ALBERT

Description: We have studied the filaments extracted from the column density maps of the nearby Lupus 1, 3, and 4 molecular clouds, derived from photometric maps observed with the Herschel satellite. Filaments in the Lupus clouds have quite low column densities, with a median value of ~1.5  x  10 21 cm –2  and most have masses per unit length lower than the maximum critical value for radial gravitational collapse. Indeed, no evidence of filament contraction has been seen in the gas kinematics. We find that some filaments, that on average are thermally subcritical, contain dense cores that may eventually form stars. This is an indication that in the low column density regime, the critical condition for the formation of stars may be reached only locally and this condition is not a global property of the filament. Finally, in Lupus we find multiple observational evidences of the key role that the magnetic field plays in forming filaments, and determining their confinement and dynamical evolution.

Description: The ubiquity of filamentary structure at various scales throughout the Galaxy has triggered a renewed interest in their formation, evolution, and role in star formation. The largest filaments can reach up to Galactic scale as part of the spiral arm structure. However, such large-scale filaments are hard to identify systematically due to limitations in identifying methodology (i.e. as extinction features). We present a new approach to directly search for the largest, coldest, and densest filaments in the Galaxy, making use of sensitive Herschel Hi-GAL ( Herschel Infrared Galactic Plane Survey) data complemented by spectral line cubes. We present a sample of the nine most prominent Herschel filaments, including six identified from a pilot search field plus three from outside the field. These filaments measure 37–99 pc long and 0.6–3.0 pc wide with masses (0.5–8.3) 10 4  M , and beam-averaged (28 arcsec, or 0.4–0.7 pc) peak H 2 column densities of (1.7–9.3) x 10 22  cm – 2 . The bulk of the filaments are relatively cold (17–21 K), while some local clumps have a dust temperature up to 25–47 K. All the filaments are located within 60 pc from the Galactic mid-plane. Comparing the filaments to a recent spiral arm model incorporating the latest parallax measurements, we find that 7/9 of them reside within arms, but most are close to arm edges. These filaments are comparable in length to the Galactic scaleheight and therefore are not simply part of a grander turbulent cascade.

Description: We propose a procedure for uncertainty quantification in Probabilistic Tsunami Hazard Analysis (PTHA), with a special emphasis on the uncertainty related to statistical modelling of the earthquake source in Seismic PTHA (SPTHA), and on the separate treatment of subduction and crustal earthquakes (treated as background seismicity). An event tree approach and ensemble modelling are used in spite of more classical approaches, such as the hazard integral and the logic tree. This procedure consists of four steps: (1) exploration of aleatory uncertainty through an event tree, with alternative implementations for exploring epistemic uncertainty; (2) numerical computation of tsunami generation and propagation up to a given offshore isobath; (3) (optional) site-specific quantification of inundation; (4) simultaneous quantification of aleatory and epistemic uncertainty through ensemble modelling. The proposed procedure is general and independent of the kind of tsunami source considered; however, we implement step 1, the event tree, specifically for SPTHA, focusing on seismic source uncertainty. To exemplify the procedure, we develop a case study considering seismic sources in the Ionian Sea (central-eastern Mediterranean Sea), using the coasts of Southern Italy as a target zone. The results show that an efficient and complete quantification of all the uncertainties is feasible even when treating a large number of potential sources and a large set of alternative model formulations. We also find that (i) treating separately subduction and background (crustal) earthquakes allows for optimal use of available information and for avoiding significant biases; (ii) both subduction interface and crustal faults contribute to the SPTHA, with different proportions that depend on source-target position and tsunami intensity; (iii) the proposed framework allows sensitivity and deaggregation analyses, demonstrating the applicability of the method for operational assessments.

