Sinkholes: dissoluzione delle evaporiti in Sicilia centromeridionale

Morpho-agronomic and genetic diversity among twelve sicilian agro-ecotypes of lentil (Lens culinaris)

Although Sicily is relatively small (about 25000 km2), it accounts for several agro-ecotypes of lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.), for many of which no data on morphological, agronomic, and organoleptic characteristics are available to date. Thus, experiments were performed to characterize 12 lentil agro-ecotypes from different areas of Sicily, including some small islands surrounding the main island, and to assess the extent of genetic diversity (by means of six inter-simple sequence repeat [ISSR] primers). A famous agro-ecotype from central Italy (Castelluccio di Norcia) and two commercial varieties from Canada (Eston and Laird) were also included in the study. The results showed a large deg…

Sulla (Hedysarum coronarium L.) leaves and stems as a potential biofuel feedstock

Sulla (Hedysarum coronarium L. syn., Sulla coronaria [L.] Medik.) is a short-lived perennial legume native to the Mediterranean basin, where it is extensively grown as a 2-year forage crop playing a key role in cereal-based systems of semi-arid regions thanks to its versatility, (e.g., used for grazing, hay and silage production, and grazing associated with hay production), good-quality forage, and environmental benefits. To date, sulla has not been considered as a bioenergy crop. This research aimed to evaluate the potential of sulla biomass as a biofuel feedstock; in addition, due to the possibility to separate the leaves from the stems as suggested for alfalfa, the biomass composition wa…

Rhynchophorus ferrugineus attack affects a group of compounds rather than rearranging Phoenix canariensis metabolic pathways.

The red palm weevil (RPW; Rhynchophorus ferrugineus) is spreading worldwide and severely harming many palm species. However, most studies on RPW focused on insect biology, and little information is available about the plant response to the attack. In the present experiment, we used metabolomics to study the alteration of the leaf metabolome of Phoenix canariensis at initial (1st stage) or advanced (2nd stage) attack by RPW compared with healthy (unattacked) plants. The leaf metabolome significantly varied among treatments. At the 1st stage of attack, plants showed a reprogramming of carbohydrate and organic acid metabolism; in contrast, peptides and lipid metabolic pathways underwent more c…