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The Edible sea urchin <i>Paracentrotus lividus</i> (Lamarck, 1816): a valuable resource for fisheries and aquaculture purposes in Sardinia (Central-western Mediterranean)
No full textIn this study, several research approaches were used to increase the knowledge on the Mediterranean sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus. Morphometric characters and gonad indexes of sea urchin populations were monitored during one year to examine possible differences among seasons in 3 locations of Alghero Bay (NW Sardinia).
Moreover, 2 experiments to test somatic growth, and gonad and alimentary indexes of laboratory-reared specimens fed an artificial diet were also carried out. The experiments lasted 16 and 10 weeks in Scotland and in Sardinia, respectively. In the latter, proximate composition and acidic profile of the sea urchins gonads were also assessed. Samples from natural populations were used as a control. Significant differences between reared and wild specimens were found, both regarding proximate composition (except for total lipids) and fatty acid profile. The results obtained confirm the effectiveness of the diet and rearing method used in enhancing sea urchins’ growth.
Finally, an economical analysis on profitability and sustainability of P. lividus fisheries in Sardinia was performed. Firms operating with different harvesting methods were analysed, obtaining an overview of the current situation in terms of strengths and weaknesses of restrictions on the harvesting of this species. This information can be used by policy makers to implement important changes to the current fishing policy, by guaranteeing profitability for fishermen and conservation of wild stocks
Strumenti cartografici per la storia dei luoghi
No full textThe issue of this PhD thesis is a Web Mapping platform on a global scale based on XML interchange protocols and accepted standards.
The focus was on the minimum specifications that the archaeological data should have in order to be uniform and interoperable, and above all, on the geometric and cartographic characteristics that would allow the production of a homogeneous archaeological mapping.
Until this moment, the proposals for the production of archaeological cartography have been developed at local, regional, national or, with rare exceptions, continental scale.
Thanks to recent advances in information technology, it is now possible to create an open platform for the implementation, storage, exchange, discussion and verification of spatial archaeological data on a global scale.
We have identified the primary categories for the acquisition of archaeological data, by defining the minimum standards of compliance of the data, without, however, trivialize the data themselves, thus avoiding a dangerous loss of historical-topographical information.
The identification of the four coordinates of objects acquired and a minimum data set of attributes, plus a set of metadata was fundamental.
The proposal is therefore the development of a Web Mapping platform, open and collaborative, for positioning and representation of archaeological remains, a sort of "cadaster", and an analytical and detailed knowledge base to assist, support and address each territorial study
La Recente riforma dei porti in Brasile (Lei n. 12.815/2013): comparazione sul sistema portuale brasiliano ed italiano nei rispettivi scenari del Mercosur e dell'Unione Europea
No full textThis study presents a legal and administrative overview applicable to the Brazilian port sector, in order to: 1) develop and interpretation of the applicable rules (after the recent changes made to the sector by Lei n. 12.815/13), conforms to the dictates of the Brazils Constitution; 2) identify the most contentious issues emerging by the Brazilians legislation and regulations, applicable to the port activity and industry competition; 3) identify the weight of the reform in question at both internally and in the light of the world economic exchanges.
Therefore, the first step will necessarily be made up of a historical reconstruction of the legislation of the Brazilian port sector, in order to identify the rules currently applicable to the use of port terminals in Brazil, as derived by the Federal Constitution of 1988 and the legislation of the sector. Finally, it will be an investigation of comparative matrix between the port system of South American countries and the Italian in their respective scenarios of Mercosur and the European Union
Studio dell'influenza delle variabili agrometeorologiche sulla diversità genetica in Myrtus communis
No full textMyrtus communis L. is an evergreen shrub of the Mediterranean maquis. This work
reported the use of Simple Sequence Repeats (SSR) markers (14 primers pair) to assess the
genetic diversity within some Sardinian population and the correlation of this diversity
with some environmental and climate characteristics. I defined the genetic profiles of 22
population divided in 400 wild accessions and 65 candidate cultivar. SSR analysis attested
an high polymorphism level (93% of the loci analyzed).
Structure analysis divided the myrtle population into two main genetic groups
(K=2). The analysis of the genetic diversity distribution in the populations examined,
displayed a geographical gradient from north to south, which reflects the Sardinian shape,
and from west to east, which reflects the Sardinian mountain distribution.
The partial Mantel test found a positive correlation between mean temperature and
genetic distance, but none between minimum and maximum temperature and mean
precipitation.
In conclusion, the wild accessions were well differentiated than candidate cultivars.
The level of genetic variability was high. The genetic data confirmed that myrtle has a
mixed pollination system, including both out-pollination by insects and self-pollination.
