794 research outputs found
Light and Shape: A Contribution to Demonstrate Morphological Differences in Diurnal and Nocturnal Teleosts
No full text11 pages, 5 figures,1 table.Light intensity is an important environmental
factor affecting the structure of fish assemblages
during the day–night cycle. Light influences how organisms
perceive their environment, modulating their intraspecific
and interspecific relationships. The relationship
between light intensity variations and biological cycles
should be observed at the level of organismal morphology.
In this study the relationship between activity
rhythms, thus light intensity experienced by fish in the
period of major activity and external morphology, have
been investigated. The morphological traits of 97
selected fish species were compared in order to determine
the existence of a common morphological plan in
agreement with their diurnal or nocturnal activity
rhythm. Species sorting was performed by maximizing
the diversity of activity rhythm, habitat choice, ecology,
and trophic habits within the same family, to assess the
importance of the day–night cycle on species morphology
in relation to other environmental features. The morphological
characters selected for the geometric morphometric
analysis were body profile and the position of mouth,
eye, pelvic, pectoral, dorsal, and caudal fin. The present
analysis allowed different consensus forms for nocturnal
and for diurnal species to be identified. Two-block Partial
Least Squares analysis was then performed for the
purpose of modeling the covariation between the form
and two important external variables (ecology and activity).Ministero Italiano per le Politiche Agricole
e Forestali; Contract grant number: Law 41/82.
J. Aguzzi is a postdoctoral fellow
(Programa Juan de la Cierva), sponsored by Ministerio
de Educacio´n y Cultura, Espa˜na.Peer reviewe
Shape analysis of different populations of clams in relation to their geographical structure
No full text10 pages, 6 figures, 5 tables.Bivalves are excellent candidates for geographically based studies of the morphological variation in individuals of different populations based on the analysis of their shape profiles. In this study, we quantified the overall shell shape differences in individuals of different populations of Ruditapes decussatus and Ruditapes philippinarum in relation to their geographical and genetic distances. A total of 395 and 124 individuals of R. decussatus (nine populations) and R. philippinarum (four populations), respectively, were sampled in different Mediterranean and Atlantic coastal locations. Pictures of the left valve were taken from all individuals. Their profiles were analysed using elliptic Fourier analysis. Mean outlines were computed. In order to classify different individuals for species, the coefficients of harmonic equations were analysed by partial least square discriminant analysis and soft independent modelling of class analogy. The results showed a high percentage of correct classification (99%) between the two species in the independent test. We found that the morphological distance between R. philippinarum and R. decussatus is higher than the morphological distance among populations of the same species. The absence of correspondence between the geographical location and the pattern of morphological and genetic variation indicates the occurrence of a reaction norm in the morphological adaptation of shell shapes to different local environmental conditions.We would like to thank Davide Cascione for his help during the process of image acquisition. Jacopo Aguzzi is a Fellow of the ‘Juan de la Cierva’ Postdoctoral Program (MECSpain).Peer reviewe
Ontogenetic and environmental effects on otolith shape variability in three Mediterranean European eel (Anguilla anguilla, L.) local stocks
No full text7 pages, 4 figures, 3 tablesOtolith morphology is an efficient tool for the discrimination of fish stocks, populations and species when comparative genetic data are not available. Currently, the relationship between environmental factors and otolith shape is poorly characterized for the European eel (Anguilla anguilla), a highly migratory catadromous species constituting a single, randomly mating stock. The present study analyses the differences in otolith morphology between three Mediterranean eel local stocks from different environmental contexts (i.e. two brackish lagoons and one river). The relationship between otolith shape and otolith size was studied by means of Elliptic Fourier analysis and multivariate statistics. Otolith profile was digitally acquired and Cartesian coordinates were extracted. Partial Least Square (PLS) analysis pointed to continuous allometric growth in size and shape in otoliths from all three sites. In the three environments, shape variations occurred during growth as indicated by the presence of a significant and positive relationship between otolith size and the first PLS latent vector (i.e. which bears most of the information regarding otolith outline). Differences between smaller and larger sized otoliths were investigated using PLS Discriminant Analysis (PLSDA) and cluster analysis. Results indicate that otolith shape is highly uniform at smaller than at larger sizes. These shape differences apparently overlap the initial differentiation of the small otolith outlines acquired by eels during the growing phase as elvers in the marine environment. Data were discussed considering that the physical and chemical habitat variability in brackish lagoons and river could underlie a marked change in otolith shape during the animals' growthThe present work was funded by a grant from the Ministry of Research and University to EC within the PRIN 2006 Project “An Integrated
Approach to the Conservation and Management of the European Eel in the Mediterranean Region” (Coordinator Prof. G. De Leo University of Parma); themorphological approach was developed within the framework of the project HIGHVISION (DM 19177/7303/03) to PM. The authors wish to thank the fishermen's associations of the river Tiber, Caprolace and Lesina for their help during samplings. Aguzzi J. is a Postdoctoral Fellow within the Ramon y Cajal Program (MICINN, España)Peer reviewe
Award_2016_12
No full textDecember 2016 – Highly cited research award in Aquacultural Engineering for the publication:
Costa C, Antonucci F, Pallottino F, Aguzzi J, Sarrià D, Menesatti P, 2013. A review on agri-food supply chain traceability by means of RFID technology. FOOD AND BIOPROCESS TECHNOLOGY, 6: 353-366. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11947-012-0958-7
paper published in 2013 and cited in 2014/2015 up until June 2016 according to data from Scopus.
