Search results for "MBI"
showing 10 items of 15110 documents
The problem of misidentification between edible and poisonous wild plants: Reports from the Mediterranean area
2018
Abstract Today, in many European countries, people are looking for wild edible plants to experience new tastes and flavors, by following the new trend of being green and environmentally friendly. Young borage and spinach leaves can be easily confused by inexpert pickers with those of other plants, including poisonous ones, such as Mandragora autumnalis Bertol. (mandrake) or Digitalis purpurea L. (foxglove), common in southern and northern Italy respectively. In the last twenty years, several cases of intoxication by accidental ingestion of mandrake and foxglove have been reported. The purpose of this work was to perform a pharmacognostic characterization of young leaves from borage, mandrak…
Cnidarian Interaction with Microbial Communities: From Aid to Animal’s Health to Rejection Responses
2018
The phylum Cnidaria is an ancient branch in the tree of metazoans. Several species exert a remarkable longevity, suggesting the existence of a developed and consistent defense mechanism of the innate immunity capable to overcome the potential repeated exposure to microbial pathogenic agents. Increasing evidence indicates that the innate immune system in Cnidarians is not only involved in the disruption of harmful microorganisms, but also is crucial in structuring tissue-associated microbial communities that are essential components of the Cnidarian holobiont and useful to the animal’s health for several functions, including metabolism, immune defense, development, and behavior. Someti…
Conservation of the endangered Mediterranean tortoise Testudo hermanni hermanni: The contribution of population genetics and historical demography
2016
International audience; Estimating the genetic variation and demographic trends of species in decline is of major concern in conservation genetics. This study contributes to understanding how historical and anthropogenic factors shape the distribution of current genetic diversity in one of the most endangered reptiles in Western Europe, the Hermann's tortoise Testudo hermanni hermanni. We used 17 microsatellite loci, chosen from a pyrosequencing library specifically developed for the subspecies to genotype eight populations distributed over about 30 sample localities covering almost the entire geographic distribution of the sub-species. The population genetic results reflect a very strong g…
Ecological plant epigenetics: Evidence from model and non-model species, and the way forward
2017
Growing evidence shows that epigenetic mechanisms contribute to complex traits, with implications across many fields of biology. In plant ecology, recent studies have attempted to merge ecological experiments with epigenetic analyses to elucidate the contribution of epigenetics to plant phenotypes, stress responses, adaptation to habitat, and range distributions. While there has been some progress in revealing the role of epigenetics in ecological processes, studies with non-model species have so far been limited to describing broad patterns based on anonymous markers of DNA methylation. In contrast, studies with model species have benefited from powerful genomic resources, which contribute…
Evaluation of the DNA barcoding approach to develop a reference data-set for the threatened flora of Sicily
2014
The Mediterranean Basin is one of the most significantly altered World Biodiversity Hotspots with extensive habitat loss and fast genetic population erosion, for which urgent biodiversity reconnaissance and preservation actions are required. In particular, Sicily has about 600 taxa classified as threatened or near-threatened. The correct recognition and identification of such biodiversity is required for supporting further activities. The objective of this work is to assess the ability of the DNA barcoding approach to identify different taxonomic groups from a collection of the most threatened plant taxa, throughout natural Sicilian populations. The evaluation of the DNA barcoding core mark…
Natural Occurrence of Secondary Bacterial Symbionts in Aphids from Tunisia, with a Focus on Genus Hyalopterus
2018
Aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae) can harbor two types of bacterial symbionts. In addition to the obligate endosymbiont Buchnera aphidicola Munson, Baumann and Kinsey 1991 (Enterobacteriales: Enterobacteriaceae), several facultative symbiotic bacteria, called secondary (S) symbionts, have been identified among many important pest aphid species. To determine interpopulational diversity of S-symbionts, we carried out a survey in a total of 18 populations of six aphid species collected from six localities in Tunisia, by performing a diagnostic polymerase chain reaction analysis of partial 16S-23S rRNA operon sequences. While 61.7% of individuals contained only Buchnera, three S-symbionts were foun…
Microbial symbionts expanding or constraining abiotic niche space in insects
2020
In addition to their well-studied contributions to their host’s nutrition, digestion, and defense, microbial symbionts of insects are increasingly found to affect their host’s response toward abiotic stressors. In particular, symbiotic microbes can reduce or enhance tolerance to temperature extremes, improve desiccation resistance by aiding cuticle biosynthesis and sclerotization, and detoxify heavy metals. As such, individual symbionts or microbial communities can expand or constrain the abiotic niche space of their host and determine its adaptability to fluctuating environments. In light of the increasing impact of humans on climate and environment, a better understanding of host-microbe …
Temporal variations in symbiotic hindgut protist community of the subterranean termite Reticulitermes lucifugus Rossi in Sicily.
2015
The dynamics of symbiotic protist communities of Reticulitermes lucifugus ‘‘Sicily’’ were investigated to assess the effects of seasonal environmental conditions and the termite’s feeding activity. In worker and soldier castes, the total protist population (total abundance), individual species abundances, and species proportions in their hindguts were examined monthly from December 2012 to February 2014. The main protist species taken into account were Dinenympha fimbriata Kirby, D. gracilis Leidy, Pyrsonympha flagellata Gras., Spirotrichonympha flagellata Grassi u. Fo` a, Holomastigotes elongatum Grassi u. Fo`a, and Trichonympha agilis Leidy, while others were not specifically identified, …
A self-inducible heterologous protein expression system in Escherichia coli
2016
AbstractEscherichia coli is an important experimental, medical and industrial cell factory for recombinant protein production. The inducible lac promoter is one of the most commonly used promoters for heterologous protein expression in E. coli. Isopropyl-β-D-thiogalactoside (IPTG) is currently the most efficient molecular inducer for regulating this promoter’s transcriptional activity. However, limitations have been observed in large-scale and microplate production, including toxicity, cost and culture monitoring. Here, we report the novel SILEX (Self-InducibLe Expression) system, which is a convenient, cost-effective alternative that does not require cell density monitoring or IPTG inducti…
Notulae to the Italian native vascular flora: 1
2016
In this contribution, new data concerning the Italian distribution of native vascular flora are presented. It includes new records, exclusions, and confirmations pertaining to the Italian administrative regions for taxa in the genera Arundo, Bromopsis, Cistus, Crocus, Festuca, Galeopsis, Genista, Lamium, Leucanthemum, Nerium, Orobanche, Peucedanum, Pilosella, Polycnemum, Stipa and Viola.