0000000001330316
AUTHOR
Marco Zaccaroni
Endophytic Bacteria Associated with Origanum heracleoticum L. (Lamiaceae) Seeds
Seed-associated microbiota are believed to play a crucial role in seed germination, seedling establishment, and plant growth and fitness stimulation, due to the vertical transmission of a core microbiota from seeds to the next generations. It might be hypothesized that medicinal and aromatic plants could use the seeds as vectors to vertically transfer beneficial endophytes, providing plants with metabolic pathways that could influence phytochemicals production. Here, we investigated the localization, the structure and the composition of the bacterial endophytic population that resides in Origanum heracleoticum L. seeds. Endocellular bacteria, surrounded by a wall, were localized close to th…
Aliens Coming by Ships: Distribution and Origins of the Ocellated Skink Populations in Peninsular Italy
The ocellated skink (Chalcides ocellatus) is a widespread lizard, naturally distributed between the Maghreb and coastal Pakistan, with few insular populations in the Mediterranean coastal area. Some populations of this species have also been recorded in peninsular Italy, Campania and Southern Tuscany due to accidental introductions via touristic and commercial routes. In this work, we conducted genetic analyses on mitochondrial DNA COXI, cytb and 16S mtDNA genes on a sample of Italian insular and peninsular populations. Differently from what previously suggested, the nucleus in Portici (Southern Italy) may have originated from Sardinia. The intense trade and touristic traffic between Sardin…
Genomic Analysis of Endophytic Bacillus-Related Strains Isolated from the Medicinal Plant Origanum vulgare L. Revealed the Presence of Metabolic Pathways Involved in the Biosynthesis of Bioactive Compounds
Multidrug-resistant pathogens represent a serious threat to human health. The inefficacy of traditional antibiotic drugs could be surmounted through the exploitation of natural bioactive compounds of which medicinal plants are a great reservoir. The finding that bacteria living inside plant tissues, (i.e., the endophytic bacterial microbiome) can influence the synthesis of the aforementioned compounds leads to the necessity of unraveling the mechanisms involved in the determination of this symbiotic relationship. Here, we report the genome sequence of four endophytic bacterial strains isolated from the medicinal plant Origanum vulgare L. and able to antagonize the growth of opportunistic pa…
Novel Sources of Biodiversity and Biomolecules from Bacteria Isolated from a High Middle Ages Soil Sample in Palermo (Sicily, Italy)
: The urban plan of Palermo (Sicily, Italy) has evolved throughout Punic, Roman, Byzantine, Arab, and Norman ages until it stabilized within the borders that correspond to the current historic center. During the 2012 to 2013 excavation campaign, new remains of the Arab settlement, directly implanted above the structures of the Roman age, were found. The materials investigated in this study derived from the so-called Survey No 3, which consists of a rock cavity of subcylindrical shape covered with calcarenite blocks: it was probably used to dispose of garbage during the Arabic age and its content, derived from daily activities, included grape seeds, scales and bones of fish, small animal bon…
Eliciting stakeholders’ preferences towards numerical control of invasive alien mammals: a factorial survey approach with the Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) in Italy.
Management schemes for invasive mammals that may involve direct shooting of animals must possess two fundamental attributes for working: being attractive for voluntary hunters, who often replace professional gamekeepers, and being accepted by the general public, which would otherwise delegitimize agencies. Traditionally, surveys are adopted to elicit the management preferences of these two stakeholders and to inform policy-makers. However, they suffer from social desirability bias and factorial surveys, where respondents evaluate hypothetical scenarios describing alternative management options, are supposed to be a more effective tool. We tested the effectiveness of factorial surveys to mea…