Responsible Research and Innovation Framework,the Nagoya Protocol and Other European Blue Biotechnology Strategies and Regulations: Gaps Analysis and Recommendations for Increased Knowledge in the Marine Biotechnology Community

As the quest for marine-derived compounds with pharmacological and biotechnological potential upsurges, the importance of following regulations and applying Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) also increases. This article aims at: (1) presenting an overview of regulations and policies at the international and EU level, while demonstrating a variability in their implementation; (2) highlighting the importance of RRI in biodiscovery; and (3) identifying gaps and providing recommendations on how to improve the market acceptability and compliance of novel Blue Biotechnology compounds. This article is the result of the work of the Working Group 4 “Legal aspects, IPR and Ethics” of the COST Action CA18238 Ocean4Biotech, a network of more than 130 Marine Biotechnology scientists and practitioners from 37 countries. Three qualitative surveys (“Understanding of the Responsible Research and Innovation concept”, “Application of the Nagoya Protocol in Your Research”, and “Brief Survey about the experiences regarding the Nagoya Protocol”) indicate awareness and application gaps of RRI, the Nagoya Protocol, and the current status of EU policies relating to Blue Biotechnology. The article categorises the identified gaps into five main categories (awareness, understanding, education, implementation, and enforcement of the Nagoya Protocol) and provides recommendations for mitigating them at the European, national, and organisational level.     

Prevalence and Characterization of Coagulase Positive Staphylococci Isolated from Salted Anchovy

A total of 100 salted anchovy samples were used to investigate the prevalence of S. aureus and other coagulase positive Staphylococci (CPS) as well as to determine the methicillin (MR) and antibiotic resistance (AR) profile, the presence of Panton-Valentine leukocidine (PVL) toxin gene (lukS/F-PV), slime factor properties (SFP), and the genotypic relatedness of the isolates. Agar disc diffusion assay (ADDA) and microdilution broth susceptibility test (MDBST) were applied to compare the specificity and sensitivity of the MR detection methods. A total of 41 CPS isolates were detected at the 10² and 10³ CFU/g levels in contrast to S. aureus. The 16S rRNA (genus specific) was detected in all the isolates in contrast to nuc (species-specific) and lukS/F-PV genes. A total of 16/41 isolates were found to be MR by using the three methods. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay was a more sensitive and reliable method for the detection of MR isolates. The antibiotic resistance rates were 75.60, 73.17, 51.21, 31.70, 12.19, and 4.87% to penicillin, ampicillin, tetracycline, erythromycin, ciprofloxacin, and clindamycin, respectively. All the isolates were sensitive to gentamicin and vancomycin. The SFP were determined in all the isolates by using Congo Red agar, and 20 different genotypes were determined by using randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD)-PCR assay.     

Morphological and physiological responses to drought stress of European provenances of Scots pine

Increased frequency and intensity of drought episodes as a consequence of current and predicted climatic changes require an understanding of the intra-specific variability in structural and physiological characteristics of forest trees. Adaptive plasticity and genotypic variability are considered two of the main processes by which trees can either be selected or can acclimate to changing conditions. We tested for the relative importance of genotypic variability, phenotypic plasticity and their interaction by comparing the growth and physiological performance of 15 provenances of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.), under two contrasting irrigation regimes. Selected provenances representing the distribution range of the species in Anatolia, Turkey, were contrasted with seed sources spanning the range from Spain to the UK, in Europe. We found a strong latitudinal differentiation among the 15 provenances for survival after drought, largely the result of the higher mortality of some western and central European provenances. Differentiation in diameter and height growth was also clear with the worst provenance coming from Western Europe (UK). Among the Turkish provenances, the more extreme southern high-elevation populations showed greater survival and lower growth rates overall. Differences in growth and survival were related to differences in photosynthetic pigment and nutrient contents and in the photosynthetic efficiency of photosystem II. Plasticity was strongest for growth characters and pigment contents.     

Antimicrobial activity of plant extract Ankaferd Blood Stopper

The in vitro antimicrobial activity of Ankaferd Blood Stopper (ABS) was assessed on 102 clinical isolates from both Gram negative and Gram positive bacteria and four standard strains, including MRSA ATCC 43300, MSSA ATCC 25923, P. aeruginosa ATCC 27853 and E. coli ATCC 35218. ABS was significantly active against all bacteria investigated.