D-Pantolactone serves as a pivotal chiral intermediate in the synthesis of D-pantothenic acid (vitamin B₅) and its derivative compounds. Given the escalating global demand for D-pantolactone, the development of efficient and environmentally benign production routes has emerged as a critical research focus. Enzymatic synthesis of D-pantolactone stands out as a highly promising approach, distinguished by its green and eco-friendly attributes, and has become the predominant method in industrial production. This comprehensive review delves into the recent advancements in the enzymatic synthesis of D-pantolactone. It meticulously examines the enzymatic properties, expression, and directed evolution of D-pantolactone hydrolase under different experimental conditions. Additionally, it explores the latest progress in the asymmetric reduction of keto-pantolactone. By comparing the merits of various synthesis methods, this review offers valuable insights and guidance for the future design of production strategies for D-pantolactone and its derivatives.

Plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) have received intensive interests due to its important roles in improving plant growth, disease resistance and stress tolerance, crop yield and quality. The distinct benefits of PGPB-based technologies include diverse spectrum of action, future effectiveness, and environmental safety, which are compared to traditional fertilization because in most cases chemical fertilizers cause extensive environmental harm. The colonization of host plants by the PGPB must be effective in order to provide stable growth-promoting effects. Hence, the enhancements in colonization and PGPB functional expression have become a major research topic. In this review, an overview of the principle functions of PGPB, their mode of colonization (pathways and detectability mechanisms), and factors that affect colonization including bacterial characteristics, root exudate composition, microbial interactions, and abiotic environmental factors are discussed. Among the strategies to improve the efficiency of PGPB colonization, this review covers genetic engineering of the bacterial strains, nature exogenous use of plant root exudates, microbial immobilisation methods, and artificial microbial consortia. It creates a theoretical base and work roadmap to comprehend the overall principles of PGPB colonization and maximize their performance and provides real-life resolutions to ensure sustainable agriculture.

With the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) technology, the food industry is accelerating its transformation toward intelligence in areas such as quality control and supply chain optimization; however, traditional "Food Microbiology" teaching remains primarily centered on theoretical lectures and basic experiments such as microbial cultivation, counting, and Gram staining. This significant disconnect between teaching content and cutting-edge industry demands constrains the cultivation of interdisciplinary talents. "Food Microbiology" grounded in microbiology, integrates advanced domains from multiple disciplines, including food science, bioinformatics, food chemistry, and fermentation engineering. This article systematically explores reform for AI-empowered undergraduate "Food Microbiology" course instruction. It advocates advancing educational reforms by restructuring course content, innovating teaching models, and enhancing practical training. By incorporating AI foundational theory and frontier case studies, an integrated online-offline teaching resource repository is constructed. Hybrid virtual-physical experimental projects are designed to strengthen students′ ability to utilize AI tools in solving practical problems like fermentation optimization and microbial identification. Industry-academia-research platforms are leveraged to establish an innovation capability cultivation mechanism. Based on a case study at Zhejiang A&F University, this article details the reform plan for AI integration into the food microbiology curriculum, demonstrating concrete applications of AI technology in enhancing instructional content such as food fermentation, metabolic prediction, and food safety early-warning systems. The integration of AI with "Food Microbiology" education will propel a transition from "experience-driven" to "data-driven" pedagogy, thereby providing sustainable talent support for the intelligent advancement of the food industry.

Bacteriophages (phages) are the most abundant biological entities on Earth. Within the human microbiome, they vastly outnumber eukaryotic viruses and commensal bacteria, serving as essential regulators of microecological balance. Traditionally viewed strictly as bacterial predators, phages are now known to form direct, bidirectional interaction networks with mammalian cells. Beyond indirectly affecting human health by altering bacterial communities, phages actively cross biological barriers to engage in direct crosstalk with immune cells and trigger specific immunological effects. This phage-mediated immunity encompasses receptor recognition, endocytic trafficking, and the modulation of intracellular signaling pathways. This review summarizes current progress in phage immunity by examining direct phage-mammalian cell interactions. We specifically focus on how phage structural characteristics dictate their internalization, intracellular localization, and subsequent immune regulation. Furthermore, we discuss the practical implications of phage immunity across various conditions, including inflammatory bowel disease, chronic infections, systemic disorders, and emerging applications in cancer immunotherapy. Ultimately, this review aims to clarify the molecular and material basis of phage immunity, providing a theoretical foundation for understanding the cross-kingdom regulation effects of phages and the development of phage-based immunotherapies.

