91 research outputs found
Find a Reasonable Ending for Stories: Does Logic Relation Help the Story Cloze Test?
Natural language understanding is a challenging problem that covers a wide
range of tasks. While previous methods generally train each task separately, we
consider combining the cross-task features to enhance the task performance. In
this paper, we incorporate the logic information with the help of the Natural
Language Inference (NLI) task to the Story Cloze Test (SCT). Previous work on
SCT considered various semantic information, such as sentiment and topic, but
lack the logic information between sentences which is an essential element of
stories. Thus we propose to extract the logic information during the course of
the story to improve the understanding of the whole story. The logic
information is modeled with the help of the NLI task. Experimental results
prove the strength of the logic information.Comment: Student Abstract in AAAI-201
Using machine translation to support ESL pre-service teachersā collaborative feedback for writing
The application of machine translation (MT) in ESL (English as a Second Language) writing has thrived over the past decade. However, how MT impacts pre-service teachersā (PSTs) provision of collaborative feedback for writing remains an under-explored domain. Such knowledge will facilitate pre-service teacher education to be more scientific and practical. In this study, we investigated the effects of MT in assisting PSTsā provision of feedback, drawing on six PSTsā in-class discussions and the results of their revision. Additionally, we conducted interviews to learn their perception of MT. The findings revealed that MT assisted them in providing feedback on studentsā L2 writing, especially in improving content, communicative achievement, and language issues. PSTs in the study held positive attitudes towards using MT in their collaborative revision for writing. The findings also suggest that applying MT to ESL pre-service teacher education is beneficial, especially in assisting their writing revision. It is also advisable to utilise MT with other tools. The implications of the findings are discussed
The role of landscape evolution in the genetic diversification of a stream fish Sarcocheilichthys parvus from Southern China
Sarcocheilichthys parvus (Cypriniformes: Gobionidae) is a stream fish which is endemic to sub-tropical coastal drainages in southern China, thus offering a valuable model for understanding how genetic divergence arises in stream-adapting freshwater fishes in this region. Using the mitochondrial Cyt b gene, integrative analyses of phylogeny, population demography, and ancestral area and paleo-drainage reconstructions are carried out to explicitly explore the role of landscape evolution in genetic diversification of S. parvus. The time-calibrated phylogeny of S. parvus indicates the splitting of two major lineages (A and B) at ā¼3.66Ā Ma. Lineage A inhabits the Poyang Lake sub-drainage of the middle Yangtze River, Han River and Pearl River, and can be split into two sub-lineages (A-I and A-II), where sub-lineage A-II can be further sub-divided into three infra-sub-lineages (A-IIa, A-IIb and A-IIc). Except for the infra-sub-lineage A-IIc, which is restricted to the Han River and Pearl River, the other sub-lineages and infra-sub-lineages live exclusively in the Poyang Lake sub-drainage. Lineage B lives in the lower Yangtze River, Qiantang River, Jiaojiang River and Ou River, displaying close genetic relationships among the drainages. Rapid population expansion has occurred since the Late Pleistocene. Our findings indicate that the splitting of lineages A and B could be attributed to geographic isolation due to the ZheāMin Uplift, acting as a biogeographic barrier before the late Early Pleistocene. Furthermore, the strong genetic divergence within Lineage A could be explained by the isolation role of the Nanling Mountains and Poyang Lake acting as an ecological barrier; while the lack of phylogenetic structure within Lineage B may have been the result of paleo-drainage connections or episodic freshwater connections during the eustatic low stand of sea level in the late MiddleāLate Pleistocene
Advance in mechanism of plant leaf colour mutation
As a common mutation trait in plants, leaf colour mutation is related to the degree of chlorophyll and anthocyanin changes and the destruction of chloroplast structure. This study summarizes the latest research progress in leaf colour mutation mechanism, including the metabolic basis of plant leaf colour mutation, leaf colour mutation caused by gene mutation in the chlorophyll metabolism pathway, leaf colour mutation caused by blocked chloroplast development, leaf colour mutation controlled by key transcription factors and non-coding RNAs, leaf colour mutation caused by environmental factors, and leaf colour mutation due to the involvement of the mevalonate pathway. These results will lay a theoretical foundation for leaf colour development, leaf colour improvement, and molecular breeding for leaf colour among tree species
Exploring Adapter-based Transfer Learning for Recommender Systems: Empirical Studies and Practical Insights
Adapters, a plug-in neural network module with some tunable parameters, have
emerged as a parameter-efficient transfer learning technique for adapting
pre-trained models to downstream tasks, especially for natural language
processing (NLP) and computer vision (CV) fields. Meanwhile, learning
recommendation models directly from raw item modality features -- e.g., texts
of NLP and images of CV -- can enable effective and transferable recommender
systems (called TransRec). In view of this, a natural question arises: can
adapter-based learning techniques achieve parameter-efficient TransRec with
good performance?
To this end, we perform empirical studies to address several key
sub-questions. First, we ask whether the adapter-based TransRec performs
comparably to TransRec based on standard full-parameter fine-tuning? does it
hold for recommendation with different item modalities, e.g., textual RS and
visual RS. If yes, we benchmark these existing adapters, which have been shown
to be effective in NLP and CV tasks, in the item recommendation settings.
