The ELFIN mission

The Electron Loss and Fields Investigation with a Spatio-Temporal Ambiguity-Resolving option (ELFIN-STAR, or heretoforth simply: ELFIN) mission comprises two identical 3-Unit (3U) CubeSats on a polar (∼93∘ inclination), nearly circular, low-Earth (∼450 km altitude) orbit. Launched on September 15, 2018, ELFIN is expected to have a >2.5 year lifetime. Its primary science objective is to resolve the mechanism of storm-time relativistic electron precipitation, for which electromagnetic ion cyclotron (EMIC) waves are a prime candidate. From its ionospheric vantage point, ELFIN uses its unique pitch-angle-resolving capability to determine whether measured relativistic electron pitch-angle and energy spectra within the loss cone bear the characteristic signatures of scattering by EMIC waves or whether such scattering may be due to other processes. Pairing identical ELFIN satellites with slowly-variable along-track separation allows disambiguation of spatial and temporal evolution of the precipitation over minutes-to-tens-of-minutes timescales, faster than the orbit period of a single low-altitude satellite (Torbit ∼ 90 min). Each satellite carries an energetic particle detector for electrons (EPDE) that measures 50 keV to 5 MeV electrons with Δ E/E 1 MeV. This broad energy range of precipitation indicates that multiple waves are providing scattering concurrently. Many observed events show significant backscattered fluxes, which in the past were hard to resolve by equatorial spacecraft or non-pitch-angle-resolving ionospheric missions. These observations suggest that the ionosphere plays a significant role in modifying magnetospheric electron fluxes and wave-particle interactions. Routine data captures starting in February 2020 and lasting for at least another year, approximately the remainder of the mission lifetime, are expected to provide a very rich dataset to address questions even beyond the primary mission science objective.Published versio

Single-tube, nested PCR for the diagnosis of Polymyxa betae infection in sugar beet roots and colorimetric analysis of amplified products

Nested primers for the specific amplification of DNA sequences from the obligate parasitic root-infecting fungus Polymyxa betae in a single-tube reaction are described. The choice of primers, DNA purity, and relative concentration of outer to inner primers were critical to the success of single-tube reactions. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test discriminated against background DNA from the host plant and contaminating microorganisms and detected P. betae in as little as 1 pg of total genomic DNA from infected roots. For rapid analysis of amplified products, primers were modified to generate products that could be detected in a colorimetric assay with the commercially available Captagene-GCN4 kit. It was essential to design a PCR protocol that reduced primer dimerization to levels that did not lead to high background absorbance readings. Results from the Captagene-GCN4 test were compared to those obtained by agarose gel analysis of PCR products.Peer reviewe

Single-tube, nested PCR for the diagnosis of Polymyxa betae infection in sugar beet roots and colorimetric analysis of amplified products

Nested primers for the specific amplification of DNA sequences from the obligate parasitic root-infecting fungus Polymyxa betae in a single-tube reaction are described. The choice of primers, DNA purity, and relative concentration of outer to inner primers were critical to the success of single-tube reactions. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test discriminated against background DNA from the host plant and contaminating microorganisms and detected P. betae in as little as 1 pg of total genomic DNA from infected roots. For rapid analysis of amplified products, primers were modified to generate products that could be detected in a colorimetric assay with the commercially available Captagene-GCN4 kit. It was essential to design a PCR protocol that reduced primer dimerization to levels that did not lead to high background absorbance readings. Results from the Captagene-GCN4 test were compared to those obtained by agarose gel analysis of PCR products

Specific polyclonal antibodies for the obligate plant parasite Polymyxa - a targeted recombinant DNA approach

Highly specific rabbit polyclonal antibodies for the obligate sugar-beet root parasite, Polymyxa betae, were produced using a novel recombinant DNA approach. Parasite cDNA was selectively isolated from infected roots, expressed in vitro, and the purified protein used to raise antibodies. This produced clean, precisely targeted antibodies, and allowed for rigorous screening of candidate genes and their products at the molecular level prior to animal immunization. This approach selects for genes whose products are highly expressed by the parasite in planta, and five such candidate genes from Polymyxa betae were identified and cloned. Polyclonal antiserum developed using the product of one such gene was found to react specifically with P. betae in sugar-beet roots and with the closely related Polymyxa graminis in barley roots, and to cross-react with Plasmodiophora brassicae in cabbage roots, without the need for further purification. No cross-reaction was detected with protein extracts from potato roots infected by the plasmodiophoromycete Spongospora subterranea. In all cases, there was no interaction with proteins from host plants, or from other microorganisms found in association with uninoculated sugar-beet, barley, cabbage and potato root

Development of a recombinant antibody ELISA test for the detection of Polymyxa betae and its use in resistance screening

An ELISA test was developed for the quantitative detection of the obligate parasite Polymyxa betae, the vector of Beet necrotic yellow vein virus (BNYVV), in infected sugarbeet roots. The test used monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies raised to a recombinantly expressed glutathione-S-transferase (GST) from P. betae. A close correlation was found between the number of P. betae zoospores in serially diluted suspensions and absorbance values in the ELISA test. Time-course studies of plants grown in naturally infested soils in controlled environment tests demonstrated the value of the ELISA test in screening for P. betae resistance. In preliminary tests, P. betae-resistant accessions of the wild sea beet (Beta vulgaris ssp. maritima), which might be used to restrict the transmission of BNYVV, were identifie

Squirrel Monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) Infected with the Agent of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy Develop Tau Pathology

Squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) were infected experimentally with the agent of classical bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). Two to four years later, six of the monkeys developed alterations in interactive behaviour and cognition and other neurological signs typical of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE). At necropsy examination, the brains from all of the monkeys showed pathological changes similar to those described in variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) of man, except that the squirrel monkey brains contained no PrP-amyloid plaques typical of that disease. Constant neuropathological features included spongiform degeneration, gliosis, deposition of abnormal prion protein (PrP(TSE)) and many deposits of abnormally phosphorylated tau protein (p-Tau) in several areas of the cerebrum and cerebellum. Western blots showed large amounts of proteinase K-resistant prion protein in the central nervous system. The striking absence of PrP plaques (prominent in brains of cynomolgus macaques [Macaca fascicularis] with experimentally-induced BSE and vCJD and in human patients with vCJD) reinforces the conclusion that the host plays a major role in determining the neuropathology of TSEs. Results of this study suggest that p-Tau, found in the brains of all BSE-infected monkeys, might play a role in the pathogenesis of TSEs. Whether p-Tau contributes to development of disease or appears as a secondary change late in the course of illness remains to be determined