To enhance the transcriptional strength of the inducible promoter P_malA and achieve efficient extracellular expression of target proteins, in this study, error-prone PCR was employed to construct a promoter mutant library based on a previously established maltose-inducible expression system (MATE expression system). Using green fluorescent protein (GFP) as a reporter protein, a high-expression mutant designated as M3, harboring a single-base substitution in the-35 region, was identified. The mutant promoter M3 was then utilized as a regulatory element to construct a recombinant expression vector for glucose-6-phosphate isomerase (phospho-glucose isomerase, Pgi), which was fused at its N-terminus to the Sec-type signal peptide AmyS to facilitate secretion. To further optimize inducible expression, various carbon sources were evaluated, and the optimal condition was applied in a 3-L bioreactor for high-density fermentation, yielding a maximum Pgi titer of 7.26 g/L. Functional assays confirmed that the catalytic activity of Pgi expressed in this system was comparable to that of the control produced in Escherichia coli, indicating that enhanced expression did not compromise protein functionality. This study establishes an optimized and efficient MATEbased expression system, offering a feasible strategy for high-level expression of key enzymes in metabolic engineering and supporting the application of Bacillus subtilis in the development of industrial enzyme preparations.

Inner Mongolia Alxa white cashmere goat milk and its dairy products with rich nutritional value and outstanding health care functions, serve as a vital source of dairy for local herders, but few studies related to the diversity of fungi that play a probiotic role have been reported. Therefore, in this study, Illumina-Miseq sequencing technology was used to determine the fungal ITS gene sequences in white cashmere goat milk, bishylag and airiga, and the comparison of fungal community structure and diversity were conducted. The results showed that the Shannon index of fungi in white cashmere goat milk and bishylag was significantly higher than that in airiga (P<0.05), while the Simpson index was significantly lower (P<0.05). However, there was no significant difference (P>0.05) between the Shannon and Simpson indices of the fungi in white cashmere goat milk and bishylag. Additionally, no significant differences were found in the Ace and Chao indices among white cashmere goat milk, bishylag and airiga (P>0.05). Beta diversity analysis revealed a high similarity in fungal community composition between white cashmere goat milk and bishylag, whereas the fungal community structure of airiga was distinct from that of white cashmere goat milk and bishylag. The dominant fungal phyla in white cashmere goat milk, bishylag and airiga were Ascomycota and Basidiomycota. At the genus level, the dominant fungi were Apiotrichum, Cutaneotrichosporon, Cladosporium and Alternaria in white cashmere goat milk; Apiotrichum, Cutaneotrichosporon and Filobasidium in bishylag; and Issatchenkia, Rhodotorula, Kazachstania and Pichia in airiga. The relative abundance of fungal metabolism-relatde enzymes in white cashmere goat milk and its dairy products was higher for glucan 1, 4-alpha-glucosidase, adenosine triphosphatase, DNA-directed RNA polymerase, exo-alpha-sialidase, and peptidylprolyl isomerase. FUNGuild functional prediction indicated that saprotrophic fungi were the main nutritional mode in white cashmere goat milk and its dairy products. These findings not only establish a comprehensive understanding of fungal diversity in white cashmere goat milk and its dairy products in Alxa, Inner Mongolia, but also provide a basis for the study and safety evaluation of fungi in white cashmere goat milk and its dairy products.

Floridoside, a glycosyl alcohol exhibiting diverse biological activities including antioxidant effects, immune regulation, and protein stabilization, demonstrates significant potential for applications in the food and cosmetic industries. In our previous study, we successfully achieved the heterologous expression of the recombinant α-galactosidase rAgaAJB07 from Mesorhizobium, which catalyzes floridoside biosynthesis via trans-glycosylation was obtained. In order to improve floridoside production, the reaction conditions were systematically optimized for the recombinant enzyme using glycerol as the acceptor substrate and p-nitrophenyl α-D-galactopyranoside (pNPG) as the donor substrate. The optimal parameters were determined as follows: 500 mmol/L glycerol, 40 mmol/L pNPG, 1.5 U/mL enzyme concentration, 2 h reaction duration, pH 8.5, and 30 ℃. Under these conditions, recombinant rAgaAJB07 achieved a maximum floridoside yield with a 66.2% enhancement compared to baseline parameters, while simultaneously reducing the reaction time by 22 hours. This optimization strategy provides a robust methodological framework for scalable enzymatic synthesis of floridoside.