This work represents the first attempt to characterize the myrtle Sardinian germplasm from
a genetic and environmental point of view
Impact of climate change on Vitis vinifera L. over Mediterranean area
No full textSeveral agricultural sector are likely to be sensitive to climate change conditions. Vitis vinifera L. is particularly sensitive to climate change because of the linkage between climate variability, phenology and characteristics of the resulting product. This thesis discusses an investigation conducted at different scales in order to analyse the effects of climate change on Vitis vinifera L. in the Mediterranean basin.
At the European scale a methodology to study the vocationality area under climate change conditions was developed using three bioclimatic indicators (Huglin Index, Cool Night Index and Dryness Index) and soil characteristics (slope and depth). At the national scale (Italy), an evaluation of the impact on twelve different wine grapes varieties under climate change conditions (RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5) has been undertaken. In order to study the annual growth cycle of grapes, six different phenological models, developed in the Phenological Modeling Platform 5.5, have been compared.
At the regional scale (Sardinia), how the impact of climate change might modify the yield rate has been described using a crop-model (STICS) on a new parametrised cultivar (Cannonau) and on Cabernet Franc variety, reason of interest for vitivinicultural Sardinian reality.
Generally, the results of the impact of climate change on grape cultivation showed a northern shift of the suitability area, a shortening of the growth cycle to the detriment of developmental stages, while yield remains more or less constant
Use of molecular identification techniques for the study of parasitoids of the chestnut gall wasp
No full textThe chestnut gall wasp Dryocosmus kuriphilus Yasumatsu (Hymenoptera, Cynipidae) is considered as a major pest of Castanea species worldwide. A three-year monitoring of the indigenous parasitoids of this pest was performed by collecting specimens inside the galls. Each specimen was processed by molecular analysis. DNA was analysed by amplification and sequencing of the COI gene, coding for cytochrome c oxydase subunit 1. Each sequence was compared with reference sequences from adults sampled in Sardinia and those present both in GenBank and Barcode of Life Database (BOLD). This procedure enabled us to identify all immature life stages, included larvae and pupae that cannot be identified otherwise. The identified species belong to 7 genera of the superfamily Chalcidoidea: Eupelmus (Eupelmidae), Eurytoma and Sycophila (Eurytomidae), Ormyrus (Ormyridae), Mesopolobus (Pteromalidae), Megastigmus and Torymus (Torymidae). Among the identified taxa we found a few unknown species and also some sibling ones. These findings will make it possible to elucidate the relationships between the indigenous parasitoids and the host pest and to verify the spreading of the introduced exotic antagonist Torymus sinensis in order to plan new control strategies
Investigating the genetic and productive characteristics of autochthonous Sarda goat
No full textGoat farming plays, in Sardinia, a key role for local economy, especially in those areas where for environmental conditions it is not possible to rear other animals. While in the lowlands and hills there are several intensive farms in which cosmopolitan breed are reared, in mountainous areas the extensive rearing system is the most spread, and the native breed, the Sarda, is present.
Goat products are mainly related to dairy productions, while there is only one meat product, represented by the suckling goat kids. The growing global market and the loss of economic power for these products could be prevented through the introduction, for example, of a trademark of designation of origin. In order to do this, the best knowledge about the health status of animals, milk traits, its hygienic and coagulation properties and meat characteristics is needed. This should help for preservation of an interesting biodiversity heritage and for a traditional rearing system that, without the proper valorisation, is going to disappear.
In this scenario, this PhD work had been set up in order to investigate goat kids’ meat and goat milk characteristics and provide more information about these goat products.
Four papers are included in this Thesis, 2 concerning Sarda goat kids’ meat properties and the effects of a milk replacer on slaughtering performances, and 2 regarding Sarda goat milk traits, their association with genetic and the polymorphisms at the CSN1S1, CSN2, CSN1S2 and CSN3 gene loci
Studio dell'effetto del fumo di sigaretta sul sistema immunitario nella popolazione dell'Ogliastra
No full textAim: Cigarette smoke is a risk factor for premature death, determining a profound dysregulation of health homeostasis. The goal of this study was to investigate how smoke affects immunity to understand its contribution on smoke-related pathologies.
Methods: We measured the main leukocyte cell population levels (about 100 cell types) in 1,600 SardiNIA volunteers (20% smokers, 63% no smokers and 17% ex-smokers). We also analyzed the serum levels of inflammatory and activation markers (C Reactive Protein, Monocyte Chemoattractant Protein-1, Interleukin 6, sBAFF and sCD25), immunoglobulins (IgA, IgG, IgM, IgE) as well as several haematological parameters.
