Genética de las proteínas de reserva del cotiledón en castaño (Castanea sativa Miller)

A first approximation to the inheritance of cotyledon storage proteins was studied in European sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.) by evaluating the offspring of a controlled cross between two local chestnut varieties (Corriente and Pilonga) from southern Spain. The analysis was carried out in 15 polymorphic bands corresponding to the albumin fraction of the storage proteins. The relationship between bands displayed one case of allelism and four of linkage. These results should be considered as the baseline of the genetics of these proteins and suggest that they could be useful for the evaluation of the genetic variability in chestnut.Se ha efectuado una primera aproximación a la genética de las proteínas de reserva del cotiledón en castaño (Castanea sativa Mill.). Para ello, se ha evaluado la progenie resultante del cruzamiento controlado entre dos variedades locales del sur de España (Corriente y Pilonga). El análisis se ha realizado en 15 bandas polimórficas correspondientes a la fracción albúmina de las proteínas de reserva. El estudio de la combinación entre bandas ha permitido identificar un caso de alelismo y cuatro de ligamiento. Estos resultados suponen una contribución al estudio de la genética de estas proteínas y sugieren que podrían ser una herramienta útil para la evaluación de la variabilidad genética del castaño

Exploring General Gauge Mediation

We explore various aspects of General Gauge Mediation(GGM). We present a reformulation of the correlation functions used in GGM, and further elucidate their IR and UV properties. Additionally we clarify the issue of UV sensitivity in the calculation of the soft masses in the MSSM, highlighting the role of the supertrace over the messenger spectrum. Finally, we present weakly coupled messenger models which fully cover the parameter space of GGM. These examples demonstrate that the full parameter space of GGM is physical and realizable. Thus it should be considered a valid basis for future phenomenological explorations of gauge mediation.Comment: 27 pages, minor changes, typos fixed in appendix

Proposal for Higgs and Superpartner Searches at the LHCb Experiment

The spectrum of supersymmetric theories with R-parity violation are much more weakly constrained than that of supersymmetric theories with a stable neutralino. We investigate the signatures of supersymmetry at the LHCb experiment in the region of parameter space where the neutralino decay leaves a displaced vertex. We find sensitivity to squark production up to squark masses of order 1 TeV. We note that if the Higgs decays to neutralinos in this scenario, LHCb should see the lightest Higgs boson before ATLAS and CMS.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

Unseen and unheard? women managers and organizational learning

Purpose This paper uses (in)visibility as a lens to understand the lived experience of 6 women managers in the U.K. HQ of a large multinational organization, in order to identify how ‘gender’ is expressed in the context of organizational learning Design/methodology/approach The researchers take a phenomenological approach via qualitative data collection with a purposeful sample –the six female managers in a group of 24. Data was collected through quarterly semi structured interviews over 12 months with the themes - knowledge, interaction and gender. Findings Organisations seek to build advantage in order to gain and retain competitive leadership. Their resilience in a changing task environment depends on their ability to recognize, gain and use knowledge likely to deliver these capabilities. Here gender was a barrier to effective organizational learning with women's knowledge and experience often unseen and unheard. Research limitations/implications This is a piece of research limited to exploration of gender as other but ethnicity, age, social class, disability and sexual preference, alone or in combination may be equally subject to invisibility in knowledge terms, further research would be needed to test this however. Practical implications Practical applications relate to the need for organizations to examine and address their operations for exclusion based on perceived ‘otherness’. Gendered organizations cause problems for their female members but they also exclude the experience and knowledge of key individuals as seen here, where gender impacted on effective knowledge sharing and cocreation of knowledge. Originality/value This exploration of gender and organisational learning offers new insights to help explain the way in which organisational learning occurs – or fails to occur - with visibility/invisibility of one group shaped by gendered attitudes and processes. It shows that organizational learning is not gender neutral (as it appears in mainstream organizational learning research) and calls for researchers to include this as a factor in future research

Differential gene expression in multiple neurological, inflammatory and connective tissue pathways in a spontaneous model of human small vessel stroke

