Frosting Weights for Better Continual Training

Training a neural network model can be a lifelong learning process and is a computationally intensive one. A severe adverse effect that may occur in deep neural network models is that they can suffer from catastrophic forgetting during retraining on new data. To avoid such disruptions in the continuous learning, one appealing property is the additive nature of ensemble models. In this paper, we propose two generic ensemble approaches, gradient boosting and meta-learning, to solve the catastrophic forgetting problem in tuning pre-trained neural network models

Antioxidant and anti-dyslipidemic effects of polysaccharidic extract from sea cucumber processing liquor

Sea cucumber is a seafood of high nutritional value. During its processing, sea cucumber processing liquor is routinely produced, which is usually discarded as waste. The chemical composition of this processing liquor is similar to sea cucumbers themselves. Hence, valuable ingredients, such as functional polysaccharides, could be obtained from them. Results Biologically active polysaccharides from sea cucumber processing liquor were extracted through protease hydrolysis and electroosmosis. The analysis revealed that the polysaccharide extract from sea cucumber processing liquor (PESCPL) is predominantly composed of mannose, in addition to some glucose and fucose. The antioxidant activity of PESCPL was analyzed using in vitro. It was demonstrated that PESCPL could effectively scavenge 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radicals, hydroxyl radicals, and superoxide anion radicals. The effect of PESCPL was investigated in vivo by using mice model fed with high-fat diets with/without PESCPL supplement. It was shown that PESCPL could increase the catalase and superoxide dismutase activity in the serum and decrease serum malonaldehyde content. Furthermore, mice fed with PESCPL diet showed a considerable decrease in the serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels and an increase in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Conclusions Our research highlights that PESCPL is a natural antioxidant and could be utilized as a therapeutic supplement for dyslipidemia

Antioxidant and anti-dyslipidemic effects of polysaccharidic extract from sea cucumber processing liquor

Background: Sea cucumber is a seafood of high nutritional value. During its processing, sea cucumber processing liquor is routinely produced, which is usually discarded as waste. The chemical composition of this processing liquor is similar to sea cucumbers themselves. Hence, valuable ingredients, such as functional polysaccharides, could be obtained from them. Results: Biologically active polysaccharides from sea cucumber processing liquor were extracted through protease hydrolysis and electroosmosis. The analysis revealed that the polysaccharide extract from sea cucumber processing liquor (PESCPL) is predominantly composed of mannose, in addition to some glucose and fucose. The antioxidant activity of PESCPL was analyzed using in vitro. It was demonstrated that PESCPL could effectively scavenge 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radicals, hydroxyl radicals, and superoxide anion radicals. The effect of PESCPL was investigated in vivo by using mice model fed with high-fat diets with/without PESCPL supplement. It was shown that PESCPL could increase the catalase and superoxide dismutase activity in the serum and decrease serum malonaldehyde content. Furthermore, mice fed with PESCPL diet showed a considerable decrease in the serum cholesterol and triglyceride levels and an increase in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Conclusions: Our research highlights that PESCPL is a natural antioxidant and could be utilized as a therapeutic supplement for dyslipidemia

Outbred genome sequencing and CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing in butterflies

Butterflies are exceptionally diverse but their potential as an experimental system has been limited by the difficulty of deciphering heterozygous genomes and a lack of genetic manipulation technology. Here we use a hybrid assembly approach to construct high-quality reference genomes for Papilio xuthus (contig and scaffold N50: 492 kb, 3.4 Mb) and Papilio machaon (contig and scaffold N50: 81 kb, 1.15 Mb), highly heterozygous species that differ in host plant affiliations, and adult and larval colour patterns. Integrating comparative genomics and analyses of gene expression yields multiple insights into butterfly evolution, including potential roles of specific genes in recent diversification. To functionally test gene function, we develop an efficient (up to 92.5%) CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing method that yields obvious phenotypes with three genes, Abdominal-B, ebony and frizzled. Our results provide valuable genomic and technological resources for butterflies and unlock their potential as a genetic model system