Results: As expected, we detected a general leukocytosis in smokers and the regulatory T cells was the strongest associated lymphocyte subset (P-value <5.48E-5). We also found a significant increase of total B cells accordingly with the rise of sBAFF (P-value <5.48E-5), an activator of B cell proliferation and survival. Moreover, smokers showed an augmentation of sCD25, IL-6, Monocyte Chemoattractant Protein-1 (P-values <5.48E-5) and C Reactive Protein (P-value=not significant) confirming an inflammatory profile in smokers. We also observed a significant rise of IgE and a reduction of IgA and IgG in smokers (P-values <5.48E-5).
Conclusions: This study showed deep alterations of the immune system in smokers that could suggest possible mechanisms involved in the occurrence of smoke-related pathologies
Impact of the diabetic environment on the fetal vasculature: role of microRNA-101 and Enhancer of Zeste Homologue 2
No full textGestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a specific form of diabetes affecting about 7% of all pregnancies. GDM usually reverses after delivery, but altered glucose homeostasis harms the mother. Moreover, since it translates into fetal hyperglycemia, GDM can affect the healthy development of the fetus, with consequences that can be experienced in utero and/or at different stages of post-natal life. In particular, the child from a GDM pregnancy has higher chance of developing type 2 diabetes (T2D) and cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Several clinical trials and epidemiological studies in patients with either type 1 or 2 diabetes show that exposure to prolonged hyperglycemia leaves a long-lasting impression on vascular cells leading to the development of vascular complications which persist after glycemic control is achieved. The same studies also suggested that a good glycemic control can delay the onset of vascular complications in diabetic subjects.
The term “epigenetic” refers to heritable changes in the cellular phenotype that do not involve changes in the genotype. There are different kind of epigenetic modifications including methylation and acetylation of histones, and DNA methylation, and these modifications influence gene expression. Although the precise mechanistic insight is still unclear, epigenetic regulation might be involved in the long-lasting effect of diabetes on the vascular system.
In this study, we focused our attention on the methyltransferase Enhancer of Zeste Homologue 2 (EZH2), that is part of the Polycomb Repressor Complex 2 (PRC2) and plays an essential role in the epigenetic maintenance of the trimethylation of lysine 27 on histone3 (H3K27me3). It has been recently shown that alternative splicing of the EZH2 locus yields two major transcriptional variants: EZH2α and EZH2β.The two isoforms can each not only regulate distinct targets, but also share gene expression networks, making the regulation of transcription based on the deposition of the H3K27 histone mark more complex than previously anticipated.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are single-stranded, non-coding RNAs of 19-25 nucleotides that normally bind the 3’-untranslated region of target mRNAs and contribute to the post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression. A link has been shown between EZH2 and some miRNAs. In particular, miR-101 reportedly affects endothelial function and angiogenesis by targeting and inhibiting EZH2 under normoglycemic conditions.
The aim of our study was to investigate the impact of GDM on fetal endothelial biology. To this end, we isolated human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) from the umbilical cords of GDM and control healthy pregnancies. These cells represent a good cell model allowing for non-invasive analyses of the effect of the uterine environment on the fetal endothelium. The first objective was to investigate the impact of GDM on the functional
capacity of HUVECs, with particular focus on apoptosis, migration, proliferation and tube formation. Next, we evaluated the expression of EZH2 (both α and β isoforms) and miR-101 to see whether they affect endothelial function in diabetic conditions. We first found that cultured GDM-HUVECs demonstrated decreased survival and functional capabilities in comparison with HUVECs obtained from healthy non-diabetic mothers. Additionally, we have identified a novel underlying mechanism involving miR-101 and EZH2 in GDM-elicited endothelial dysfunction. In particular, we have found that in HUVECs, EZH2 is both a target of, and a transcriptional repressor for, miR-101. Notably we found that among the two recently identified EZH2 isoforms, EZH2β is the only one which is both a target of GDM and a mediator of some of the GDM-related damaging effects on HUVECs
Fondazioni di partecipazione e gestione di beni e servizi culturali: problemi giuridici
No full textThe so called “participatory cultural foundation” (P.F.) is an innovative legal entity which can be used in the management of cultural Arts and public services. It is considered as a no-profit private Institution.
In order to examine the characteristics of P.F., in the first part of the dissertation I will analyze the fundamentals of the constitutional division of competences in the cultural field, the theoretical notion of “cultural Arts”, the functions of "protection" and "enhancement" and the role of private individuals in this specific sector.
The second part of the dissertation focuses on the "management models” of cultural Arts and services, within the framework of the subsidiarity principle and the Public-Private Partnership (P.P.P.), with a special emphasis on the EU Law.
The last part of the thesis deepens the doctrinal elaboration of the P.F., with special regard to its peculiarities in the cultural field. Special attention is paid to the recent legal provisions which apparently restrict the uses of the institution, having been adopted as part of the public spending review