooftop on-grid PV system in Jordan. The dataset comprises 179 daily samples obtained during a single spring–summer period (17 March–24 September 2014). The efficiency modeled is the combined efficiency of the modules and inverter as a system. The proposed models are Decision Tree (DT), Random Forest (RF), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Gradient Boosting (GB), Gaussian Process Regression (GPR), and Elastic Net (EN). The effectiveness of these proposed models is assessed by calculating four performance metrics, namely, the Mean Square Error, prediction accuracy, Coefficient of Determination (R²), and adjusted R², and benchmarking the results with those of six prediction models discussed in our previous work. The results from the unweighted Decision-Making Matrix show that RF showed the best overall performance among the proposed and benchmark models considered. By contrast, the SVM, DT, and GB models exhibited moderate predictive behavior. However, Elastic Net is the worst-performing model among the 12 proposed and benchmark models discussed in this work. Moreover, the RF model’s consistently low prediction error supports its practical utility for PV system performance estimation, despite a slightly higher training cost than simpler models. Full article

Background/Objective: Maternal diet is an important determinant of gut microbiota composition in dams and offspring. This study investigated whether HDCA supplementation during maternal high-fat diet (HFD) exposure was associated with gut microbiota composition in dams and offspring and with selected obesity-related phenotypes. Methods: Nineteen C57BL/6J female mice were assigned to a control diet group (CON), a high-fat diet group (HFD), and a high-fat diet supplemented with 0.5% hyodeoxycholic acid group (HFD+HDCA). Fecal samples were collected from the dams before mating, following 8 weeks of dietary intervention, and from the offspring at weaning. All samples were analyzed using 5R 16S rRNA gene sequencing. Body weight was monitored in both dams and offspring, and liver histology was assessed by hematoxylin and eosin staining. Results: HFD exposure was associated with obesity-related phenotypes in dams and offspring, including increased maternal body weight and greater hepatic lipid accumulation and visceral adiposity in offspring. LEfSe and ANCOM-BC2 analyses identified concordant microbial changes between dams and offspring under corresponding dietary conditions. Lachnospiraceae_Unknown_genus3261 and Coprococcus increased with HFD exposure in both dams and offspring, whereas Bifidobacterium, Coprococcus, and Allobaculum decreased following HDCA supplementation. These findings indicate maternal–offspring concordance in microbiota responses to HFD and HDCA, without establishing direct vertical transmission. PICRUSt2 analysis suggested group association differences in predicted functional potential for pathways annotated to propionate, pyruvate, and β-alanine metabolism. Conclusions: HDCA supplementation during maternal HFD exposure was associated with differences in offspring gut microbiota at weaning and with attenuation of selected obesity-related phenotypes. These findings suggest a potential role of the gut microbiota–bile acid axis in mediating intergenerational dietary effects. However, the study does not establish direct microbial transmission, altered metabolic activity, or causality; these findings require confirmation in litter-aware and mechanistic studies. Full article

The accumulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in saline environments poses a threat to ecological security; however, the elimination of PAHs from saline environments is difficult. In this study, a constructed microbial consortium, designated NOMA, was constructed from Novosphingobium sp. J3 and Martelella sp. E4 via a “bottom-up” method. Consortium NOMA degraded phenanthrene within 7 days at 5% salinity and retained phenanthrene-degradation activity across the tested salinity, pH, and Cd²⁺ gradients (pH values of 5–10, salinities of 1–20%, and Cd²⁺ concentrations of 0–50 mg/L). PAH-degrading genes in both strains were annotated based on the genomic information. Based on the genomic information and intermediate detection, a cross-feeding model of the phenanthrene degradation process by consortium NOMA was proposed. Strain J3 was responsible for the upstream degradation of phenanthrene, and strain E4 promoted multiple downstream degradation pathways to increase the rate of intermediate transfer. Genome-scale metabolic model (GSMM) predictions suggested a potential interspecies cross-feeding mechanism: J3 supplies upstream aromatic intermediates, whereas E4 provides complementary nutritional and cofactor-related support to J3. This study deepens the understanding of the cross-feeding pattern of PAHs in saline environments and provides a biological resource for the bioremediation of PAH under saline and cadmium stress conditions. Full article

Neuroinflammation plays a central role in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Glycyrrhizin (GL), a major component of licorice, exhibits anti-inflammatory effects, but its effects on AD pathology remain unclear. To investigate the effects of GL (18β-glycyrrhizin, 18β-GL) and its stereoisomer (18α-glycyrrhizin, 18α-GL) on cognitive function, neuroinflammation, and AD pathology in senescence-accelerated mouse prone 8 (SAMP8; P8) mice, 40-week-old P8 male mice, an AD model due to aging, and the control (senescence-accelerated mouse resistant 1, SAMR1; R1) mice were treated with 18β-GL, 18α-GL and physiological saline (control) for 12 weeks (n = 6 in each group). Cognitive function was evaluated using a step-through passive avoidance test. Plasma levels of α-Klotho, IGF-1, 2′,3′-cyclic GMP-AMP (2′,3′-cGAMP), HMGB1, IL-6, and TNF-α were measured by ELISA. Hippocampal microglial activation (Iba1), amyloid-β (Aβ) deposition, and phosphorylated tau (p-Tau) were assessed by immunohistochemistry. Aged P8 mice showed impaired memory, decreased α-Klotho and IGF-1 levels, and increased inflammatory markers compared with R1 mice. GL significantly improved memory performance, reduced inflammatory markers, and suppressed Iba1 activation, as well as Aβ and p-Tau accumulation. These effects were associated with inhibition of the cGAS–STING pathway, as indicated by reduced 2′,3′-cGAMP and HMGB1 levels. GL ameliorates AD pathology by inhibiting neuroinflammation, suggesting its therapeutic potential for AD. Full article

