Search results for " Seconda"
showing 10 items of 975 documents
New insights on secondary minerals from Italian sulfuric acid caves
2018
Sulfuric acid minerals are important clues to identify the speleogenetic phases of hypogene caves. Italy hosts ~25% of the known worldwide sulfuric acid speleogenetic (SAS) systems, including the famous well-studied Frasassi, Monte Cucco, and Acquasanta Terme caves. Nevertheless, other underground environments have been analyzed, and interesting mineralogical assemblages were found associated with peculiar geomorphological features such as cupolas, replacement pockets, feeders, sulfuric notches, and sub-horizontal levels. In this paper, we focused on 15 cave systems located along the Apennine Chain, in Apulia, in Sicily, and in Sardinia, where copious SAS minerals were observed. Some of the…
Changes of energy fluxes in marine animal forests of the anthropocene: Factors shaping the future seascape
2019
12 pages, 3 figures
Transcriptional responses to pre-flowering leaf defoliation in grapevine berry from different growing sites, years, and genotypes
2017
Leaf removal is a grapevine canopy management technique widely used to modify the sourceâsink balance and/or microclimate around berry clusters to optimize fruit composition. In general, the removal of basal leaves before flowering reduces fruit set, hence achieving looser clusters, and improves grape composition since yield is generally curtailed more than proportionally to leaf area itself. Albeit responses to this practice seem quite consistent, overall vine performance is affected by genotype, environmental conditions, and severity of treatment. The physiological responses of grape varieties to defoliation practices have been widely investigated, and just recently a whole genome trans…
The effect of RNA substitution models on viroid and RNA virus phylogenies.
2018
Abstract Many viroids and RNA viruses have genomes that exhibit secondary structure, with paired nucleotides forming stems and loops. Such structures violate a key assumption of most methods of phylogenetic reconstruction, that sequence change is independent among sites. However, phylogenetic analyses of these transmissible agents rarely use evolutionary models that account for RNA secondary structure. Here, we assess the effect of using RNA-specific nucleotide substitution models on the phylogenetic inference of viroids and RNA viruses. We obtained data sets comprising full-genome nucleotide sequences from six viroid and ten single-stranded RNA virus species. For each alignment, we inferre…
Increased illumination levels enhance biosynthesis of aloenin A and aloin B in Aloe arborescens Mill., but lower their per-plant yield
2021
Abstract Leaves of Aloe arborescens Mill. are a relevant source of secondary metabolites of pharmaceutical relevance. Notwithstanding, specialized cultivations of A. arborescens are still rather limited, and a straightforward agronomical research addressed to the obtainment of high-quality material is lacking. With the purpose to fill this gap, from 2016 to 2018, a trial was arranged to evaluate the growth and development of A. arborescens, along with the production of four active metabolites (aloin A and B, aloenin A, and isoaloeresin D) with varying some growth conditions. Two growth substrates (“A”- a commercial substrate, and “B”- the same substrate + 20 % perlite), two durations of pre…
Effects of temperature on total phenolic compounds in Cystoseira amentacea (C. Agardh) Bory (Fucales, Phaeophyceae) from southern Mediterranean Sea
2015
The aim of this study was to test the effects of temperature on phenolic content of the brown seaweed Cystoseira amentacea. Phenolic compounds are secondary metabolites involved in different protection mechanisms as, for example, against grazers, epiphytes and UV radiation. Seasonal variations of phenolic content in C. amentacea were analysed and laboratory experiments, in which C. amentacea was exposed to an increase of temperature (25°C and 30°C), were performed. Total phenolic content (TPC) was determined colorimetrically with the Folin–Ciocalteu reagent. In C. amentacea, a seasonal pattern in TPC was observed, with a maximum value in winter-spring. C. amentacea responded significantly t…
SHAPE MATTERS: EFFECT OF POINT MUTATIONS ON RNA SECONDARY STRUCTURE
2013
A suitable model to dive into the properties of genotype-phenotype landscapes is the relationship between RNA sequences and their corresponding minimum free energy secondary structures. Relevant issues related to molecular evolvability and robustness to mutations have been studied in this framework. Here, we analyze the one-mutant neighborhood of the predicted secondary structure of 46 different RNAs, including tRNAs, viroids, larger molecules such as Hepatitis-δ virus, and several random sequences. The probability distribution of the effect of point mutations in linear structural motifs of the secondary structure is well fit by Pareto or Lognormal probability distributions functions, indep…
Experimental climate warming alters the relationship between fungal root symbiosis and Sphagnum litter phenolics in two peatland microhabitats
2017
International audience; Belowground interactions between plants and microorganisms are involved in numerous ecosystems processes such as carbon and nutrient cycling. Understanding their responses to on-going climate warming is thus of paramount importance to better predict future ecosystem functioning. We hypothesized that climate warming alters the interactions between Sphagnum litter phenolics and the fungal root symbiosis of the Ericale plant Andromeda polifolia in a Jura mountain peatland (France). We initiate a climate warming treatment (+1°C) in April 2008 in two microhabitats (lawns and hummocks). We measured polyphenolic contents, mycorrhizal and dark septate endophyte (DSE) root co…
Assessment of production and qualitative characteristics of different populations of Salvia sclarea L. found in Sicily (Italy)
2021
Salvia sclarea L. is an important industrial crop, valued for its herbal-aromatic properties and high quality essential oils, that is used in food, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. In this study, carried out from 2009 to 2010, the morphological and production characteristics and essential oil content and composition of three Sicilian populations were studied. In particular, the composition of essential oils extracted from primary and secondary inflorescences using steam distillation was assessed. Morphological, production and qualitative data from the three populations were subjected to analysis of variance and cluster analysis. Regarding the quality of the oils, only the most prevalent compo…
Antiinflammatory Therapy with Canakinumab for Atherosclerotic Disease
2017
Background: Experimental and clinical data suggest that reducing inflammation without affecting lipid levels may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Yet, the inflammatory hypothesis of atherothrombosis has remained unproved. Methods: We conducted a randomized, double-blind trial of canakinumab, a therapeutic monoclonal antibody targeting interleukin-1β, involving 10,061 patients with previous myocardial infarction and a high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level of 2 mg or more per liter. The trial compared three doses of canakinumab (50 mg, 150 mg, and 300 mg, administered subcutaneously every 3 months) with placebo. The primary efficacy end point was nonfatal myocardial infarction, …