Exploiting Behavioral Consistence for Universal User Representation

User modeling is critical for developing personalized services in industry. A common way for user modeling is to learn user representations that can be distinguished by their interests or preferences. In this work, we focus on developing universal user representation model. The obtained universal representations are expected to contain rich information, and be applicable to various downstream applications without further modifications (e.g., user preference prediction and user profiling). Accordingly, we can be free from the heavy work of training task-specific models for every downstream task as in previous works. In specific, we propose Self-supervised User Modeling Network (SUMN) to encode behavior data into the universal representation. It includes two key components. The first one is a new learning objective, which guides the model to fully identify and preserve valuable user information under a self-supervised learning framework. The other one is a multi-hop aggregation layer, which benefits the model capacity in aggregating diverse behaviors. Extensive experiments on benchmark datasets show that our approach can outperform state-of-the-art unsupervised representation methods, and even compete with supervised ones.Comment: Preprint of accepted AAAI2021 pape

LncRNA TP73-AS1 Promotes Cell Proliferation and Inhibits Cell Apoptosis in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma Through Repressing KISS1 Expression and Inactivation of PI3K/Akt/mTOR Signaling Pathway

Background/Aims: Emerging evidence suggests that long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play a vital regulatory role in the pathogenesis and progression of renal cell carcinoma (RCC). We aim to determine lncRNA profiles in clear cell RCC (ccRCC) and investigate key lncRNAs involved in ccRCC tumorigenesis and progression. Methods: RNA sequencing technique and qPCR were used to determine the candidate lncRNAs in ccRCC tissues. The correlations between lncRNA P73 antisense RNA 1T (TP73-AS1) levels and survival outcomes were analyzed to elucidate its clinical significance. The underlying mechanisms of TP73-AS1 in ccRCC were analyzed through in vitro functional assays. Results: We found TP73-AS1 was upregulated in 40 ccRCC tissues compared with adjacent normal renal tissues and increased TP73-AS1 was correlated to aggressive clinicopathologic features and unfavorable prognosis. Knockdown of TP73-AS1 suppressed cell proliferation, invasion and induced cell apoptosis. We also identified KISS-1 metastasis-suppressor (KISS1) was significantly upregulated in TP73-AS1 knockdown cells. Further, we revealed that TP73-AS1 suppressed KISS1 expression through the interaction with Enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2) and the specific binding to KISS1 gene promoter region. Knockdown of KISS1 partly reversed TP73-AS1 knockdown-induced inhibition of cell proliferation and promotion of apoptosis. We further determined that TP73-AS1 knockdown activated PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway, while overexpression of TP73-AS1 induced inhibition of PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway and these effects could be partly abolished by overexpression of KISS1. Conclusion: In conclusion, we identified that TP73-AS1 as an oncogenic lncRNA in the development of ccRCC and a potential target for human renal carcinoma treatment

High Proportion of 22q13 Deletions and SHANK3 Mutations in Chinese Patients with Intellectual Disability

Intellectual disability (ID) is a heterogeneous disorder caused by chromosomal abnormalities, monogenic factors and environmental factors. 22q13 deletion syndrome is a genetic disorder characterized by severe ID. Although the frequency of 22q13 deletions in ID is unclear, it is believed to be largely underestimated. To address this issue, we used Affymetrix Human SNP 6.0 array to detect the 22q13 deletions in 234 Chinese unexplained ID patients and 103 controls. After the Quality Control (QC) test of raw data, 22q13 deletions were found in four out of 230 cases (1.7%), while absent in parents of the cases and 101 controls. A review of genome-wide microarray studies in ID was performed and the frequency of 22q13 deletions from the literatures was 0.24%, much lower than our report. The overlapping region shared by all 4 cases encompasses the gene SHANK3. A heterozygous de novo nonsense mutation Y1015X of SHANK3 was identified in one ID patient. Cortical neurons were prepared from embryonic mice and were transfected with a control plasmid, shank3 wild-type (WT) or mutant plasmids. Overexpression of the Y1015 mutant in neurons significantly affected neurite outgrowth compared with shank3 WT. These findings suggest that 22q13 deletions may be a more frequent cause for Chinese ID patients than previously thought, and the SHANK3 gene is involved in the neurite development

