Search results for "SICILIAN"
showing 10 items of 909 documents
Relationships among Abies nebrodensis, A. alba and A. cephalonica in the morphological and anatomical needle characteristics
2017
AbstractWe used 39 morphological and anatomical needle traits in the biometric comparisons Abies nebrodensis with A. alba and A. cephalonica. The multivariate analyses were utilised and a closer relationship of A. nebrodensis to A. cephalonica than to A. alba was detected, in contrast to what has been shown for cone characteristics.
Dispersal of Egyptian Vultures Neophron percnopterus: the first case of long-distance relocation of an individual from France to Sicily.
2016
ABSTRACTKnowledge of juvenile dispersal is important for understanding population dynamics and for effective conservation, particularly of geographically isolated raptor populations. Here, we report the first documented case of a long-distance movement of an Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus from the French population to Sicily. This observation opens a new perspective for the conservation of the small and endangered Sicilian population of this species, providing evidence that persistence of the Italian population may be aided by new input from other countries.
Tracking the invasion of the red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii (Girard, 1852) (Decapoda Cambaridae) in Sicily: a “citizen science” approach
2017
Author(s): Faraone, Francesco Paolo; Giacalone, Gabriele; Canale, Domenica Emanuela; D'Angelo, Stefania; Favaccio, Giorgio; Garozzo, Vincenzo; Giancontieri, Giacoma Lidia; Isgro, Carmelo; Melfi, Raffaella; Morello, Bruno; Navarria, Federica; Russo, Giuseppe; Tinnirello, Viviana; Torre, Antonio; Torre, Daniele; Torre, Giancarlo; Urso, Giuseppe; Vinci, Pierluigi; Zizzo, Maria Grazia; Marrone, Federico | Abstract: The first record of the red swamp crayfish in Sicily dates back to 2003 and, since then, the species seemed to be confined to a few localities in western Sicily. A small “citizen science” project carried out from November 2016 onwards led to the creation of the “Sicilian Procambarus …
Robust link prediction in criminal networks: A case study of the Sicilian Mafia
2020
Abstract Link prediction exercises may prove particularly challenging with noisy and incomplete networks, such as criminal networks. Also, the link prediction effectiveness may vary across different relations within a social group. We address these issues by assessing the performance of different link prediction algorithms on a mafia organization. The analysis relies on an original dataset manually extracted from the judicial documents of operation “Montagna”, conducted by the Italian law enforcement agencies against individuals affiliated with the Sicilian Mafia. To run our analysis, we extracted two networks: one including meetings and one recording telephone calls among suspects, respect…
Anti-Listeria activity of lactic acid bacteria in two traditional Sicilian cheeses
2017
<em>Listeria monocytogenes</em> is a pathogen frequently found in dairy products, and its growth is difficult to control. Bacteriocinlike inhibitory substances (BLIS), produced by lactic acid bacteria (LAB), having proven <em>in vitro</em> anti-<em>Listeria</em> activity, could provide an innovative approach to control <em>L. monocytogenes</em>; however, this application needs to be evaluated <em>in vivo</em>. In this study, twenty LAB strains isolated from different Sicilian dairy environments were tested for control of growth of <em>L. monocytogenes</em> in three different experimental trials. First, raw and UHT milk …
Hereditary breast and ovarian cancer in families from southern Italy (Sicily)—Prevalence and geographic distribution of pathogenic variants in BRCA1/…
2020
Recent advances in the detection of germline pathogenic variants (PVs) in BRCA1/2 genes have allowed a deeper understanding of the BRCA-related cancer risk. Several studies showed a significant heterogeneity in the prevalence of PVs across different populations. Because little is known about this in the Sicilian population, our study was aimed at investigating the prevalence and geographic distribution of inherited BRCA1/2 PVs in families from this specific geographical area of Southern Italy. We retrospectively collected and analyzed all clinical information of 1346 hereditary breast and/or ovarian cancer patients genetically tested for germline BRCA1/2 PVs at University Hospital Policlini…
Allele frequencies distribution of 16 forensic STR loci in a Western Sicilian population sample
2017
Abstract The PowerPlex® ESI 17 Fast and ESX 17 Fast Systems represent faster cycling versions released by Promega® to follow the requirements of ENFSI and EDNAP groups’ for new STR genotyping systems in Europe. Allele frequencies and forensic parameters were estimated in a population sample of 120 unrelated healthy individuals living in Sicily (Western Sicilian population sample) using PowerPlex® ESI 17 Fast and PowerPlex® 17 Fast Systems. Full concordance of the results for both systems was observed. No significant deviation from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was detected. The observed heterozygosity changed from 0.85833 for FGA to 0.95 for TH01. The combined power of discrimination for the 1…
The Gemmellaro Collection: first record of an anomuran from the Tithonian of Sicily, Italy
2017
A recent field trip to Sicily and an examination of decapod crustacean collections at the Museo Geologico G.G. Gemmellaro in the centre of Palermo, Sicily (Italy), has demonstrated that most of the anomuran and brachyuran material described by Gemmellaro (Gemmellaro GG. 1869. Studi paleontologici sulla fauna del Calcare àTerebratula janitordel nord di Sicilia. Palermo: Lao, vol. 1, pp. 11–18) from the Tithonian of that island is still present. Interestingly, a single specimen in this lot was never mentioned, described or illustrated by that author. The species to which this particular individual is here shown to belong,Gastrosacus tuberosus, was first described and named 26 years later, in …
Multifaceted Health Benefits of Mangifera indica L. (Mango): The Inestimable Value of Orchards Recently Planted in Sicilian Rural Areas
2017
Historically, Mangifera indica L. cultivations have been widely planted in tropical areas of India, Africa, Asia, and Central America. However, at least 20 years ago its spreading allowed the development of some cultivars in Sicily, an island to the south of Italy, where the favourable subtropical climate and adapted soils represent the perfect field to create new sources of production for the Sicilian agricultural supply chain. Currently, cultivations of Kensington Pride, Keitt, Glenn, Maya, and Tommy Atkins varieties are active in Sicily and their products meet the requirements of local and European markets. Mango plants produce fleshy stone fruits rich in phytochemicals with an undispute…
Shared language, diverging genetic histories: high-resolution analysis of Y-chromosome variability in Calabrian and Sicilian Arbereshe.
2015
The relationship between genetic and linguistic diversification in human populations has been often explored to interpret some specific issues in human history. The Albanian-speaking minorities of Sicily and Southern Italy (Arbereshe) constitute an important portion of the ethnolinguistic variability of Italy. Their linguistic isolation from neighboring Italian populations and their documented migration history, make such minorities particularly effective for investigating the interplay between cultural, geographic and historical factors. Nevertheless, the extent of Arbereshe genetic relationships with the Balkan homeland and the Italian recipient populations has been only partially investi…