Aims: Cerebral small vessel disease (SVD) causes a fifth of all strokes plus diffuse brain damage leading to cognitive decline, physical disabilities and dementia. The aetiology and pathogenesis of SVD are unknown, but largely attributed to hypertension or microatheroma. Methods: We used the spontaneously hypertensive stroke-prone rat (SHRSP), the closest spontaneous experimental model of human SVD, and age-matched control rats kept under identical, non-salt-loaded conditions, to perform a blinded analysis of mRNA microarray, qRT-PCRand pathway analysis in two brain regions (frontal and midcoronal) commonly affected by SVD in the SHRSP at age five, 16 and 21 weeks. Results: We found gene expression abnormalities, with fold changes ranging from 2.5 to 59 for the 10 most differentially expressed genes, related to endothelial tight junctions (reduced), nitric oxide bioavailability (reduced), myelination (impaired), glial and microglial activity (increased), matrix proteins (impaired), vascular reactivity (impaired) and albumin (reduced), consistent with protein expression defects in the same rats. All were present at age 5 weeks thus pre-dating blood pressure elevation. ‘Neurological’ and ‘inflammatory’ pathways were more affected than ‘vascular’ functional pathways. Conclusions: This set of defects, although individually modest, when acting in combination could explain the SHRSP's susceptibility to microvascular and brain injury, compared with control rats. Similar combined, individually modest, but multiple neurovascular unit defects, could explain susceptibility to spontaneous human SVD

A new type of arthropod photoreceptor

A new type of photoreceptor for the phylum Arthropoda, found in the class Collembola (Arthropoda, Hexapoda) is reported. This new light-sensitive structure consists of a pair of interocular vesicles present in the genus Vesicephalus Richards, 1964 and is anatomically related to the cluster of ommatidia. The absence of a lens, the presence of a rabdome in the upper part of the vesicle and the reflection and refraction of light by a hemolymph bubble with incidence to the rhabdomeric structure are the main traits of this new photoreceptor

Charge radii and structural evolution in Sr, Zr, and Mo isotopes

The evolution of the ground-state nuclear shapes in neutron-rich Sr, Zr, and Mo isotopes, including both even-even and odd-A nuclei, is studied within a self-consistent mean-field approximation based on the D1S Gogny interaction. Neutron separation energies and charge radii are calculated and compared with available data. A correlation between a shape transition and a discontinuity in those observables is found microscopically. While in Sr and Zr isotopes the steep behavior observed in the isotopic dependence of the charge radii is a consequence of a sharp prolate-oblate transition, the smooth behavior found in Mo isotopes has its origin in an emergent region of triaxiality.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures, to be published in Phys. Lett.

Roadside vegetation management final report for the period December 1991 to September 1996 (FHWA-ODOT-96-05) 2187

The infonnation contained within this report addresses: (1) Research - involving the use of experimental, newly labeled and traditionally available herbicides in combination with mowing for roadside vegetation management; (2) Maintenance implementation of research results into an operational phase of the Oklahoma Department of Transportation ·s (ODOT) maintenance program. as well as performing on-site visits, telephone and written consultation to ODOT personnel; and (3) Training - conducting pesticide applicator certification programs, and providing continuing education programs for these certified applicators. The following are conclusions based on our research: (1) Campaign herbicide or Roundup plus 2,4-D may be used postemergence in place of atrazine or diuron applied pre-emergence for the control of winter annual grasses and broadleaf weeds. Tlllling of herbicide application is critical. (2) Ammonium sulfate may be added to either Campaign herbicide or the combination treatment of Roundup + 2,4-D amine to i?lprove control of winter annual weeds. This product addition may allow end users to reduce use rates of these herbicides. (3) Primo plus Oust may be used for temporary growth and seedhead suppression of common bermudagrass on roadsides; additional product labeling will be required to implement this treatment into the maintenance phase of ODOTs vegetation management'program. (4) The product Plateau., when combined with Roundup, will provide an acceptable level of both seedling and rhizome johnsongrass control (minimum of 80% control) in common bermudagrass roadsides with potential to reduce phytotoxicity as compared to the traditional Oust plus Roundup herbicide treatment. Several research plot tours, meetings, sprayer calibration workshops, musk thistle head weevil collection/release days as well as herbicide/fertilizer demonstrations were conducted throughout the duration of this project in order to implement current research information into an operational phase of ODOTs roadside vegetation management program. Training achievements included the execution of 12 pesticide applicator certification schools resulting in 146 new herbicide applicators becoming certified. A total of 68 continuing education programs were conducted with 2, 795 ODOT certified applicators attending over a 5 year period. Numerous training information sheets were developed and provided to applicators during workshops.Final Report, December 1991-September 1996N