Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a chronic intestinal disorder accompanied by low-grade inflammation, visceral hypersensitivity, and gut microbiota dysbiosis. Several studies have indicated that Lactobacillus supplementation can help to alleviate IBS symptoms and that these effects are strain-specific. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the key physiological characteristics and functional genes contributing to the IBS-alleviating effects of Lactobacillus. An IBS model was established by subjecting C57BL/6 mice to Citrobacter rodentium ingestion and water avoidance stress. Lactobacillus strains with different physiological characteristics were administered to mice intragastrically for 4 weeks (5 × 109 CFU/0.2 mL per mouse per day). Indicators of colonic inflammation, visceral hypersensitivity, and gut microbiota were also evaluated. Finally, differences in functional genes between Lactobacillus strains were analyzed by a comparative genomic analysis, and the relationships between the physiological characteristics, functional genes, and IBS-alleviating effects of the strains were quantified using correlation analysis. Among the eight tested Lactobacillus strains, only Lactobacillus plantarum CCFM8610 significantly inhibited the expression of IL-1β, IL-6, PAR-2, and mast cell tryptase. L. plantarum CCFM8610 also significantly increased the intestinal barrier function, inhibited visceral hypersensitivity symptoms, and modulated the gut microbiota diversity and composition. The correlation analysis of factors associated with the IBS-alleviating effects of Lactobacillus revealed the ability to synthesize conjugated linoleic acid as the most strongly associated physiological characteristic and COG1028-related genes as the most strongly associated functional genes. In conclusion, these findings can facilitate the rapid screening of Lactobacillus strains with IBS-alleviating effects and lay a foundation for studies of the related mechanisms.Chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) is a key manufacturing process for applying gallium nitride (GaN), especially the Ga-face GaN, to semiconductor devices such as laser diodes. However, the CMP efficiency for GaN is very low due to its high hardness and chemical stability. Experimentally, OH radicals appear able to improve the CMP efficiency of GaN polished by a SiO2 abrasive grain, whereas the mechanisms of the OH-radical-assisted CMP process remain unclear because experimental elucidation of the complex chemical reactions occurring among GaN substrate, abrasive grain, and OH radicals is difficult. In this work, we used our previously developed tight-binding quantum chemical molecular dynamics simulator to study the OH-radical-assisted CMP process of the widely employed Ga-face GaN substrate polished by an amorphous SiO2 abrasive grain in an effort to understand how OH radicals assist the CMP process and then aid the development of next-generation CMP techniques. Our simulations revealed that the OH-radical-assisted CMP process of GaN occurs via the following three basic reaction steps (i) first, all hydrogen terminations on the GaN surface are replaced by OH terminations through continuous reactions with OH radicals; (ii) after the substrate is fully terminated by OH, the hydrogen atoms of these OH terminations are removed by reacting with newly added OH radicals, which forms H2O molecules and leaves energetic oxygen atoms with dangling bonds on the surface; and (iii) finally, these energetic oxygen atoms intrude inside the substrate with concomitant dissociation of Ga-N bonds and the generation of N2 and gallium hydroxide molecules, which accumulatively lead to the removal of N and Ga atoms from the substrate.The displacement of a fluid by another less viscous one in a quasi-two dimensional geometry typically leads to complex fingering patterns. In an isotropic system, dense-branching growth arises, which is characterized by repeated tip-splitting of evolving fingers. When anisotropy is present in the interfacial dynamics, the growth morphology changes to dendritic growth characterized by regular structures. We introduce anisotropy by engraving a six-fold symmetric lattice of channels on a Hele-Shaw cell. We show that the morphology transition in miscible fluids depends not only on the previously reported degree of anisotropy set by the lattice topography, but also on the viscosity ratio between the two fluids, ηin/ηout. Remarkably, ηin/ηout and the degree of anisotropy also govern the global features of the dendritic patterns, inducing a systematic change from six-fold towards twelve-fold symmetric dendrites. Varying either control parameter provides a new method to tune the symmetry of complex patterns, which may also have relevance for analogous phenomena of gradient-driven interfacial dynamics, such as directional solidification or electrodeposition.Molecular dynamics (MD) together with the first principles method (DFT) reveal that Na+ is capable of migrating three dimensionally in a Na2Mn2Si2O7 cathode material. Migration along the a-axis and c-axis have the same mechanism, that is, alternating between the Na1 and Na2 route with a similar local environment and distance. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/pci-32765.html Long-distance hopping between two Na2 atoms or between Na1 and Na2 atoms is crucial for continuous migration along the b-axis. Also, the anti-site phenomenon is identified, and it facilitates the migration of the Na ions. Four intermediate phases are determined according to the formation energy curve and, as a result, the voltage profile is predicted accurately. The state of charge (SOC) dependency of the Na+ energy shows that the mobility of Na+ is highly inhibited in the fully discharged state. Upon the deintercalation of sodium ions, Na+ is activated immediately. A maximal DNa+ value of 3.6 × 10-9 cm2 s-1 and a low energy barrier of ca. 0.26 eV at the deintercalation level of x = 0.25 are observed. Because of the scarcity of Na+, DNa+ experiences a sharp decrease at the end of deintercalation. Despite the low level of Na+ mobility in the range of 0.25 less then x less then 1, Na2Mn2Si2O7 is still a potential cathode material for use in sodium ion batteries (SIBs).