Curcuma longa is a medicinal plant valued for its diverse phytochemicals and antioxidant properties. However, the effects of thermal processing on its phytochemical composition and antioxidant function remain insufficiently understood. This study investigated heat-induced changes in curcuminoids, sesquiterpenoids, and their degradation products in C. longa extracts heated at 180 °C for 0–90 min under dry, aqueous, olive oil, and corn oil conditions using UHPLC–MS/MS and GC–MS. Curcuminoids progressively decreased during heating, whereas sesquiterpenoids exhibited greater thermal stability, particularly in oil matrices. Antioxidant properties were also better preserved in oil-treated extracts than in those heated under dry or aqueous conditions. However, in an oil-in-water emulsion system exposed to continuous LED illumination (14,600 lux), extracts obtained after dry heating accelerated lipid oxidation, as evidenced by enhanced oxygen depletion, hydroperoxide formation, and conjugated diene accumulation. This pro-oxidative effect was markedly suppressed by EDTA, suggesting the involvement of metal-mediated oxidation pathways. These findings demonstrate that thermal processing differentially alters the phytochemical profile and antioxidant properties of C. longa depending on the heating matrix, while highlighting that preserved antioxidant capacity does not necessarily translate into improved oxidative stability in illuminated emulsion systems. Full article

Current visual perception techniques for self-driving vehicles mainly focus on the generalization across diverse scenes, and they often overlook the valuable spatial consistency present in the repetitive driving routes such as public transit lines, delivery and shuttle services. In this paper, we introduce MemGeoSeg, which is a novel multi-modal framework that enhances semantic segmentation by exploiting scene repetitions through GPS-guided spatial priors and historical memory. Our approach introduces a hierarchical GPS embedding module, which is a spatially indexed memory bank that accumulates location-specific visual knowledge and a cross-modal fusion mechanism with contrastive learning. To validate the idea of improving visual perception with repetitive driving scenarios, a new dataset, RMTD-AD, is constructed for evaluation. It contains over 13,000 annotated images across various weather and lighting conditions on repeated routes. Extensive experiments conducted on the dataset have demonstrated that MemGeoSeg significantly outperforms the state-of-the-art baseline, achieving an mIoU of 76.5% compared to SegFormer’s 71.8% (a 4.7 percentage-point improvement), with particularly strong gains in challenging scenarios like low-light and adverse weather conditions. The result shows that there are substantial benefits to incorporating geographical contexts and historical memory for location-aware perception in intelligent vehicles. Full article

Wuyi rock tea (WRT) processed from dew-soaked leaves is often characterized by a pronounced grassy off-odor defect. However, the key odor-active compounds and their potential underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, quantitative descriptive sensory analysis, GC–MS, GC–O, molecular docking, and aroma addition tests were used to systematically elucidate the chemical basis and potential perceptual mechanisms of the key grassy off-odor in WRT processed from dew-soaked leaves. The results showed that 16 volatile compounds were significantly associated with dew, among which (E,E)-2,4-heptadienal, octanal, hexanal, and heptanal were identified as the major odor-active compounds responsible for the grassy off-odor. The accumulation of these aldehydes may be associated with lipid peroxidation under the influence of dew. Aroma addition and omission tests confirmed that (E,E)-2,4-heptadienal contributed significantly to grassy off-odor formation and that additive effects existed among the four compounds. Molecular docking predicted that the four key odor-active compounds interacted with human olfactory receptors, including OR1A1 and OR10J5, through hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions, thereby affecting grassy off-odor perception, with predicted binding energies below −4.7 kcal/mol. This study elucidated the effects of dew on the formation of the characteristic aroma of WRT and provides a scientific basis for tea quality regulation and processing improvement. Full article

The incorporation of recycled concrete fines (F), limestone (L), and ground granulated blast-furnace slag (S) as Portland cement constituents in accordance with EN 197-6 requires the determination of naturally occurring radionuclides to ensure radiological safety from a radiation protection standpoint. This study carried out a radiological assessment of eight cement types with varying proportions of L, F, and S additions, including anhydrous cements and mortars cured for 2 and 28 days. The activity concentrations of ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th, and ⁴⁰K were determined by gamma-ray spectrometry using HPGe detectors and radiochemical separation. In addition, the ²²²Rn emanation fractions were measured by the accumulation method using an AlphaGuard detector. Finally, annual effective doses were calculated using the RESRAD-BUILD software for a standard dwelling of 35 m² occupied by an adult and an infant. Among the individual materials, S exhibited the highest activity in the uranium decay series (113 ± 24 Bq kg⁻¹ of ²³⁸U), while L and F showed comparably lower values. Cements containing S additions (CEM II/C-M, CEM VI (S-L), and CEM VI (S-F)) were higher than the reference average value for building materials of 50 Bq kg⁻¹, although all mortars remained below this value. Principal component analysis revealed significant correlations between S content, SiO₂, Al₂O₃, and ²³²Th. The maximum annual effective dose reached 0.32 mSv for infants (CEM VI (S-L)), with the dose due to ²²²Rn inhalation being predominant. All cements studied are radiologically safe, confirming their suitability for use within the objectives of the circular economy. Full article