A combined analysis based on microbial communities and volatile organic compounds as a tool to study soil quality in an urban environment

<正>Dear Editor,Soil quality is defined as“the capacity of a soil to function,within ecosystem and land use boundaries,to sustain productivity,maintain environmental quality,and promote plant and animal health”(Doran and Parkin 1994).In this context,soil functionality is fundamental to the biosphere and is highly dependent on the associated microbiota.Soil microorganisms are relevant for terrestrial ecosystem functioning,and understanding the functional changes of the biological community i...     

Resistance traits and AFLP characterization of diploid primitive tuber-bearing potatoes

Worldwide, a variety of pathogens negatively affect potato production, resulting in an estimated 22% annual yield reduction. Wild Solanum species represent a unique gene pool where all the traits necessary to improve the cultivated potato can be found. Therefore, breeding efforts for improved disease resistance and research aimed at characterizing wild germplasm have been extensively made. In this paper, sources of resistance to Phytophthora infestans, Erwinia carotovora subsp. carotovora, Fusarium solani and Globodera spp. have been investigated in several clones of two Solanum species originating from Central Mexico (S. bulbocastanum and S. cardiophyllum). Interestingly, we found sources of combined resistance to late blight and bacterial soft rot. This is an important finding considering that the development of resistant potato varieties has been hindered by the scarcity of resistant germplasm. In addition, we explored molecular differences within and between the two species generating AFLP fingerprints. By means of six primer pair combinations, we found 13 and 16 putative species-specific AFLP markers for S. bulbocastanum and S. cardiophyllum, respectively, and a bounty of markers useful for mapping, MAS, and cloning purposes. The phenotypic and molecular information associated to S. bulbocastanum and S. cardiophyllum for designing strategies of assisted selection are discussed.     

Concentrations of platelet α2-adrenoceptors,lymphocyte muscarinic receptors,and blood monoamines in dogs (Canis familiaris) affected by canine cognitive dysfunction syndrome

Canine cognitive dysfunction syndrome (CDS) is a neurodegenerative disorder of aged dogs characterized by a progressive decline in cognitive function. In humans and laboratory animals, a variety of neurotransmitter abnormalities have been described in patients affected by age-related dementia. Specifically, the regulatory role of the catecholaminergic, serotonergic, and cholinergic systems has been outlined. The aim of the present study was to measure blood monoamine levels, platelet α₂-adrenergic receptors, and lymphocyte muscarinic receptors in healthy adult and aged dogs and in dogs affected by canine cognitive dysfunction. Based on clinical and behavioral examination, 40 dogs were divided into 3 groups: healthy adults (n = 14), aged dogs (n = 17), and aged dogs affected by canine cognitive dysfunction (n = 9). A significant reduction in plasma levels of norepinephrine and dopamine was observed both in aged dogs (0.16 ± 0.02 ng/mL, P < 0.01; 0.11 ± 02 ng/mL, P < 0.01, respectively) and in CDS dogs (0.14 ± 0.03 ng/mL, P < 0.05; 0.10 ± 00.005 ng/mL, P < 0.01, respectively) compared with adults (0.29 ± 0.04 ng/mL and 0.15 ± 0.02 ng/mL, respectively). No significant differences were observed among groups for α₂-adrenergic receptor concentrations. Canine lymphocytes express 2 distinct classes of muscarinic receptors, characterized by high (HA) and low affinity (LA) for [³H]-N-methyl-scopolamine. A significant age-dependent decrease in HA muscarinic receptors was observed. However, no differences were found between aged dogs (87.65 ± 11.08 sites/cell × 10²) and in CDS dogs (90.17 ± 6.75 sites/cell × 10² ) for HA muscarinic receptor concentrations. As far as LA muscarinic receptors are concerned, CDS dogs showed a significant increase (393.48 ± 63 sites/cell × 10²; P < 0.05) with respect to healthy adult dogs (188.84 ± 16.50 sites/cell × 10²). Our results suggest that the reduction in HA muscarinic receptor-binding sites could be representative of the physiological aging process, whereas the increase in lymphocyte LA muscarinic receptor levels could be related to the cognitive decline.     

From Genotype to Apricot Fruit Quality: The Antioxidant Properties Contribution

Apricot fruit (Prunus armeniaca L.) quality strictly relates to the eating quality of fresh produce. Since consumers are more and more interested in healthy food, and apricot germplasm shows a wide choice of new selections and cultivars, apricot nutraceutical properties are under evaluation in order to select outstanding genotypes, which may link breeding and marketing. In the present study, 18 apricot genotypes of the Italian and international germplasm were evaluated over three years according to pomological, total antioxidant and total phenols attributes using principal component and hierarchical cluster analyses. The antioxidant capacity ranged from 1.24 to 11.47 μmolTE gFW^?1 and total phenols from 0.22 to 1.58 mgGAE gFW^?1. Four outstanding genotypes stood out as healthy food for fresh consumption which may also be introduced in breeding programs to produce new cultivars with improved nutraceutical values in addition to fruit qualitative attributes.     