Description: We report high-resolution observations of the 12 CO(1–0) and 13 CO(1–0) molecular lines in the Carina Nebula and the Gum 31 region obtained with the 22-m Mopra telescope as part of The Mopra Southern Galactic Plane CO Survey. We cover 8 deg 2 from $l = 285^\circ $ to 290°, and from b = –1 $_{.}^{\circ}$ 5 to +0 $_{.}^{\circ}$ 5. The molecular gas column density distributions from both tracers have a similar range of values. By fitting a grey-body function to the observed infrared spectral energy distribution from Herschel maps, we derive gas column densities and dust temperatures. The gas column density has values in the range from 6.3 x 10 20 to 1.4 x 10 23  cm –2 , while the dust temperature has values in the range from 17 to 43 K. The gas column density derived from the dust emission is approximately described by a lognormal function for a limited range of column densities. A high-column-density tail is clearly evident for the gas column density distribution, which appears to be a common feature in regions with active star formation. There are regional variations in the fraction of the mass recovered by the CO emission lines with respect to the total mass traced by the dust emission. These variations may be related to changes in the radiation field strength, variation of the atomic to molecular gas fraction across the observed region, differences in the CO molecule abundance with respect to H 2 , and evolutionary stage differences of the molecular clouds that compose the Carina Nebula–Gum 31 complex.

Description: We present a catalogue of starless and protostellar clumps associated with infrared dark clouds (IRDCs) in a 40° wide region of the inner Galactic plane (| b | ≤ 1°). We have extracted the far-infrared (FIR) counterparts of 3493 IRDCs with known distance in the Galactic longitude range 15° ≤ l ≤ 55° and searched for the young clumps using Herschel infrared Galactic plane survey, the survey of the Galactic plane carried out with the Herschel satellite. Each clump is identified as a compact source detected at 160, 250 and 350 μm. The clumps have been classified as protostellar or starless, based on their emission (or lack of emission) at 70 μm. We identify 1723 clumps, 1056 (61 per cent) of which are protostellar and 667 (39 per cent) starless. These clumps are found within 764 different IRDCs, 375 (49 per cent) of which are only associated with protostellar clumps, 178 (23 per cent) only with starless clumps, and 211 (28 per cent) with both categories of clumps. The clumps have a median mass of ~250 M and range up to 〉10 4  M in mass and up to 10 5  L in luminosity. The mass–radius distribution shows that almost 30 per cent of the starless clumps identified in this survey could form high-mass stars; however these massive clumps are confined in only ~=4 per cent of the IRDCs. Assuming a minimum mass surface density threshold for the formation of high-mass stars, the comparison of the numbers of massive starless clumps and those already containing embedded sources suggests an upper limit lifetime for the starless phase of ~10 5  yr for clumps with a mass M 〉 500 M .

Description: We present large-scale trends in the distribution of star-forming objects revealed by the Hi-GAL survey. As a simple metric probing the prevalence of star formation in Hi-GAL sources, we define the fraction of the total number of Hi-GAL sources with a 70 μm counterpart as the ‘star-forming fraction’ or SFF. The mean SFF in the inner galactic disc (3.1 kpc 〈 R GC 〈 8.6 kpc) is 25 per cent. Despite an apparent pile-up of source numbers at radii associated with spiral arms, the SFF shows no significant deviations at these radii, indicating that the arms do not affect the star-forming productivity of dense clumps either via physical triggering processes or through the statistical effects of larger source samples associated with the arms. Within this range of Galactocentric radii, we find that the SFF declines with R GC at a rate of –0.026 ±0.002 per kiloparsec, despite the dense gas mass fraction having been observed to be constant in the inner Galaxy. This suggests that the SFF may be weakly dependent on one or more large-scale physical properties of the Galaxy, such as metallicity, radiation field, pressure or shear, such that the dense sub-structures of molecular clouds acquire some internal properties inherited from their environment.

Description: The p63 transcription factor, homolog to the p53 tumor suppressor gene, plays a crucial role in epidermal and limb development, as its mutations are associated to human congenital syndromes characterized by skin, craniofacial and limb defects. While limb and skin-specific p63 transcriptional targets are being discovered, little is known of the post-translation modifications controlling Np63 α functions. Here we show that the p300 acetyl-transferase physically interacts in vivo with Np63 α and catalyzes its acetylation on lysine 193 (K193) inducing Np63 α stabilization and activating specific transcriptional functions. Furthermore we show that Fibroblast Growth Factor-8 (FGF8), a morphogenetic signaling molecule essential for embryonic limb development, increases the binding of Np63 α to the tyrosine kinase c-Abl as well as the levels of Np63 α acetylation. Notably, the natural mutant Np63 α -K193E, associated to the Split-Hand/Foot Malformation-IV syndrome, cannot be acetylated by this pathway. This mutant Np63 α protein displays promoter-specific loss of DNA binding activity and consequent altered expression of development-associated Np63 α target genes. Our results link FGF8, c-Abl and p300 in a regulatory pathway that controls Np63 α protein stability and transcriptional activity. Hence, limb malformation-causing p63 mutations, such as the K193E mutation, are likely to result in aberrant limb development via the combined action of altered protein stability and altered promoter occupancy.

