Strangeness and the discovery of quark-gluon plasma

Strangeness flavor yield s and the entropy yield S are the observables of the deconfined quark-gluon state of matter which can be studied in the entire available experimental energy range at AGS, SPS, RHIC, and, in near future, at the LHC energy range. We present here a comprehensive analysis of strange, soft hadron production as function of energy and reaction volume. We discuss the physical properties of the final state and argue how evidence about the primordial QGP emerges.Comment: 16 pages: Invited talk at 5th International Conference on Physics and Astrophysics of Quark Gluon Plasma, February 8 - 12, 2005, Salt Lake City, Kolkata, India, to appear in: Journal of Physics: Conference Serie

An Experimental Exploration of the QCD Phase Diagram: The Search for the Critical Point and the Onset of De-confinement

The QCD phase diagram lies at the heart of what the RHIC Physics Program is all about. While RHIC has been operating very successfully at or close to its maximum energy for almost a decade, it has become clear that this collider can also be operated at lower energies down to 5 GeV without extensive upgrades. An exploration of the full region of beam energies available at the RHIC facility is imperative. The STAR detector, due to its large uniform acceptance and excellent particle identification capabilities, is uniquely positioned to carry out this program in depth and detail. The first exploratory beam energy scan (BES) run at RHIC took place in 2010 (Run 10), since several STAR upgrades, most importantly a full barrel Time of Flight detector, are now completed which add new capabilities important for the interesting physics at BES energies. In this document we discuss current proposed measurements, with estimations of the accuracy of the measurements given an assumed event count at each beam energy.Comment: 59 pages, 78 figure

Growth Endocrine Axis and Bovine Chromosome 5: Association of SNP Genotypes and Reproductive Phenotypes in an Angus, Brahman and Romosinuano Diallele

The growth endocrine axis influences reproduction. A QTL associated with enhanced ovulation exists on chromosome 5 in cattle and there are 6 genes underlying this region involved in the mechanisms of GH action. Resequencing exons, 5’ and 3’ untranslated regions and conserved non-coding regions of these genes in a multibreed resource population revealed 75 SNP usable for genotype to phenotype association studies. In the current study, phenotypes included age at first calving, calving interval, days to calving, and pregnancy rate. Data were collected from developing heifers (n = 650) of a diallele composed of Angus, Brahman, and Romosinuano breeds. A SNP in the promoter of the signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT)2 gene, which is a second messenger of GH, had minor allele frequency \u3e 10% across the three breeds. This SNP did not deviate from Hardy- Weinberg equilibrium (X2 = 1.00, P \u3e 0.31), so deemed useful for genotype to phenotype association analyses. Since the remaining SNP appeared to predict breed, they were used to correct for population stratification using STRUCTURE, which revealed three distinctive ancestral clusters. No significant association was detected between the STAT2 genotype and reproductive traits in mixed effects analyses using genotype as a fixed term, sire as a random term, and coefficient of ancestry as a covariate; however, the interaction of SNP genotype and ancestral cluster was associated with the traits days to calving (P \u3c 0.05) and calving interval (P \u3c 0.10). Interaction plots revealed a higher estimated effect of heterozygous genotype in cluster 1 (inferred primarily from Brahman) and lower estimates in clusters 2 and 3 (inferred primarily from Bos taurus). The heterozygous genotype extended these trait levels ~100 d. A SNP in the promoter of the STAT2 gene was associated with fertility trait levels in admixed cows of the breeds Angus, Brahman, and Romosinuano. The effect appeared to be a non-additive genetic relationship as heterozygous genotype extended levels of traits indicative of postpartum rebreeding

Synaptic Transmission from Horizontal Cells to Cones Is Impaired by Loss of Connexin Hemichannels

In the vertebrate retina, horizontal cells generate the inhibitory surround of bipolar cells, an essential step in contrast enhancement. For the last decades, the mechanism involved in this inhibitory synaptic pathway has been a major controversy in retinal research. One hypothesis suggests that connexin hemichannels mediate this negative feedback signal; another suggests that feedback is mediated by protons. Mutant zebrafish were generated that lack connexin 55.5 hemichannels in horizontal cells. Whole cell voltage clamp recordings were made from isolated horizontal cells and cones in flat mount retinas. Light-induced feedback from horizontal cells to cones was reduced in mutants. A reduction of feedback was also found when horizontal cells were pharmacologically hyperpolarized but was absent when they were pharmacologically depolarized. Hemichannel currents in isolated horizontal cells showed a similar behavior. The hyperpolarization-induced hemichannel current was strongly reduced in the mutants while the depolarization-induced hemichannel current was not. Intracellular recordings were made from horizontal cells. Consistent with impaired feedback in the mutant, spectral opponent responses in horizontal cells were diminished in these animals. A behavioral assay revealed a lower contrast-sensitivity, illustrating the role of the horizontal cell to cone feedback pathway in contrast enhancement. Model simulations showed that the observed modifications of feedback can be accounted for by an ephaptic mechanism. A model for feedback, in which the number of connexin hemichannels is reduced to about 40%, fully predicts the specific asymmetric modification of feedback. To our knowledge, this is the first successful genetic interference in the feedback pathway from horizontal cells to cones. It provides direct evidence for an unconventional role of connexin hemichannels in the inhibitory synapse between horizontal cells and cones. This is an important step in resolving a long-standing debate about the unusual form of (ephaptic) synaptic transmission between horizontal cells and cones in the vertebrate retina

