Risk Factors for Strangulated Ovarian Hernia in Female Infants:the Role of Ovarian Volume

The risk factors associated with strangulated ovarian hernia (SOH)in female patients (<1 year old)were identified.A retrospective analysis was conducted regarding the data from 2006 to 2017.The patients were divided into 2groups:SOH group (n=9)and non-SOH group (n=23). Patient demographics,clinical signs,preoperative examinations and intraoperative findings were compared between the two groups,and risk factors for SOH were tested using a binary logistic regression model.To explore whether greater ovary was more likely to be twisted,leading to SOH, all the patients were divided into ovary volume <5cm^3 and ≥5cm^3 groups and the association between ovarian volume and ovary torsion was assessed.Among a total of 32 female patients (<1year old)with incarcerated ovarian herniation,9 patients developed SOH.The single variate analysis revealed that times of manual reduction,ovarian volume,ovary with or without multiple cysts,ovary torsion or not and angle of ovary torsion were found to be significant factors associated with SOH.The multivariate analysis showed ovarian volume was evidenced as an independent risk factor for SOH.Furthermore,the incidence of ovary torsion was significantly higher in ovarian volume ≥5cm^3 group than in ovarian volume <5cm^3 group,indicating that larger ovary was more likely to result in ovary torsion,leading to SOH.Our study demonstrated that the odds of SOH increased with increasing ovarian volume in female patients (<1 year old)because the relatively greater ovary at this age was more likely to be incarcerated and twisted,leading to SOH.

Small RNA sequencing revealed aberrant piRNA expression profiles in deciduas of recurrent spontaneous abortion patients

Piwi-interacting RNAs(piRNAs)is a novel class of non-coding RNAs.However,changes in piRNA expression profiles in recurrent spontaneous abortion(RSA)have not yet been investigated.The aim of this study was to identify differentially expressed piRNAs in deciduas of RSA patients.Decidua tissues were collected by curettage from recruited RSA patients and normal early pregnant(NEP)women with their informed consent.Small RNA sequencing was used to evaluate the differences in piRNA expression profiles between RSA and NEP.The present results demonstrated that the counts of total piRNA reads in RSA samples were increased compared with those in NEP samples(0.21%vs.0.11%).Differential expression analysis identified 29 upregulated piRNAs and 18 downregulated piRNAs in RSA samples.RT-qPCR further confirmed that the expression levels of uniq-109625,uniq-89328,uniq-50651 and uniq-4569 were decreased in 8 RSA tissues,compared with 13 NEP tissues.Otherwise,pi-22628 and uniq-173406 were increased in 8 RSA tissues.Based on GO term and KEGG pathway analysis,we speculate that these piRNAs regulate RSA by targeting extracellular matrix component pathway,cell adhesion pathway and focal adhesion pathway.PiRNAs may be involved in RSA pathogenesis by target genes function on adhesion and extracellular matrix component.

Control of a Cheetah Robot in Passive Bounding Gait

Passive dynamics is always one of research emphases of the legged robots. Studies have proved that cheetah robot could achieve stably passive bounding motion under proper initial conditions in the ideal case. However, the actual robot must have energy dissipation because of friction and collision compared with the theoretical model. This paper aims to propose a control method that can drive the cheetah robot running in passive bounding gait. First, a sagittal-plane model with a rigid torso and two compliant legs is introduced to capture the dynamics of robot bounding. Numerical return map studies of the bounding model reveal that there exists a large variety of passively cyclic bounding motions （fixed points）. Based on the distribution law of fixed points, an open-loop control method including touchdown angle control strategy and leg length control strategy is put forward. At last, prototype of the cheetah robot is designed and manufactured, and locomotion experiment are carried out. The experiment results show that the cheetah robot can achieve a stable bounding motion at different speeds with the proposed control method.

Research Data Management Implementation at Peking University Library:Foster and Promote Open Science and Open Data

Research Data Management(RDM)has become increasingly important for more and more academic institutions.Using the Peking University Open Research Data Repository(PKU-ORDR)project as an example,this paper will review a library-based university-wide open research data repository project and related RDM services implementation process including project kickoff,needs assessment,partnerships establishment,software investigation and selection,software customization,as well as data curation services and training.Through the review,some issues revealed during the stages of the implementation process are also discussed and addressed in the paper such as awareness of research data,demands from data providers and users,data policies and requirements from home institution,requirements from funding agencies and publishers,the collaboration between administrative units and libraries,and concerns from data providers and users.The significance of the study is that the paper shows an example of creating an Open Data repository and RDM services for other Chinese academic libraries planning to implement their RDM services for their home institutions.The authors of the paper have also observed since the PKU-ORDR and RDM services implemented in 2015,the Peking University Library(PKUL)has helped numerous researchers to support the entire research life cycle and enhanced Open Science(OS)practices on campus,as well as impacted the national OS movement in China through various national events and activities hosted by the PKUL.

Lipase-catalyzed synthesis of novel galactosylated cholesterol

In an organic phase system, an enzymes lipase was used as a catalyst to synthesize galactosylated cholesterol, （5-cholesten-3b-yl）[（4-O-/%u-galactopyranosyl）u-glucitol-6] sebacate （CHS-SE-LA）, which contains galactose residues. Its chemical structure was characterized by ESI-MS, and NMR. For HepG2 cells, the cellular fluorescence intensities of liposomes modified with CHS-SE-LA （GAL-FL） were as much as 2.6-fold （p 〈 0.01） control liposomes （FL）. Moreover, the presence of excess galactose significantly inhibited the uptake of GAL-FL suggesting ASGPR mediated uptake. In conclusion, the novel galactosylated ligand CHS-SE-LA was synthesized by lipase-catalyzation and revealed a great potential as drug carrier materials for hepatocyte-selective targeting.