The STAR Silicon Strip Detector (SSD)

The STAR Silicon Strip Detector (SSD) completes the three layers of the Silicon Vertex Tracker (SVT) to make an inner tracking system located inside the Time Projection Chamber (TPC). This additional fourth layer provides two dimensional hit position and energy loss measurements for charged particles, improving the extrapolation of TPC tracks through SVT hits. To match the high multiplicity of central Au+Au collisions at RHIC the double sided silicon strip technology was chosen which makes the SSD a half million channels detector. Dedicated electronics have been designed for both readout and control. Also a novel technique of bonding, the Tape Automated Bonding (TAB), was used to fullfill the large number of bounds to be done. All aspects of the SSD are shortly described here and test performances of produced detection modules as well as simulated results on hit reconstruction are given.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures, 1 tabl

Production test of microstrip detector and electronic frontend modules for the STAR and ALICE trackers

We revisit Shin et al.’s leakage-resilient password-based authenticated key establishment protocol (LR-AKEP) and the security model used to prove the security of LR-AKEP. By refining the Leak oracle in the security model, we show that LR-AKE (1) can, in fact, achieve a stronger notion of leakage-resilience than initially claimed and (2) also achieve an additional feature of traceability, not previously mentioned

TAB Bonded SSD Module for the STAR and ALICE Trackers

Presentation made at LEB99, 20-24 September 1999A novel compact detector module has been produced by the "IReS"-"Subatech"-"Thomson-CSF-Detexis" collaboration. It includes a Double-Sided (DS) Silicon Strip Detector (SSD) and the related Front End Electronics (FEE) located on two hybrids, one for the N side and one for the P side. Bumpless Tape Automated Bonding (TAB) is used to connect the detector to the hybrids by means of microcables with neither wirebonding nor pitch adapter. Each of the six dedicated ALICE128C FE chip [1], located on the hybrid, is TABed on identical single layer microcables, which connect its inputs to the DS SSD and its outputs to the hybrid [2]. These microcables are bent in order to fold over the two hybrids on the DS SSD. This module meets the specifications of two experiments, ALICE (A Large Ion Collider Experiment) on the LHC accelerator at CERN [3] and STAR (Solenoid Tracker At Rhic) on the RHIC accelerator at BNL (Brookhaven National Laboratory)[4]. It can be used with air cooling (STAR) as well as with water cooling (ALICE)[5]. This mechanically self-consistent FE module has been tested on the SPS beam at CERN. Preliminary results are presented

Reconciling competence and transcriptional hierarchies with stochasticity in retinal lineages

Recent advances suggest that there is a stochastic contribution to the proliferation and fate choice of retinal progenitors. How does this stochasticity fit with the progression of temporal competence and the transcriptional hierarchies that also influence cell division and cell fate in the developing retina? Where may stochasticity arise in the system and how do we make progress in this field when we may never fully explain the behavior of individual progenitor cells

The Domestication Syndrome Genes Responsible for the Major Changes in Plant Form in the Triticeae Crops

The process of crop domestication began 10,000 years ago in the transition of early humans from hunter/gatherers to pastoralists/farmers. Recent research has revealed the identity of some of the main genes responsible for domestication. Two of the major domestication events in barley were (i) the failure of the spike to disarticulate and (ii) the six-rowed spike. The former mutation increased grain yield by preventing grain loss after maturity, while the latter resulted in an up to 3-fold increase in yield potential. Here we provide an overview of the disarticulation systems and inflorescence characteristics, along with the genes underlying these traits, occurring in the Triticeae tribe

Combining genetical genomics and bulked segregant analysis-based differential expression: an approach to gene localization