Systematic generation of in vivo G protein-coupled receptor mutants in the rat

G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) constitute a large family of cell surface receptors that are involved in a wide range of physiological and pathological processes, and are targets for many therapeutic interventions. However, genetic models in the rat, one of the most widely used model organisms in physiological and pharmacological research, are largely lacking. Here, we applied N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU)-driven target-selected mutagenesis to generate an in vivo GPCR mutant collection in the rat. A pre-selected panel of 250 human GPCR homologs was screened for mutations in 813 rats, resulting in the identification of 131 non-synonymous mutations. From these, seven novel potential rat gene knockouts were established as well as 45 lines carrying missense mutations in various genes associated with or involved in human diseases. We provide extensive in silico modeling results of the missense mutations and show experimental data, suggesting loss-of-function phenotypes for several models, including Mc4r and Lpar1. Taken together, the approach used resulted not only in a set of novel gene knockouts, but also in allelic series of more subtle amino acid variants, similar as commonly observed in human disease. The mutants presented here may greatly benefit studies to understand specific GPCR function and support the development of novel therapeutic strategies

A Positive Feedback Synapse from Retinal Horizontal Cells to Cone Photoreceptors

Cone photoreceptors and horizontal cells (HCs) have a reciprocal synapse that underlies lateral inhibition and establishes the antagonistic center-surround organization of the visual system. Cones transmit to HCs through an excitatory synapse and HCs feed back to cones through an inhibitory synapse. Here we report that HCs also transmit to cone terminals a positive feedback signal that elevates intracellular Ca2+ and accelerates neurotransmitter release. Positive and negative feedback are both initiated by AMPA receptors on HCs, but positive feedback appears to be mediated by a change in HC Ca2+, whereas negative feedback is mediated by a change in HC membrane potential. Local uncaging of AMPA receptor agonists suggests that positive feedback is spatially constrained to active HC-cone synapses, whereas the negative feedback signal spreads through HCs to affect release from surrounding cones. By locally offsetting the effects of negative feedback, positive feedback may amplify photoreceptor synaptic release without sacrificing HC-mediated contrast enhancement

Gaia Data Release 1: Open cluster astrometry: performance, limitations, and future prospects

Context. The first Gaia Data Release contains the Tycho-Gaia Astrometric Solution (TGAS). This is a subset of about 2 million stars for which, besides the position and photometry, the proper motion and parallax are calculated using Hipparcos and Tycho-2 positions in 1991.25 as prior information.Aims. We investigate the scientific potential and limitations of the TGAS component by means of the astrometric data for open clusters.Methods. Mean cluster parallax and proper motion values are derived taking into account the error correlations within the astrometric solutions for individual stars, an estimate of the internal velocity dispersion in the cluster, and, where relevant, the effects of the depth of the cluster along the line of sight. Internal consistency of the TGAS data is assessed.Results. Values given for standard uncertainties are still inaccurate and may lead to unrealistic unit-weight standard deviations of least squares solutions for cluster parameters. Reconstructed mean cluster parallax and proper motion values are generally in very good agreement with earlier HIPPARCOS-based determination, although the Gaia mean parallax for the Pleiades is a significant exception. We have no current explanation for that discrepancy. Most clusters are observed to extend to nearly 15 pc from the cluster centre, and it will be up to future Gaia releases to establish whether those potential cluster-member stars are still dynamically bound to the clusters.Conclusions. The Gaia DR1 provides the means to examine open clusters far beyond their more easily visible cores, and can provide membership assessments based on proper motions and parallaxes. A combined HR diagram shows the same features as observed before using the HIPPARCOS data, with clearly increased luminosities for older A and F dwarfs

EXPERT SYSTEMS FOR METHOD DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION IN HPLC

Contains fulltext : 112337.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access