Third, we carefully study several key factors for the adapter-based TransRec in
terms of where and how to insert these adapters? Finally, we look at the
effects of adapter-based TransRec by either scaling up its source training data
or scaling down its target training data. Our paper provides key insights and
practical guidance on unified & transferable recommendation -- a less studied
recommendation scenario. We promise to release all code & datasets for future
research
Unraveling the Regulatory Mechanism of Color Diversity in Camellia japonica Petals by Integrative Transcriptome and Metabolome Analysis
Camellia japonica petals are colorful, rich in anthocyanins, and possess important ornamental, edible, and medicinal value. However, the regulatory mechanism of anthocyanin accumulation in C. japonica is still unclear. In this study, an integrative analysis of the metabolome and transcriptome was conducted in five C. japonica cultivars with different petal colors. Overall, a total of 187 flavonoids were identified (including 25 anthocyanins), and 11 anthocyanins were markedly differentially accumulated among these petals, contributing to the different petal colors in C. japonica. Moreover, cyanidin-3-O-(6ā³-O-malonyl) glucoside was confirmed as the main contributor to the red petal phenotype, while cyanidin-3-O-rutinoside, peonidin-3-O-glucoside, cyanidin-3-O-glucoside, and pelargonidin-3-O-glucoside were responsible for the deep coloration of the C. japonica petals. Furthermore, a total of 12,531 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and overlapping DEGs (634 DEGs) were identified by RNA sequencing, and the correlation between the expression level of the DEGs and the anthocyanin content was explored. The candidate genes regulating anthocyanin accumulation in the C. japonica petals were identified and included 37 structural genes (especially CjANS and Cj4CL), 18 keys differentially expressed transcription factors (such as GATA, MYB, bHLH, WRKY, and NAC), and 16 other regulators (mainly including transporter proteins, zinc-finger proteins, and others). Our results provide new insights for elucidating the function of anthocyanins in C. japonica petal color expression
G protein-coupled receptor GPR68 inhibits lymphocyte infiltration and contributes to gender-dependent melanoma growth
IntroductionMelanoma is a common and aggressive type of skin cancer with rising incidence rate globally. Gender is one of the determining factors, and overall males have a higher risk of developing melanoma as well as worse prognosis. Emerging evidence show that GPR68, a G protein-coupled receptor that is sensitive to acid and mechanical stimulations for cellular microenvironment, plays an important role in tumor biology. However, whether GPR68 is involved in gender-dependent regulation of tumor growth is unclear.MethodsWe established a syngeneic melanoma model in Gpr68-deficient mice and investigated tumor growth in males and females. The GPR68 activation-induced cellular responses of melanocytes, including intracellular calcium dynamics, proliferation and migration were measured. The landscape of tumor-infiltrating immune cells were analyzed by flow cytometry and the expression various cytokines were checked by qRT-PCR.ResultsGPR68 is required for melanoma growth in males but dispensable in females. GPR68 is expressed and functional in B16-F10 melanocytes, but the activity of the receptor does not directly contribute to proliferation and migration of the cells. GPR68 inhibits infiltration of CD45+ lymphocytes, CD8+ T cells and NK cells in melanoma in male mice, but has no apparent effect in females. Furthermore, GPR68 functionally inhibits the expression of IFNĪ³ in the tumor infiltrating CD8+ T cells and NK cells as well as the inflammatory cytokine expression in the spleen in male mice but not in females. Our results show the gender-dependent modulatory effect of GPR68 on tumor-infiltrating immune cells and their tumor-killing capacity.DiscussionGPR68 is sensor for acid and mechanical stimulations, which are two important factors in the microenvironment associated with tumor growth and metastasis. Our results suggest a prominent role of the receptor molecules in tumor biology in a gender-dependent manner. Since GPCRs are more feasible to develop small molecule drugs compared to transcription factors, our study demonstrates the potential of GPR68 as a novel druggable therapeutic target for melanoma in male patients
3,3ā²Diindolylmethane Suppresses Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Phenotypic Modulation and Inhibits Neointima Formation after Carotid Injury
3,3'Diindolylmethane (DIM), a natural phytochemical, has shown inhibitory effects on the growth and migration of a variety of cancer cells; however, whether DIM has similar effects on vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of DIM on the proliferation and migration of cultured VSMCs and neointima formation in a carotid injury model, as well as the related cell signaling mechanisms.DIM dose-dependently inhibited the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-BB-induced proliferation of VSMCs without cell cytotoxicity. This inhibition was caused by a G0/G1 phase cell cycle arrest demonstrated by fluorescence-activated cell-sorting analysis. We also showed that DIM-induced growth inhibition was associated with the inhibition of the expression of cyclin D1 and cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4/6 as well as an increase in p27(Kip1) levels in PDGF-stimulated VSMCs. Moreover, DIM was also found to modulate migration of VSMCs and smooth muscle-specific contractile marker expression. Mechanistically, DIM negatively modulated PDGF-BB-induced phosphorylation of PDGF-recptorĪ² (PDGF-RĪ²) and the activities of downstream signaling molecules including Akt/glycogen synthase kinase(GSK)3Ī², extracellular signal-regulated kinase1/2 (ERK1/2), and signal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (STAT3). Our in vivo studies using a mouse carotid arterial injury model revealed that treatment with 150 mg/kg DIM resulted in significant reduction of the neointima/media ratio and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA)-positive cells, without affecting apoptosis of vascular cells and reendothelialization. Infiltration of inflammatory cells was also inhibited by DIM administration.These results demonstrate that DIM can suppress the phenotypic modulation of VSMCs and neointima hyperplasia after vascular injury. These beneficial effects on VSMCs were at least partly mediated by the inhibition of PDGF-RĪ² and the activities of downstream signaling pathways. The results suggest that DIM has the potential to be a candidate for the prevention of restenosis
- ā¦