Molecular Gas Around Young Stellar Clusters

We have begun a survey of the molecular gas surrounding 31 young clusters in order to investigate the link between environment and the resulting cluster. We present here a preliminary comparison of two clusters in our sample: GGD12-15 and Mon R2. Since both clusters are located in the MonR2 molecular cloud at a distance of 830 pc, observational biases due to differing sensitivities and angular resolutions are avoided.Comment: 2 pages, 2 figures, uses newpasp.sty. To appear in "Hot Star Workshop III: The Earliest Phases of Massive Star Birth" (ed. P.A. Crowther

XMM-Newton imaging of V1818 Ori: a young stellar group on the eastern edge of the Kappa Ori ring

We present the results of a 40 ks XMM-Newton observation centered on the variable star V1818 Ori. Using a combination of the XMM-Newton and AllWISE catalog data, we identify a group of about 31 young stellar objects around V1818 Ori. This group is coincident with the eastern edge of the dust ring surrounding Kappa Ori. Previously, we concluded that the young stellar objects on the western side of ring were formed in an episode of star formation that started 3-5 Myr ago, and are at a distance similar to that of kappa Ori (250-280 pc) and in the foreground to the Orion A cloud. Here we use the XMM-Newton observation to calculate X-ray fluxes and luminosities of the young stars around V1818 Ori. We find that their X-ray luminosity function (XLF), calculated for a distance of ~270 pc, matches the XLF of the YSOs west of Kappa Ori. We rule out that this group of young stars is associated to Mon R2 as assumed in the literature, but rather they are part of the same Kappa Ori's ring stellar population.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, 1 table. Accepted for publication to A&

Characterization of the Molecular Mechanisms Regulating the Agrin Signaling Pathway: a Dissertation

The nervous system requires rapid, efficient, and accurate transmission between cells for proper functioning. Synapses are the predominant structures through which such vital communication occurs. How synapses are formed, maintained, and eliminated are questions of fundamental importance. At the nerve-muscle synapse, formation of the postsynaptic apparatus is directed by agrin. The hallmark activity of agrin is the aggregation of acetylcholine receptors (AChRs) into dense clusters opposite the presynaptic nerve terminal. Early events in the agrin signal transduction cascade include activation of the receptor tyrosine kinase MuSK and tyrosine phosphorylation of AChRs, but how these events lead to AChR cluster formation is unknown. Using the calcium buffer BAPTA, we demonstrate that intracellular calcium fluxes are necessary for agrin-induced formation of AChR clusters. However, clamping calcium fluxes before agrin stimulation does not alter agrin-induced phosphorylation of either MuSK or AChRs, indicating that this calcium-dependent step occurs downstream of both MuSK and AChR phosphorylation. These results identify a new step in the agrin signaling pathway required for the formation of AChR clusters. We show that intracellular calcium fluxes also play an important role in stabilizing AChR clusters. Clamping intracellular calcium fluxes results in rapid dispersal of AChR clusters and dephosphorylation of both MuSK and AChRs, even if agrin is continually present. Furthermore, the protein tyrosine phosphatase inhibitor pervanadate inhibits both the dispersal and dephosphorylation, indicating a role for a tyrosine phosphatase in AChR cluster dispersal. Our data indicate that AChR clusters are maintained by agrin/MuSK-induced intracellular calcium fluxes that tonically inhibit a tyrosine phosphatase localized to AChR clusters. Our findings also show that distinct molecular mechanisms mediate the formation and the dispersal of agrin-induced AChR clusters. The work presented here expands our understanding of synaptic differentiation in several ways. First, I characterized a new, calcium-dependent step required for the formation of agrin-induced AChR clusters. Next, I showed that postsynaptic specializations must be actively maintained, and describe a molecular mechanism that stabilizes AChR clusters. Finally, dispersal and formation of AChR clusters occurs by distinct pathways. Our understanding of the mechanisms regulating the formation and modulation of synapses will help us to better understand how the nervous system develops and responds to the world around us

Herschel far-infrared photometric monitoring of protostars in the Orion Nebula Cluster

We have obtained time series observations of the Orion Nebula Cluster at 70 microns and 160 microns from the Herschel/PACS Photometer. This represents the first wide-field far-infrared photometric monitoring of a young star forming region. The acquired 35'x35' maps show complex extended structures, with unprecedented details, that trace the interaction between the molecular gas and the young hot stars. We detect 43 protostars, most of which are situated along the integral-shaped filament extending from the Orion nebula, through OMC2 and to OMC3. We present high-reliability light curves for some of these objects using the first six epochs of our observing program spread over 6 weeks. We find amplitude variations in excess of 20% for a fraction of the detected protostars over periods as short as a few weeks. This is inconsistent with the dynamical time-scales of cool far-IR emitting material that orbits at hundreds of AU from the protostar, and it suggests that the mechanism(s) responsible for the observed variability originates from the inner region of the protostars, likely driven by variable mass accretion.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures, 2 table