Selective extraction of arsenic and antimony from gold-bearing sludge using two-stage alkaline leaching

In gold smelting industry, coexisting of arsenic (As) and antimony (Sb) in gold-bearing sludge is a serious issue for the smelting process. This study employed a two-stage leaching methods to selective extract arsenic and antimony from gold-bearing sludge. Arsenic was firstly removed through NaOH leaching, following by Na2S-NaOH leaching to remove antimony in the atmospheric conditions. The first step results show that more than 96% of arsenic can be removed under the conditions of 2 mol/L NaOH, the ratio of liquid to solid (L/S) of 5, 60 degrees C, 400 rpm, 3 h. Meanwhile, the antimony dissolved in the solution is converted into the residue as the state of NaSb(OH)(6) during this process. After Na2S-NaOH leaching, the antimony leaching extent is 97.2% during the condition of 2.5 mol/L Na2S, 0.125 mol/L NaOH, L/S = 5, 70 degrees C and 6 h. In addition, the vulcanization of copper was found in the Na2S-NaOH leaching process, and the CuS appeared in the leaching residue. The results prove that the NaOH leaching following by Na2S-NaOH leaching can selectively extract arsenic and antimony from gold-bearing sludge in the atmospheric conditions

Stabilization of iron-arsenic deposits by encapsulation with montmorillonite inorganic gels

Encapsulation is recognized as an effective technique for enhancing the stability of hazardous waste by coating it with an inert material. In this work, an eco-friendly montmorillonite (Mt) inorganic gel with the characteristics of high viscosity, adsorption and easy preparation was developed and coated on the surface of iron-arsenic deposits (IAD) to restrain the release of arsenic (As). The encapsulation system investigated involves Mt/IAD mass ratio and aging temperature of the coated iron-arsenic deposits (C-IAD). The C-IAD was characterized by XRF, XRD, SEM-EDS, TEM, FTIR and BET. The results revealed that the IAD was completely encapsulated by the montmorillonite inorganic gel. From the experiment of stability, when IAD was coated with montmorillonite inorganic gel (Mt/IAD mass ratio 0.75) and aged at 25???, As release decreased from 3.15 mg/L to 0.64 mg/L at pH 5 after 24 h, and then dropped to 0.11 mg/L after 7 d. Furthermore, the results indicated that the IAD encapsulated with montmorillonite inorganic gel was effective in suppressing the release of As under both weakly acidic and alkaline conditions

The Effects of Interleukin-17 (IL-17)-Related Inflammatory Cytokines and A20 Regulatory Proteins on Astrocytes in Spinal Cord Cultured In Vitro

Background/Aims: This study focused on investigating the expression of several inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, including regulatory proteins in the astrocytes of mice stimulated with IL-17. Materials and Methods: The cultured astrocytes from the spinal cords of mice were stimulated with IL-17. The expression of interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor (TNF), monocyte chemotactic protein-1/5 (MCP-1/5) and macrophage inflammatory protein-2 (MIP-2) stimulated with IL-17 (50 ng/ml) at different time points (3 h, 6 h, 12 h, 24 h and 48 h) were determined using real-time PCR and ELISA. The expressions of A20 (tumor necrosis factor a inducible protein 3, TNFAIP3) and NF-κB were examined using real-time PCR and western blotting. Results: Compared with the control group, the mRNA expression levels of IL-6, TNF, MCP-1/5 and MIP-2 increased significantly at 6 h after IL-17 stimulation, while the protein expression levels also increased significantly and peaked at 12 h. The mRNA expression level of NF-κB increased and peaked at 6 h before gradually declining, while the expression of A20 decreased. The protein expression level of NF-κB increased and peaked at 12 h, while the expression A20 had an opposite response. Conclusion: The study showed that NF-κB may have an effect on the cytokines secreted by astrocytes after IL-17 stimulation. Moreover, both A20 and NF-κB could regulate the expression and secretion of inflammatory mediators