(Prot. CREA n. 0000500 del 9/1/2017)
Light-dependent genetic and phenotypic differences in the squat lobster Munida tenuimana (Crustacea: Decapoda) along deep continental margins
No full textSpecial issue Integrated study of a deep submarine canyon and adjacent open slopes in the Western Mediterranean Sea: an essential habitat.-- 11 pages, 7 figures, 4 tablesThe levels of environmental light experienced by organisms during the behavioral activity phase deeply influence the performance of important ecological tasks. As a result, their shape and coloring may experience a light-driven selection process via the day-night rhythmic behavior. In this study, we tested the phenotypic and genetic variability of the western Mediterranean squat lobster (Munida tenuimana). We sampled at depths with different photic conditions and potentially, different burrow emergence rhythms. We performed day-night hauling at different depths, above and below the twilight zone end (i.e., 700. m, 1200. m, 1350. m, and 1500. m), to portray the occurrence of any burrow emergence rhythmicity. Collected animals were screened for shape and size (by geometric morphometry), spectrum and color variation (by photometric analysis), as well as for sequence variation at the mitochondrial DNA gene encoding for the NADH dehydrogenase subunit I. We found that a weak genetic structuring and shape homogeneity occurred together with significant variations in size, with the smaller individuals living at the twilight zone inferior limit and the larger individuals above and below. The infra-red wavelengths of spectral reflectance varied significantly with depth while the blue-green ones were size-dependent and expressed in smaller animals, which has a very small spectral reflectance. The effects of solar and bioluminescence lighting are discussed as depth-dependent evolutionary forces likely influencing the behavioral rhythms and coloring of M. tenuimana. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd.The present work was developed within the framework of four Research Projects funded by the Spanish ‘‘Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación’’ (MICINN): NERIT, RECS, PROMETEO, and DOS MARES, (with respective reference numbers: MAR/98/0935, REN02/04556/C02/MAR, CTM2007-66316-C02/MAR and CTM2010-21810-C03-03/MAR). Another contributing project was funded by the Italian Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Politics (MIPAF): High-Vision (DM 19177/7303/08). Jacopo Aguzzi is a Postdoctoral Fellow of the ‘‘Ramon y Cajal’’ Program (MICINN)Peer Reviewe
Award_2019_09
No full textSeptember-October 2019 – Highly cited paper award (ISI-JCR) received enough citations to place it in the top 1% of its academic field and publication year for the publication:
Costa C, Antonucci F, Pallottino F, Aguzzi J, Sun DW, Menesatti P, 2011. Shape analysis of agricultural products: a review of recent research advances and potential application to computer vision. FOOD AND BIOPROCESS TECHNOLOGY, 4: 673-692. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11947-011-0556-0
(Prot. CREA n. 0016850 del 06/03/2020
Ecomorphology of morpho-functional relationships in the family of Sparidae: a quantitative statistic approach
No full textIn many fish species, morphological similarity can be considered as a proxy for similarities in habitat use. The Sparidae family includes species that are recognized for common morphological features such as structure and positioning of the fins and specialized dentition. The aim of this study was to quantitatively describe the relationship of body shape morphology with habitat use, trophic level, and systematics in the majority of known Sparidae species (N = 92). This ecomorphological comparison was performed with a geometric morphometric approach considering as variables the Trophic Index (TROPH), the habitat (i.e., classified as demersal, benthopelagic and reef associated) and the phylogenetic relationship of species at the subfamily level. The analysis by the TROPH variable showed a positive relation with shape because the morphological features of all the species are strongly correlated with their trophic behavior (e.g., herbivore species have a smaller mouth gap that make them able to feed upon sessile resources). The morphological analysis according to the Habitat variable was used to classify species according to a feeding-habitat niche in terms of portion of the water column and seabed space where species mostly perform their behavioral activities. We described three kinds of morphological designs in relation to a benthopelagic, demersal and reef-associated habit. The six subfamily groups were morphologically well distinguishable and the cladogram relative to Mahalanobis' morphological distances was compared with those proposed by other authors. We also quantified the phylogenetic relationship among the different subfamilies based on the analysis of shape in relation to trophic ecology, confirming the observations of the authors
Global deep-sea biodiversity research trends highlighted by science mapping approach