Positional gene isolation in unsequenced species generally requires either a reference genome sequence or an inference of gene content based on conservation of synteny with a genomic model. In the large unsequenced genomes of the Triticeae cereals the latter, i.e. conservation of synteny with the rice and Brachypodium genomes, provides a powerful proxy for establishing local gene content and order. However, efficient exploitation of conservation of synteny requires ‘homology bridges’ between the model genome and the target region that contains a gene of interest. As effective homology bridges are generally the sequences of genetically mapped genes, increasing the density of these genes around a target locus is an important step in the process. We used bulked segregant analysis (BSA) of transcript abundance data to identify genes located in a specific region of the barley genome. The approach is valuable because only a relatively small proportion of barley genes are currently placed on a genetic map. We analyzed eQTL datasets from the reference Steptoe × Morex doubled haploid population and showed a strong association between differential gene expression and cis-regulation, with 83% of differentially expressed genes co-locating with their eQTL. We then performed BSA by assembling allele-specific pools based on the genotypes of individuals at the partial resistance QTL Rphq11. BSA identified a total of 411 genes as differentially expressed, including HvPHGPx, a gene previously identified as a promising candidate for Rphq11. The genetic location of 276 of these genes could be determined from both eQTL datasets and conservation of synteny, and 254 (92%) of these were located on the target chromosome. We conclude that the identification of differential expression by BSA constitutes a novel method to identify genes located in specific regions of interest. The datasets obtained from such studies provide a robust set of candidate genes for the analysis and serve as valuable resources for targeted marker development and comparative mapping with other grass species

RhoE Deficiency Produces Postnatal Lethality, Profound Motor Deficits and Neurodevelopmental Delay in Mice

Rnd proteins are a subfamily of Rho GTPases involved in the control of actin cytoskeleton dynamics and other cell functions such as motility, proliferation and survival. Unlike other members of the Rho family, Rnd proteins lack GTPase activity and therefore remain constitutively active. We have recently described that RhoE/Rnd3 is expressed in the Central Nervous System and that it has a role in promoting neurite formation. Despite their possible relevance during development, the role of Rnd proteins in vivo is not known. To get insight into the in vivo function of RhoE we have generated mice lacking RhoE expression by an exon trapping cassette. RhoE null mice (RhoE gt/gt) are smaller at birth, display growth retardation and early postnatal death since only half of RhoE gt/gt mice survive beyond postnatal day (PD) 15 and 100% are dead by PD 29. RhoE gt/gt mice show an abnormal body position with profound motor impairment and impaired performance in most neurobehavioral tests. Null mutant mice are hypoactive, show an immature locomotor pattern and display a significant delay in the appearance of the hindlimb mature responses. Moreover, they perform worse than the control littermates in the wire suspension, vertical climbing and clinging, righting reflex and negative geotaxis tests. Also, RhoE ablation results in a delay of neuromuscular maturation and in a reduction in the number of spinal motor neurons. Finally, RhoE gt/gt mice lack the common peroneal nerve and, consequently, show a complete atrophy of the target muscles. This is the first model to study the in vivo functions of a member of the Rnd subfamily of proteins, revealing the important role of Rnd3/RhoE in the normal development and suggesting the possible involvement of this protein in neurological disorders

Heterochronic Shift in Hox-Mediated Activation of Sonic hedgehog Leads to Morphological Changes during Fin Development

We explored the molecular mechanisms of morphological transformations of vertebrate paired fin/limb evolution by comparative gene expression profiling and functional analyses. In this study, we focused on the temporal differences of the onset of Sonic hedgehog (Shh) expression in paired appendages among different vertebrates. In limb buds of chick and mouse, Shh expression is activated as soon as there is a morphological bud, concomitant with Hoxd10 expression. In dogfish (Scyliorhinus canicula), however, we found that Shh was transcribed late in fin development, concomitant with Hoxd13 expression. We utilized zebrafish as a model to determine whether quantitative changes in hox expression alter the timing of shh expression in pectoral fins of zebrafish embryos. We found that the temporal shift of Shh activity altered the size of endoskeletal elements in paired fins of zebrafish and dogfish. Thus, a threshold level of hox expression determines the onset of shh expression, and the subsequent heterochronic shift of Shh activity can affect the size of the fin endoskeleton. This process may have facilitated major morphological changes in paired appendages during vertebrate limb evolution