The oyster genome reveals stress adaptation and complexity of shell formation

The Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas belongs to one of the most species-rich but genomically poorly explored phyla, the Mollusca. Here we report the sequencing and assembly of the oyster genome using short reads and a fosmid-pooling strategy, along with transcriptomes of development and stress response and the proteome of the shell. The oyster genome is highly polymorphic and rich in repetitive sequences, with some transposable elements still actively shaping variation. Transcriptome studies reveal an extensive set of genes responding to environmental stress. The expansion of genes coding for heat shock protein 70 and inhibitors of apoptosis is probably central to the oyster's adaptation to sessile life in the highly stressful intertidal zone. Our analyses also show that shell formation in molluscs is more complex than currently understood and involves extensive participation of cells and their exosomes. The oyster genome sequence fills a void in our understanding of the Lophotrochozoa. © 2012 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved

HAT- and HDAC-Targeted Protein Acetylation in the Occurrence and Treatment of Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a common and severe chronic neurological disorder. Recently, post-translational modification (PTM) mechanisms, especially protein acetylation modifications, have been widely studied in various epilepsy models or patients. Acetylation is regulated by two classes of enzymes, histone acetyltransferases (HATs) and histone deacetylases (HDACs). HATs catalyze the transfer of the acetyl group to a lysine residue, while HDACs catalyze acetyl group removal. The expression of many genes related to epilepsy is regulated by histone acetylation and deacetylation. Moreover, the acetylation modification of some non-histone substrates is also associated with epilepsy. Various molecules have been developed as HDAC inhibitors (HDACi), which have become potential antiepileptic drugs for epilepsy treatment. In this review, we summarize the changes in acetylation modification in epileptogenesis and the applications of HDACi in the treatment of epilepsy as well as the mechanisms involved. As most of the published research has focused on the differential expression of proteins that are known to be acetylated and the knowledge of whole acetylome changes in epilepsy is still minimal, a further understanding of acetylation regulation will help us explore the pathological mechanism of epilepsy and provide novel ideas for treating epilepsy

Nonreversible Enhanced Crystallization of Olefin Block Copolymer Induced by Preshearing

In this work, the influence of preshearing on crystallization of olefin block copolymer (OBC) was systematically investigated. It was found that upon an interval of melt preshear the crystallization rate of OBC was prominently elevated which was evidenced by both nonisothermal and isothermal crystallization results. The lamellar thickness of OBC increased and the size of spherulites decreased after shear. Interestingly, annealing and multiple heating and cooling experiments demonstrated that the enhancement effect on crystallization was nonreversible. The morphology observations suggested that preshearing caused an alteration in mesophase structure of OBC. On the basis of our results, we speculated that the increase in the amount of hard blocks that dissolved in the soft-block-rich matrix induced by shear promoted the unique “pass-through” crystallization process of OBC, which should be responsible for the largely enhanced crystallization of sheared OBC

Oxidative stress-induced textural and biochemical changes of scallop Patinopecten yessoensis adductor muscle under heat treatment

In this study, the effects of heat treatment (45°C and 65°C, respectively) on the quality of Patinopecten yessoensis adductor muscle (PYAM) were investigated. Water mobility in PYAM samples was analyzed using low-field nuclear magnetic resonance. The texture of treated PYAM was analyzed using texture profile analysis. Protein degradation was characterized using SDS-PAGE. Activities of cathepsin L (CL), superoxide dismutase (T-SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and catalase (CAT) were determined using chemical analysis methods. The production of free radicals was measured using electron spin resonance. It was revealed that water mobility in PYAM samples increased with the extension of heated time. Cohesiveness of PYAM was higher in samples heated at 65°C than at 45°C, while hardness showed an opposite trend, higher in the samples heated at 45°C than at 65°C. The degradation of structural proteins was more severe in the samples heated at 65°C than at 45°C, with the greater CL activity being observed. It was also found that heating caused elevation in T-SOD, GSH-Px, and CAT enzyme activities. Considering the chemical changes in the PYAM samples, contents of carbonyl and malonaldehyde increased, but sulfhydryl content decreased with heating. Level of free radicals increased significantly from 6 h on after heat treatment, with higher level at 65°C than at 45°C. These results suggested that oxidative stress is directly involved in quality changes during heat treatment of PYAM