1,721,266 research outputs found
Progetto AMIS: Algerian coast Management through Integration and Sustainability [Third Regional Environment Programme in the Meditterranean (SMAP III) - Budget line(s) 19 08 02 01 (Meda)+
No full textThe project involves CIRSA experts on different environmental topics dealing with water quality, coastal erosion, beaches rehabilitation, collection and management of environmental data, environmental conformity, etc. Senior expert and President of the Steering Commitee is Giovanni Gabbianelli (CIRSA). In more details:
The proposed project aims to support national efforts in promoting sustainable use of coastal resources in Algeria and simultaneously contribute to the protection of the environment and sounder
development of coastal zones in the Mediterranean.
The project focuses on improving planning and management of coastal zone in the Wilaya d’Alger; providing technical assistance to the relevant Algerian institutions for the updating and enhancing
national legislative frameworks on coastal zone management; and mainstreaming the application of the integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) approach into local and regional development policy in Algeria.
The project will be implemented by a the consortium consisting of Italian research institute CIRSA (beneficiary) and Algerian agency for the protection of the Wilaya d’Alger coast - Agence Urbaine
chargée de la Protection et de la Promotion du littoral et des zones touristiques de la Wilaya d’Alger (APPL) project partner. IMET will also be supporting the project financially and participating to its
implementation through its expertise and institutional relationship with Algeria. Project activities will target Wilaya d’Alger authorities as well as its coastal municipalities and others
relevant institution involved in ICZM issue. The total project duration is 2 years
Human pharmaceuticals in the marine environment: Focus on exposure and biological effects in animal species
No full textMarine waters have been poorly investigated for the occurrence of pharmaceutical contamination. Recent data confirm that pharmaceuticals occur widely in marine and coastal environments; therefore, assessment of potential risk to marine species needs further efforts. The present study represents the first extensive review of pharmaceutical contamination in marine environments addressing the effects on the marine biota analyzed at the molecular, cellular, and individual levels. Because pharmaceuticals differ from conventional pollutants, being designed to interact with specific physiological pathways at low doses, the most recent evidence on modes of action and physiological alterations on marine animal species are discussed. Data on spatial distributions of pharmaceuticals in waters and sediments, as well as bioaccumulation rates, are also presented. The present review also seeks to expand knowledge of how the quality of coastal and marine environments could be efficiently monitored to anticipate possible health and environmental risks. © 2015 SETA
Adrenergic signaling in teleost fish liver, a challenging path
No full textAdrenergic receptors or adrenoceptors (ARs) belong to the huge family of G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) that have been well characterized in mammals primarily because of their importance as therapeutic drug targets. ARs are found across vertebrates and this review examines the path to identify and characterize these receptors in fish with emphasis on hepatic metabolism. The absence of reliable and specific pharmacological agents led investigators to define the fish hepatic AR system as relying solely on a β2-AR, cAMP-dependent signaling transduction pathway. The use of calcium-radiometric imaging, purified membranes for ligand-binding studies, and perifused rather than static cultured fish hepatocytes, unequivocally demonstrated that both α1- and β2-AR signaling systems existed in the fish liver consistent with studies in mammals. Additionally, the use of molecular tools and phylogenetic analysis clearly demonstrated the existence of multiple AR-types and -subtypes in hepatic and other tissues of a number of fish species. This review also examines the use of β-blockers as pharmaceuticals and how these drugs that are now in the aquatic environment may be impacting aquatic species including fish and some invertebrates. Clearly there is a large conservation of structure and function within the AR system of vertebrates but there remain a number of key questions that need to be addressed before a clear understanding of these systems can be resolved
Characterization of cholinesterase activity in three bivalves inhabiting the North Adriatic sea and their possible use as sentinel organisms for biosurveillance programmes
No full textAnticholinesterases constitute a major portion of modern synthetic insecticides and the assessment of cholinesterase
(ChE) inhibition is widely used as a specific biomarker for evaluating the exposure of non-target organisms to these
pollutants.T o evaluate the possible exposure of the North Adriatic sea coastal environment to residues of agriculture
practices, we ascertained whether the oyster, Ostrea edulis and the clam, Tapes philippinarum, highly valuable
resources commercially harvested in the area, could be selected as sentinel species.W e characterized the ChE
biochemical properties in their gills, and for comparison the analysis was carried out also in gills of the mussel,
Mytilus galloprovincialis, extensively used as a biological indicator of water quality.In the oysters and mussels, the
ChE activity was a function of increasing concentrations of substrate in the range 0.01–0.5 mM. Km values were
93"15 and 77"8 mM for O. edulis and M. galloprovincialis, respectively.No detectable ChE activity was found in
gills of T. philippinarum, at any tested condition.Significant inhibition of ChE activity by eserine, carbaryl, and
ethyl-paraoxon was observed in gills of O. edulis and M. galloprovincialis.Although field validation is needed, the
present study suggests that O. edulis may be employed as a biological indicator for assessing pesticide contamination,
whilst T. philippinarum does not seem useful for this purpose.
