Final report of EURAMET.M.G-K3 regional comparison of absolute gravimeters

The regional key comparison of absolute gravimeters, EURAMET.M.G-K3 and the simultaneously organized additional comparison, was held in Germany at the Geodetic Observatory Wettzell of the German Federal Agency for Cartography and Geodesy in the spring of 2018.Here we present the list of the participants who actually performed measurements during the comparison, the data submitted by the operators as well as the results of the determination of the gravity as a function of height at the comparison sites. The measurement strategy is briefly discussed and the results of the data harmonization is documented. Finally, the results of the constrained least squares adjustment are presented including the degrees of equivalence of each gravimeter and the key comparison reference values.Main textTo reach the main text of this paper, click on Final Report. Note that this text is that which appears in Appendix B of the BIPM key comparison database kcdb.bipm.org/.The final report has been peer-reviewed and approved for publication by the CCM, according to the provisions of the CIPM Mutual Recognition Arrangement (CIPM MRA).Export citation and abstract BibTeX RIS

Transcriptional Profiling of Chondrodysplasia Growth Plate Cartilage Reveals Adaptive ER-Stress Networks That Allow Survival but Disrupt Hypertrophy

Metaphyseal chondrodysplasia, Schmid type (MCDS) is characterized by mild short stature and growth plate hypertrophic zone expansion, and caused by collagen X mutations. We recently demonstrated the central importance of ER stress in the pathology of MCDS by recapitulating the disease phenotype by expressing misfolding forms of collagen X (Schmid) or thyroglobulin (Cog) in the hypertrophic zone. Here we characterize the Schmid and Cog ER stress signaling networks by transcriptional profiling of microdissected mutant and wildtype hypertrophic zones. Both models displayed similar unfolded protein responses (UPRs), involving activation of canonical ER stress sensors and upregulation of their downstream targets, including molecular chaperones, foldases, and ER-associated degradation machinery. Also upregulated were the emerging UPR regulators Wfs1 and Syvn1, recently identified UPR components including Armet and Creld2, and genes not previously implicated in ER stress such as Steap1 and Fgf21. Despite upregulation of the Chop/Cebpb pathway, apoptosis was not increased in mutant hypertrophic zones. Ultrastructural analysis of mutant growth plates revealed ER stress and disrupted chondrocyte maturation throughout mutant hypertrophic zones. This disruption was defined by profiling the expression of wildtype growth plate zone gene signatures in the mutant hypertrophic zones. Hypertrophic zone gene upregulation and proliferative zone gene downregulation were both inhibited in Schmid hypertrophic zones, resulting in the persistence of a proliferative chondrocyte-like expression profile in ER-stressed Schmid chondrocytes. Our findings provide a transcriptional map of two chondrocyte UPR gene networks in vivo, and define the consequences of UPR activation for the adaptation, differentiation, and survival of chondrocytes experiencing ER stress during hypertrophy. Thus they provide important insights into ER stress signaling and its impact on cartilage pathophysiology

Observed secular gravity trend at Onsala station with the FG5 gravimeter from Hannover

Annual absolute gravity measurements with a FG5 instrument were performed in Onsala Space Observatory by the Institute of Geodesy of the Leibniz Universität Hannover from 2003 to 2011 and have been continued with the upgraded meter FG5X in 2014. Lantmäteriet, Gävle, with their FG5 absolute gravimeter have visited Onsala since 2007. Because small systematic errors may be inherent in each absolute gravimeter, their measuring level and a resulting bias (offset) between the instruments must be controlled over time by means of inter-comparison. From 2007 to 2014, 8 direct comparisons took place well distributed over the time span. A complete re-processing of the absolute gravity observations with the Hannover instrument has been conducted to improve the reduction of unwanted gravity effects. A new tidal model is based on continuous time series recorded with the GWR superconducting gravimeter at Onsala since 2009. The loading effect of the Kattegat is described with a varying sea bottom pressure (water and air mass load) and has been validated with the continuous gravity measurements. For the land uplift,which is a result of the still ongoing glacial isostatic adjustment in Fennoscandia, a secular gravity trend of −0.22 μGal/yr was obtained with a standard deviation of 0.17 μGal/yr. That indicates a slight uplift but is still not significantly different from zero