Stabilization of iron-arsenic deposits by encapsulation with montmorillonite inorganic gels

Encapsulation is recognized as an effective technique for enhancing the stability of hazardous waste by coating it with an inert material. In this work, an eco-friendly montmorillonite (Mt) inorganic gel with the characteristics of high viscosity, adsorption and easy preparation was developed and coated on the surface of iron-arsenic deposits (IAD) to restrain the release of arsenic (As). The encapsulation system investigated involves Mt/IAD mass ratio and aging temperature of the coated iron-arsenic deposits (C-IAD). The C-IAD was characterized by XRF, XRD, SEM-EDS, TEM, FTIR and BET. The results revealed that the IAD was completely encapsulated by the montmorillonite inorganic gel. From the experiment of stability, when IAD was coated with montmorillonite inorganic gel (Mt/IAD mass ratio 0.75) and aged at 25???, As release decreased from 3.15 mg/L to 0.64 mg/L at pH 5 after 24 h, and then dropped to 0.11 mg/L after 7 d. Furthermore, the results indicated that the IAD encapsulated with montmorillonite inorganic gel was effective in suppressing the release of As under both weakly acidic and alkaline conditions

The Role of Silica in the Chlorination-Volatilization of Cobalt Oxide by Using Calcium Chloride

The role of silica in the chlorination-volatilization of cobalt oxide, using calcium chloride, is investigated in this paper. It is found that the Co volatilization percentage of the CoO-Fe2O3-CaCl2 system is not larger than 12.1%. Silica plays an important role in the chlorination-volatilization of cobalt oxide by using calcium chloride. In the CoO-SiO2-Fe2O3-CaCl2 system, the Co volatilization percentage is initially positively related to the molar ratio of SiO2 to CaCl2, and remains almost constant when the molar ratio of SiO2 to CaCl2 rises from zero to eight. The critical molar ratios of SiO2 to CaCl2 are 1 and 2 when the molar ratios of CaCl2 to CoO are 8.3 and 16.6, respectively. The Co volatilization percentage remains almost constant with the increase in CaO concentration, and decreases when Al2O3 and MgO are added. Ca2SiO3Cl2 is determined after roasting at 1073 K and 1173 K, and disappears at temperatures in excess of 1273 K in the calcines from the CoO-SiO2-CaCl2 system. CaSiO3 always exists in the calcines at temperatures in excess of 973 K

Green Treatment of Cyanide Tailings Using a "Filter Press BackWash-Chemical Precipitation-Gaseous Membrane Absorption" Method

Based on a "filter press backwash-chemical precipitation-gaseous membrane absorption" process, treatment of harmless cyanide tailings was conducted using cyanide tailings from a gold smelting enterprises (Yunnan Province, China) as the research object. The effects of air-drying time, backwash water parameters, initial pH of acidification, NaHS dosage, cyanide-containing water flow rate, and gaseous membrane stages on the process were investigated. Chemical composition, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses of the copper products were carried out. Results showed that the copper content in the copper product was 54.56%, and the chemical composition was mainly CuSCN, CuS, Cu2S, and CaSO4. Five cycles of experiments were carried out under optimal conditions; the results showed that the process can make the treated cyanide tailings meet the requirements of the technical specification for pollution control of cyanide leaching residue in the gold industry (TSPC) standard for storage in a tailings pond and a have certain stability. The average recovery rate of copper and total cyanide in elution water was 97.8% and 99.89%, respectively, and the average removal rate of thiocyanate was 94.09%