Description: We report the discovery of a new young stellar cluster in the outer Galaxy located at the position of an IRAS Point Source Catalog source that has been previously misidentified as an external galaxy. The cluster is seen in our near-infrared imaging towards IRAS 04186+5143 and in archive Spitzer images confirming the young stellar nature of the sources detected. There is also evidence of subclustering seen in the spatial distributions of young stars and of gas and dust. Near- and mid-infrared photometry indicates that the stars exhibit colours compatible with reddening by interstellar and circumstellar dust and are likely to be low- and intermediate-mass young stellar objects (YSOs) with a large proportion of Class I YSOs. Ammonia and CO lines were detected, with the CO emission well centred near the position of the richest part of the cluster. The velocity of the CO and NH 3 lines indicates that the gas is Galactic and located at a distance of about 5.5 kpc, in the outer Galaxy. Herschel data of this region characterize the dust environment of this molecular cloud core where the young cluster is embedded. We derive masses, luminosities, and temperatures of the molecular clumps where the young stars reside and discuss their evolutionary stages.

Description: Megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts (MLC), a rare leukodystrophy characterized by macrocephaly, subcortical fluid cysts and myelin vacuolation, has been linked to mutations in the MLC1 gene. This gene encodes a membrane protein that is highly expressed in astrocytes. Based on MLC pathological features, it was proposed that astrocyte-mediated defects in ion and fluid homeostasis could account for the alterations observed in MLC-affected brains. However, the role of MLC1 and the effects of pathological mutations on astrocyte osmoregulatory functions have still to be demonstrated. Using human astrocytoma cells stably overexpressing wild-type MLC1 or three known MLC-associated pathological mutations, we investigated MLC1 involvement in astrocyte reaction to osmotic changes using biochemical, dynamic video imaging and immunofluorescence techniques. We have found that MLC1 overexpressed in astrocytoma cells is mainly localized in the plasma membrane, is part of the Na,K-ATPase-associated molecular complex that includes the potassium channel Kir4.1, syntrophin and aquaporin-4 and functionally interacts with the calcium permeable channel TRPV4 (transient receptor potential vanilloid-4 cation channel) which mediates swelling-induced cytosolic calcium increase and volume recovery in response to hyposmosis. Pathological MLC mutations cause changes in MLC1 expression and intracellular localization as well as in the astrocyte response to osmotic changes by altering MLC1 molecular interactions with the Na,K-ATPase molecular complex and abolishing the increase in calcium influx induced by hyposmosis and treatment with the TRPV4 agonist 4αPDD. These data demonstrate, for the first time, that MLC1 plays a role in astrocyte osmo-homeostasis and that defects in intracellular calcium dynamics may contribute to MLC pathogenesis.

Description: SUMMARY We present a new crustal model for the European Plate, derived from collection and critical integration of information selected from the literature. The model covers the whole European Plate from North Africa to the North Pole (20°N–90°N) and from the Mid-Atlantic Ridge to the Urals (40°W–70°E). The chosen parametrization represents the crust in three layers (sediments, upper crust and lower crust), and describes the 3-D geometry of the interfaces and seismologically relevant parameters—isotropic P - and S -wave velocity, plus density—with a resolution of 0.5°× 0.5° on a geographical latitude–longitude grid. We selected global and local models, derived from geological assumptions, active seismic experiments, surface wave studies, noise correlation, receiver functions. Model EPcrust presents significant advantages with respect to previous models: it covers the whole European Plate; it is a complete and internally-consistent model (with all the parameters provided, also for the sedimentary layer); it is reproducible; it is easy to update in the future by adding new contributions; and it is available in a convenient digital format. EPcrust could be used to account for crustal structure in seismic wave propagation modelling at continental scale or to compute linearized crustal corrections in continental scale seismic tomography, gravity studies, dynamic topography and other applications that require a reliable crustal structure. Because of its resolution, our model is not suited for local-scale studies, such as the computation of earthquake scenarios, where more detailed knowledge of the structure is required. We plan to update the model as new data will become available, and possibly improve its resolution for selected areas in the future.