Statistical analysis of individual assignment tests among four cattle breeds using fifteen STR loci

Assignment tests based on multilocus genotypes are becoming increasingly important to certify quality and origin of livestock products and assure food safety and authenticity. The purpose of this study was to determine the potential of microsatellites (STR) for determining the breed origin of beef products among cattle breeds present in the market. We typed 19 STR in 269 animals from 4 cattle breeds. Based on Wright's F-statistics, 4 loci were discarded, and the remaining 15 loci (FIT = 0.101, FST = 0.089, and FIS = 0.013) were used to compute the likelihood that each multilocus genotype of the total sample was drawn from its true breed instead of another breed. To avoid occurrence of zero likelihood when one or more alleles were missing from a tested breed, sample allele frequencies were estimated assuming uniform prior distributions. Log-likelihood ratio [log(LR)] distributions of the individual assignments were determined for all possible breed contrasts, and their means and SD were used to infer the true-positive and false-positive rates at several values of the log(LR). The posterior probability that the animals of a presumed breed were actually drawn from that breed instead of any another breed was then calculated. Given an observed value of log(LR) > 0 and assuming equal priors, these probabilities were > 99.5% in 10 of 12 possible breed contrasts. For the 2 most closely related breeds (FST = 0.041), this probability was 96.3%, and the probability of excluding the origin of an animal from an alleged breed when it was actually derived from another breed was similar.     

Effect of Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide on u-PA activity and u-PA and u-PAR RNA expression in a bovine mammary epithelial cell line

It is well known that the plasminogen-activating (PA) system plays a key role in the bovine mammary gland during tissue remodelling. However, the modulation of the PA cascade after bacterial infections needs to be elucidated. This study examined the effects of Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS) on cell viability, the modulation of cell-associated u-PA activity, and the regulation of u-PA and u-PA receptor (u-PAR) RNA expression using the BME-UV1 bovine mammary epithelial cell line. LPS did not affect cell viability, but induced an increase in u-PA activity, with the maximum response after 6 h of incubation. Moreover, u-PA and u-PAR mRNA expression were both up-regulated in BME-UV1 cells after 3 h of incubation with LPS. These data indicated that E. coli LPS led to an increase in u-PA activity and RNA expression of u-PA and u-PAR in BME-UV1 cells, thus strengthening the role of the PA system during pathological processes.     

The Bright Side of Gelatinous Blooms: Nutraceutical Value and Antioxidant Properties of Three Mediterranean Jellyfish (Scyphozoa)

Jellyfish are recorded with increasing frequency and magnitude in many coastal areas and several species display biological features comparable to the most popular Asiatic edible jellyfish. The biochemical and antioxidant properties of wild gelatinous biomasses, in terms of nutritional and nutraceutical values, are still largely unexplored. In this paper, three of the most abundant and commonly recorded jellyfish species (Aurelia sp.1, Cotylorhiza tuberculata and Rhizostoma pulmo) in the Mediterranean Sea were subject to investigation. A sequential enzymatic hydrolysis of jellyfish proteins was set up by pepsin and collagenase treatments of jellyfish samples after aqueous or hydroalcoholic protein extraction. The content and composition of proteins, amino acids, phenolics, and fatty acids of the three species were recorded and compared. Protein content (mainly represented by collagen) up to 40% of jellyfish dry weight were found in two of the three jellyfish species (C. tuberculata and R. pulmo), whereas the presence of ω-3 and ω-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) was significantly higher in the zooxanthellate jellyfish C. tuberculata only. Remarkable antioxidant ability was also recorded from both proteinaceous and non proteinaceous extracts and the hydrolyzed protein fractions in all the three species. The abundance of collagen, peptides and other bioactive molecules make these Mediterranean gelatinous biomasses a largely untapped source of natural compounds of nutraceutical, cosmeceutical and pharmacological interest.     

Medical ethnobotany of the Tabarkins,a Northern Italian (Ligurian) minority in south-western Sardinia

A medico-ethnobotanical study was conducted among the Tabarkin communities living in Calasetta and Carloforte, in south-western Sardinia. These communities represent a Ligurian minority who have resided in Sardinia since their forebears migrated from Tabarka in Tunisia in the second half of the 18th Century, having previously migrated to Tabarka from Genoa in 1544. In this study, we conducted more than 200 interviews and recorded 53 botanical taxa and 72 folk pharmaceutical preparations, which represent the folk medicine of the Tabarkins. The folk phytotherapy of the Tabarkins living in Calasetta and Carloforte is quite restricted compared with other folk phytotherapy recorded in similar recent ethnobotanical studies conducted in Sardinia. This could indicate that there has been a remarkable erosion of Traditional Knowledge (TK) within these two communities. Of particular interest are a few local medical uses we recorded that have never or only very rarely been documented in Italy; namely the use of Dittrichia graveolens (L.) Greuter as an anti-haemorrhoidal, of Centaurea calcitrapa L. as a remedy for malaria, of Glycyrrhiza glabra L. in ophthalmic treatments, and of Urtica dioica L. as an antiviral in cases of German measles. Most of the botanical species quoted in this research are referred to in the two centres using a local Ligurian idiom. Most of the medico-botanical uses we recorded are very similar to those collected in other ethnobotanical surveys carried out in Liguria and south-western Sardinia. Because there was no evidence in this research of any substantial ethnobotanical traces related to the communities’ North-African experience, it would appear that the Tabarkins have readily adopted their host culture’s use of medicinal plants and have retained their own traditional cognitive concepts and knowledge of the natural plant world through the language only.