The cytoskeleton could regulate the fusion and division of mitochondria, meanwhile, mitochondria also could regulate the normal dynamics of the cytoskeleton. The mpc1 gene encodes mitochondrial pyruvate carrier 1 which is located in the mitochondrial membrane. The protein of MPC1 is an essential component of the mitochondrial pyruvate carrier complexes. Currently, the effect of mpc1 gene deletion on the dynamics of spindle, histone, and actin has not been reported. In this study, fluorescent labels of microtubules, histone, and actin were constructed in Schizosaccharomyces pombe cells. The stability of cell dynamics at different stages was observed using live-cell imaging to investigate the effects of mpc1 gene deletion on actin. Compared with the wild-type strain, the results showed that the mpc1Δ strain reduced the spindle elongation time by 6.70 min (P<0.01), accelerated the elongation rate by 0.17μm/min (P<0.01), reduced the chromosome segregation time by 3.40 min (P<0.01), and prolonged the total time for actin ring aggregation and contraction by 3.80 min (P<0.01) at room temperature. The experimental results mentioned above indicated that although the deletion of mpc1 gene promoted spindle elongation and chromosome segregation, it slowed down the formation and contraction of actin rings, ultimately leading to slow cell growth. This study provided a basis for further investigation of mpc1 function.

G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) in pathogenic fungi have become one of the critical targets for controlling pathogenic disease. In this study, 36 candidate GPCRs were identified from Penicillium expansum by bioinformatics approaches including three transmembrane prediction tools (DeepTMHMM, Phobius, and TOPCONS) and four GPCR prediction platforms (GPCRHMM, GPCRPipe, GPCR-Pen, and GPCRPred). The topological structure analysis, subcellular localization, and functional annotation demonstrated the reliability of the prediction strategy. Phylogenetic classification revealed that these candidate GPCRs were distributed across six distinct fungal GPCR classes, which are characterized by conserved domains such as fungal rhodopsin-like receptor families, pheromone mating factor STE2, pheromone A receptor STE3, and RTA1-like proteins. Physicochemical property analysis demonstrated that the candidate GPCRs predominantly exhibit neutral or alkaline proteins, with 44.44% classified as unstable proteins and 97.22% showing hydrophobic properties. These findings provide a critical theoretical foundation for elucidating the biological functions, signaling mechanisms, and pathogenic roles of GPCRs in P.expansum, and also highlighting potential targets for the development of novel antifungal molecules.

This study conducted a comparative investigation on wild (MT) and cultivated (ZT) Schisandra chinensis in northern China. Utilizing high-throughput sequencing technology to analyze the rhizosphere soil microbial community structure and potential functional microbiota. This was integrated with the quantification of the primary medicinal component, lignans, and the determination of soil physicochemical properties, including total phosphorus (TP), total potassium (TK), total nitrogen (TN), total organic carbon (TOC), and soil organic matter (Som). The research aimed to elucidate the interrelationships among lignan content, rhizosphere microorganisms, and soil properties, thereby providing theoretical insights into the metabolic mechanisms of lignans in S.chinensis and enhancing the medicinal value of cultivated varieties. The results demonstrated that wild samples exhibited significantly higher lignan content than cultivated samples, with schizandrin, schisantherin A, and γ-schizandrin concentrations nearly double in wild samples. The rhizosphere soil of wild samples showed substantially higher nutrient levels, with TK, TP, TN, and Som contents approximately 1.5, 2.6, 7, and 9 times greater than those in cultivated samples, respectively. The abundance of nitrogen significantly increased the relative abundance of RB41 and Gaiella, while elevated soil organic matter promoted the enrichment of Mycobacterium. These three microbial groups showed positive correlations with lignan content, potentially explaining the superior lignan accumulation in wild samples. Furthermore, Fusarium, Neonectria, Trichocladium, and Mortierella demonstrated positive correlations with lignan content. Soil moisture content showed a significant positive correlation with lignan accumulation, as did TP, TK, TN, and Som. Notably, soil pH emergedas a crucial factor influencing the rhizosphere microbial community, exhibiting a significant negative correlation with lignan content.