1,721,003 research outputs found
Gravi infestazioni di Xylosandrus germanus (Blandford, 1894) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae, Scolytinae) in castagneti del Piemonte.
Full text linkDevelopment of a sequential plan to evaluate Neodryinus typhlocibae (Ashmead) (Hymenoptera: Dryinidae) population associated with Metcalfa pruinosa (Say) (Homoptera: Flatidae) infestations in Northwestern Italy
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Interactions between the box tree moth Cydalima perspectalis (Walker) and the tachinid parasitoid Exorista larvarum (L.).
No full textCydalima perspectalis (Walker) (Lepidoptera Crambidae), native to East Asia, was first recorded in Europe in 2007. In Italy, it was detected in 2010 in Veneto and it is now distributed in other regions. This exotic species represents a threat to Buxus plants in European parks and gardens, as well as in natural environments, i.e. spontaneous formations of southern France and northwestern Italy. In Europe, only two parasitoids, including the tachinid Pseudoperichaeta nigrolineata (Walker), have so far been found to attack C. perspectalis in nature, at a very low rate. In the areas of origin, the parasitoid complex of the box tree moth is wider and comprises other tachinid species, including Exorista spp.
A stock colony of Exorista larvarum (L.), a larval parasitoid native to the Palearctic region, is currently maintained in the laboratory of Entomology of the University of Bologna, using Galleria mellonella (L.) (Lepidoptera Pyralidae) as a factitious host. Both biological bioassay and anatomical and histological examinations were carried out to evaluate the possibility of adaptation of this indigenous tachinid species to C. perspectalis. In no-choice experiments, box tree moth larvae were accepted by E. larvarum females, though a lower number of eggs were laid compared to G. mellonella, maintained as a control. Most eggs hatched, as also shown in the anatomical and histological studies, but no puparia formed in any accepted C. perspectalis larva. Two out of six first instar E. larvarum larvae penetrated the body of a box tree moth larva and were encapsulated. The encapsulation response turned into the formation of the respiratory funnel by two parasitoid larvae, similarly to what happens in G. mellonella. The results obtained in this study showed that C. perspectalis was unsuitable as host for E. larvarum. The mortality following the parasitoid larval activity (independently of successful parasitism) was, however, not significantly different between C. perspectalis and G. mellonella. The overall results suggest that the mortality of C. perspectalis larvae due to the partial development of E. larvarum may be useful to regulate the populations of this invasive pest in a context of conservative biological control
Variables Affecting the Pine Processionary Moth Flight: A Survey in the North-Western Italian Alps
No full textThe pine processionary moth (PPM), Thaumetopoea pityocampa (Denis and Schiffermüller), is one of the most economically important forest defoliators in southern Europe. This pest is a univoltine oligophagous insect species, and the genus Pinus represents its main host. Investigations were carried out in the five-year period 2016–2020 in NW Italy. PPM males were monitored using commercial funnel traps baited with sex pheromone. The infestation index was recorded by counting the number of nests per tree. Temperature and rainfall were automatically recorded by 94 georeferenced meteorological stations. Adult presence was evaluated as the maximum number of captured individuals in a day, total captures during the season, the Julian day at max captures, or at first or last captures. Environmental variables (altitude, cumulative rain, and cumulative degree-days) and biological parameters were summarized using principal component analysis. Our study showed that the analyzed variables contribute to driving and affecting the PPM population dynamics, which also exhibited a year-to-year decrease. Due to the environmental and sanitary importance, all the data collected about the PPM will be useful to develop predictive risk models, as to deploy countermeasures in a timely and cost-effective manner
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
Wet Sol-Gel Silica Microspheres for the Sustained Release of Human Growth Hormone
No full textSol-gel silica in the wet form formulated in the shape of microsphere was investigated for the controlled release of protein drugs and in particular human growth hormone (r-hGH). The influence of the gel SiO2 content on protein conformation, load and release rate was investigated. Protein fold upon gel embedment was measured by circular dichroism analysis and was found to be unaffected up to a concentration of SiO2 equal to 12% w/v, while minor loss of r-hGH a-helix occurred at higher silica concentration. Several r-hGH loaded microspheres containing 5, 8, 10, 12 and 15% SiO2 (w/v) were synthesized using a surfactant-free W/O pseudo-emulsion method, purposely selected to minimize the risk of protein unfolding. The amount of protein that can be incorporated in the polymer and is released in a controlled way was found to depend on the matrix silica content, varying form 0.6 mg to more than 5.3 mg/ml of wet gel for the 5% and 12-15% SiO2 formulations respectively. At low silica concentration, total release of r-hGH from microspheres occurs within 12 hours and it is mostly driven by diffusion through the gel pores. At higher SiO2 content, release is significantly slower and it is mostly dominated by polymer erosion with a time scale that varies between 100 and 150 hours depending on the formulation under investigation
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Wet Sol-Gel Silica Microspheres for the Sustained Release of Human Growth Hormone
No full textSol-gel silica in the wet form formulated in the shape of microsphere was investigated for the controlled release of protein drugs and in particular human growth hormone (r-hGH). The influence of the gel SiO2 content on protein conformation, load and release rate was investigated. Protein fold upon gel embedment was measured by circular dichroism analysis and was found to be unaffected up to a concentration of SiO2 equal to 12% w/v, while minor loss of r-hGH a-helix occurred at higher silica concentration. Several r-hGH loaded microspheres containing 5, 8, 10, 12 and 15% SiO2 (w/v) were synthesized using a surfactant-free W/O pseudo-emulsion method, purposely selected to minimize the risk of protein unfolding. The amount of protein that can be incorporated in the polymer and is released in a controlled way was found to depend on the matrix silica content, varying form 0.6 mg to more than 5.3 mg/ml of wet gel for the 5% and 12-15% SiO2 formulations respectively. At low silica concentration, total release of r-hGH from microspheres occurs within 12 hours and it is mostly driven by diffusion through the gel pores. At higher SiO2 content, release is significantly slower and it is mostly dominated by polymer erosion with a time scale that varies between 100 and 150 hours depending on the formulation under investigation
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