The Herschel-Heterodyne Instrument for the Far-Infrared (HIFI): instrument and pre-launch testing

This paper describes the Heterodyne Instrument for the Far-Infrared (HIFI), to be launched onboard of ESA's Herschel Space Observatory, by 2008. It includes the first results from the instrument level tests. The instrument is designed to be electronically tuneable over a wide and continuous frequency range in the Far Infrared, with velocity resolutions better than 0.1 km/s with a high sensitivity. This will enable detailed investigations of a wide variety of astronomical sources, ranging from solar system objects, star formation regions to nuclei of galaxies. The instrument comprises 5 frequency bands covering 480-1150 GHz with SIS mixers and a sixth dual frequency band, for the 1410-1910 GHz range, with Hot Electron Bolometer Mixers (HEB). The Local Oscillator (LO) subsystem consists of a dedicated Ka-band synthesizer followed by 7 times 2 chains of frequency multipliers, 2 chains for each frequency band. A pair of Auto-Correlators and a pair of Acousto-Optic spectrometers process the two IF signals from the dual-polarization front-ends to provide instantaneous frequency coverage of 4 GHz, with a set of resolutions (140 kHz to 1 MHz), better than < 0.1 km/s. After a successful qualification program, the flight instrument was delivered and entered the testing phase at satellite level. We will also report on the pre-flight test and calibration results together with the expected in-flight performance

Transcriptional regulation of metal transport genes and mineral nutrition during acclimatization to cadmium and zinc in the Cd/Zn hyperaccumulator, Thlaspi caerulescens (Ganges population)

- We investigated changes in mineral nutrient uptake and cellular expression levels for metal transporter genes in the cadmium (Cd)/zinc (Zn) hyperaccumulator, Thlaspi caerulescens during whole plant and leaf ontogenesis under different long-term treatments with Zn and Cd.- Quantitative mRNA in situ hybridization (QISH) revealed that transporter gene expression changes not only dependent on metal nutrition/toxicity, but even more so during plant and leaf development. The main mRNA abundances found were: ZNT1, mature leaves of young plants; ZNT5, young leaves of young plants; MTP1 (= ZTP1 = ZAT), young leaves of both young and mature plants.- Surprisingly different cellular expression patterns were found for ZNT1 and ZNT5, both belonging to the ZIP family of transition metal transporters: ZNT1, photosynthetic mesophyll and bundle sheath cells; ZNT5, nonphotosynthetic epidermal metal storage cells and bundle sheath cells. Thus, ZNT1 may function in micronutrient nutrition while ZNT5 may be involved in metal storage associated with hyperaccumulation.- Cadmium inhibited the uptake of Zn, iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn), probably by competing for transporters or by interfering with the regulation of transporter gene expression. Cadmium-induced changes in cellular expression for ZNT1, ZNT5 and MTP1 could also be part of plant acclimatization to Cd toxicity. Defence against Cd toxicity involved enhanced uptake of magnesium (Mg), calcium (Ca) and sulphur (S)