 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Preparation of scratch resistant superhydrophobic hybrid coatings by sol-gel process
No full textOrganic-inorganic hybrid coatings on glass substrates with superhydrophobic properties and with improved scratch resistance were obtained by means of applying a multilayer approach including multiple sol-gel processes. The coatings exhibited a water contact angle (WCA) higher than 150 degrees. Ultraviolet (UV)-curable vinyl ester resins and vinyltriethoxysilane (VTEOS) as coupling agent were employed to increase the adhesion between substrate and the inorganic layers. The surfaces were characterized by means of dynamic contact angle and roughness measurements. Indeed, the occurrence of superhydrophobic behavior was observed. The scratch resistance of the hybrid coatings was tested to evaluate the adhesion of the coatings to the glass substrate. The proposed preparation method for scratch resistant, mechanically stable, superhydrophobic coatings is simple and can be applied on large areas of different kinds of substrates
Selection of best-performing reference gene products for investigating transcriptional regulation across silvering in the European eel (Anguilla anguilla)
No full textThe focus of the present study was to set a methodological approach for evaluating molecular mechanisms underlying silvering transformation in the European eel, Anguilla anguilla. Silvering is a tightly controlled process during which eels undergo significant morphological, physiological and behavioral changes, pre-adapting for the oceanic spawning migration. Female eels showing different silver indexes were caught in different seasons in the Comacchio Lagoon (North Adriatic Sea, Italy). Isolated hepatocytes from these eels were selected as the experimental model given the relevant role of these cells in metabolic functions potentially altered during silvering. Expression profiles of 7 candidate reference transcripts were analyzed seeking the most viable and robust strategies for accurate qPCR data normalization during silvering. Stability analysis and further statistical validation identified transcripts encoding the ribosomal proteins L13 and ARP as the appropriate reference genes in studies on A. anguilla through silvering. The identified reference transcripts were further used to evaluate expression profiles of target transcripts encoding the thyroid hormone receptor β (THRβ) and vitellogenin (vtg), known to be involved in silvering processes. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study comparing THRβ expression in European eels across silvering
Physiological Roles of Serotonin in Bivalves: Possible Interference by Environmental Chemicals Resulting in Neuroendocrine Disruption
No full textExpression of genes involved in oxidative stress response in colonies of the ascidian Botryllus schlosseri exposed to various environmental conditions
No full textEnvironmental stress conditions are ultimately related to the induction of oxidative stress in organisms,
as a consequence of an increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). This could be exploited to
study sub-lethal effects induced by the environment in the organisms. In the present work, we evaluate
the possibility to use the colonial ascidian Botryllus schlosseri as a bioindicator, to assess the environmental
quality in the Lagoon of Venice. Three colony batches were immersed, for 22 days, at two sites (1
and 2) with different grades of hydrodynamics and anthropogenic impact and physico-chemical features
of seawater; a control batch was kept in a large tank with continuous seawater flow at the Marine Station
of the Department of Biology, University of Padova, in Chioggia (site 3). Seawater at site 2 had higher pH
and temperature than site 1. Colonies were then retrieved, their mRNA was extracted and the level of
transcription of genes involved in oxidative stress response (glutathione synthase, g-glutamyl-cysteine
ligase, modulatory subunit, two isoforms of glutathione peroxidases and Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase)
was evaluated. In colonies from sites 1 and 2, most genes showed significantly increased transcriptional
levels with respect to control values. Spectrophotometric analyses of colony homogenates revealed that
the enzymatic activity of superoxide dismutase and catalase was higher in colonies from site 2 as
compared to site 1, allowing us to speculate that colonies in site 2 were under higher stress level than
those in site 1. Overall, we can conclude that B. schlosseri seems a good indicator of the ecological status
of the Lagoon environment, within a range of pH and temperature in which colonies are used to live
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