No full textThe scientific literature available on deep-sea biodiversity is ample and covers a wide array of objectives, geographic areas, and topics. It also explores the links between ecosystem functioning and productivity as well as modeling, management, and exploitation. New statistical analytical tools now allow the comprehensive monitoring of the status of deep-sea research to highlight global research topics and their trends, which deserve further development and economic investments. Here, we used a science mapping approach to provide a global and systematic bibliometric synthesis of these current research topics and their trends to identify the size, growth, trajectory, and geographic distribution of scientific efforts as well as to highlight the emerging topics. A total of 1287 deep-sea biodiversity publications were retrieved from the Scopus database from 1993 to the present. Both established and emerging research topics were identified: (i) biogeochemical, microbial, and molecular analyses; (ii) biodiversity assessments; (iii) ecosystem conservation and management; and, finally, (iv) zoology and taxocoenosis. The temporal change in research activity (which was assessed by subdividing publications into blocks from 1993 to 2010 and 2011 to 2019) demonstrated that the “biogeochemical, microbial, and molecular analyses” cluster was not present from 1993 to 2010 since it was included in the cluster for “biodiversity assessments,” which it eventually diverged from in the following couple of decades. The United States took the dominant role in research, followed by the United Kingdom; Germany and France were also evidenced. China was particularly associated with the United States
Underwater Mediterranean image analysis based on the compute continuum paradigm
No full text14 pages, 11 figures, 6 tables.-- Data availability: Data will be made available on request: Francescangeli, Marco; Aguzzi, Jacopo; Marini, Simone; Martínez, Enoc; Nogueras, Marc; Toma, Daniel M.; Carandell, Matias; Masmitja, Ivan; Sarriá, David; García-Benadí, Albert; Cadena, Javier; Bghiel, Ikram; Artero Delgado, Carlota; Vidal, Neus; Gomáriz, Spartacus; Olivé Duran, Joaquim; Santamaria, Pep; Mànuel-Làzaro, Antoni; Río, Joaquín del; 2022; Underwater camera photos with manual tagging of fish species at OBSEA seafloor observatory from 2013 to 2014 [Dataset]; PANGAEA; https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.946149Human activity depends on the oceans for food, transportation, leisure, and many more purposes. Oceans cover 70% of the Earth’s surface, but most of them are unknown to humankind. This is the reason why underwater imaging is a valuable resource asset to Marine Science. Images are acquired with observing systems, e.g. autonomous underwater vehicles or underwater observatories, that presently transmit all the raw data to land stations. However, the transfer of such an amount of data could be challenging, considering the limited power supply and transmission bandwidth of these systems. In this paper, we discuss these aspects, and in particular how it is possible to couple Edge and Cloud computing for effective management of the full processing pipeline according to the Compute Continuum paradigmThis work was partially funded by the European Union - NextGenerationEU and by the Ministry of University and Research (MUR), National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNNR), Mission 4, Component 2, Investment 1.5, project “RAISE - Robotics and AI for Socio-economic Empowerment” - (ECS00000035); The co-author Simone Marini is part of the critical mass of the RAISE Innovation Ecosystem.
It is also funded by the Project “National Biodiversity Future Center - NBFC” funded under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNNR), Mission 4 Component 2 Investment 1.4 - Call for tender No. 3138 of 16 December 2021, rectified by Decree n.3175 of 18 December 2021 of Italian Ministry of University and Research funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU; Project code CN_00000033, Concession Decree No. 1034 of 17 June 2022 adopted by the Italian Ministry of University and Research, CUP D33C22000960007.
The research was also supported by the ICM-CSIC “Severo Ochoa Centre Excellence” (CEX2019-000928-S) and the Research Unit Tecnoterra (ICM-CSIC/UPC) . Funds were also from DIGI4ECO (grant number 101112883 - GAP-101112883)Peer reviewe
BSE infectivity in jejunum, ileum and ileocaecal junction of incubating cattle
No full textAbstract To establish bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) public health protection measures it is important to precisely define the cattle tissues considered as specified risk materials (SRM). To date, in pre-clinical BSE infected cattle, no evidence of the BSE agent had been found in the gut outside of the ileal Peyer's Patches. This study was undertaken to determine when and where the pathological prion protein (PrPSc) and/or BSE infectivity can be found in the small intestine of cattle 4 to 6 months of age, orally challenged with BSE. Samples of the jejunum, the ileum and the ileocaecal junction from 46 BSE infected cattle, culled from 1 up to 44 months post infection (mpi) were examined by immunohistochemistry. Samples from cattle 8 mpi to 20 mpi were additionally studied by PTA Western blot, rapid tests, and by mouse (TgbovXV) bioassay. In doing so nearly all of the cattle, from 4 up to 44 mpi, had detectable amounts of PrPSc and/or infectivity in the distal ileum. In the distal ileum clear time-dependent variations were visible concerning the amount of PrPSc, the tissue structures affected, and the cells involved. BSE infectivity was found not only in the ileum and ileocaecal junction but also in the jejunum. The systematic approach of this study provides new data for qualitative and quantitative risk assessments and allows defining bovine SRM more precisely.</p
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