Search results for "Systematic"
showing 10 items of 7608 documents
Settling Down: The Genome of Serratia symbiotica from the Aphid Cinara tujafilina Zooms in on the Process of Accommodation to a Cooperative Intracell…
2014
Particularly interesting cases of mutualistic endosymbioses come from the establishment of co-obligate associations of more than one species of endosymbiotic bacteria. Throughout symbiotic accommodation from a free-living bacterium, passing through a facultative stage and ending as an obligate intracellular one, the symbiont experiences massive genomic losses and phenotypic adjustments. Here, we scrutinized the changes in the coevolution of Serratia symbiotica and Buchnera aphidicola endosymbionts in aphids, paying particular attention to the transformations undergone by S. symbiotica to become an obligate endosymbiont. Although it is already known that S. symbiotica is facultative in Acyrt…
Actors’ Dynamic Value Co-creation and Co-destruction Behavior in Service Systems : A Structured Literature Review
2020
This paper investigates resource integration and social interaction as the two core processes of value co-creation and co-destruction in a service system. We applied a structured literature review as our research methodology to develop a framework to depict the components of value co-creation and co-destruction processes and to understand the behavioral drivers of service system actors as well as the positive and negative value outcomes derived through resource integration and social interaction. By analyzing the 51 papers that meet the inclusion criteria, we found that actors’ engagement in value creation process are motivated by different behavioral drivers. Then, applying resource integr…
Assessing the quality of service to customers provided by water utilities: A synthetic index approach
2017
Abstract Currently, water and sewer companies face the challenge of improving their quality of service to customers (QSC). Performance indicators are essential to monitor and benchmark the QSC of water companies; however, individual indicators do not provide a holistic evaluation of the quality of water and sewer services provided to customers. This study proposes an innovative QSC index based on distance-function techniques that makes it possible to compare changes in the QSC of water companies among locations and temporal periods. A case study assesses changes in QSC for a sample of Chilean water and sewer companies from 2007 to 2014. The results show that in spite of the efforts made by …
Wine and Its Legality-A Survey to Know the Consumer Opinions on the Activities of Sicilian Wine Companies Operating on Lands Confiscated from the Maf…
2014
The current guidelines of the European Union Common Agricultural Policy face the agricultural sector in the position of the backbone for the economic development of rural areas and regions with difficult economic differentiation. The EU Common Agricultural Policy defines agriculture as “multifunctional” and among the different roles and functions expected, there is also the “social function”, defined as the ability that the farm has to generate services with respect to a population with risk of social exclusion. This paper investigated all the agricultural initiatives with social impacts that were carried in the lands confiscated from the organized crime (called mafia), mainly in the South …
Ethnobotany, Phytochemistry, Biological, and Nutritional Properties of Genus Crepis—A Review
2022
The genus Crepis L., included within the Asteraceae family, has a very wide distribution, expanding throughout the northern hemisphere, including Europe, northern Africa, and temperate Asia. This genus has a fundamental value from biodynamic and ecological perspectives, with the different species often being chosen for soil conservation, for environmental sustainability, and for their attraction towards pollinating species. Furthermore, various species of Crepis have been used in the popular medicine of several countries as medicinal herbs and food since ancient times. In most cases, the species is consumed either in the form of a decoction, or as a salad, and is used for its cardiovascular…
Genetic variability of Chamaerops humilis (Arecaceae) throughout its native range highlights two species movement pathways from its area of origin
2023
AbstractThe European fan palm (Chamaerops humilis, Arecaceae) is the only native palm in continental Europe, providing ecosystem services that are hard to obtain from other species. However, its populations are declining in some areas due to anthropogenic effects including climate change. Knowledge of genetic variability among natural populations is needed to establish conservation plans, to prevent genetic contamination of native stands by cultivated germplasm and to exploit it as an ornamental species. However, information on the genetic similarities among C. humilis populations is scarce. The aims of this work were to study genetic structure in C. humilis using a set of specifically desi…
Micropropagation of Endemic Endangered Taxa of the Italian Flora: Adenostyles alpina subsp. macrocephala (Asteraceae), as a Case Study
2023
The conservation of endangered, rare, and endemic plant species is based on in situ and ex situ conservation strategies. When in situ conservation alone is not sufficient to guarantee the survival of the species, ex situ techniques are adopted in support. This study aimed to develop an efficient micropropagation protocol for Adenostyles by evaluating the effect of different plant growth regulators on leaf explants. Adenostyles alpina subsp. macrocephala (Asterace) is a perennial herbaceous plant endemic to Calabria (Southern Italy). The genus Adenostyles includes three species confined to the mountains of the Mediterranean and southern Europe. For callus induction, media supplemented with d…
The Pattern of Rare Earth Elements Like a Possible Helpful Tool in Traceability and Geographical Characterization of the Soil-Olive System (Olea euro…
2022
The identification of a product, with its geographical origin, is a guaranty of the value of the foodstuff and protection from potential fraud. Extra virgin olive oil is produced or marketed as a single variety or a blend of two or more cultivars, often of different geographic origins. Therefore, to study a possible link between the soil and olive oil, we accounted crucial to analyse the behaviour of olive of different cultivars. We studied Rare Earth Elements (REE) amounts and their relationship to trace their distribution from soil to the olive pulp (Olea europea L.). The results obtained pointed out that the different cultivars of Olea did not drive significant differences in reciprocal …
Considerations on systematics of the Phytoseiidae (Acari: Mesostigmata), with definition of a new species group and description of a new species
2015
The authors debate some aspects of the classification of the Phytoseiidae, especially the subfamily Typhlodrominae. Within this taxon, the rhenanus group is the most numerous species group of Typhlodromus (Anthoseius), with 206 nominal species. Detailed observation of morphological characters of the species in this group showed a considerable variation, suggesting the presence of different natural lineages. The discovery of the new species here described, Typhlodromus (Anthoseius) sandrae Ragusa & Tsolakis n. sp., allowed the definition of the new porathi species group. Definition of the new species group, a dichotomous key as well as the description of the new species are given.
Essential Oils as Nematicides in Plant Protection-A Review
2023
By 2030, the European Commission intends to halve chemical pesticide use and its consequent risks. Among pesticides, nematicides are chemical agents used to control parasitic roundworms in agriculture. In recent decades, researchers have been looking for more sustainable alternatives with the same effectiveness but a limited impact on the environment and ecosystems. Essential oils (EOs) are similar bioactive compounds and potential substitutes. Different studies on the use of EOs as nematicides are available in the Scopus database in the scientific literature. These works show a wider exploration of EO effects in vitro than in vivo on different nematode populations. Nevertheless, a review o…