Bioindication of troposheric ozone by native vegetation: the potential of Viburnum lantana for large-scale surveys

Tropospheric ozone is one of the most important phytotoxic air pollutant. Biomonitoring by native plants is an option when the assessment of its impact on vegetation in large-scale surveys and in remote areas is of concern. The shrub species Viburnum lantana L. (wayfaring tree) is known to be sensitive to ozone, develops specific symptoms consisting in red stipples on the upper surface, and has a wide spatial distribution. However it is not fully known if it meets all the requirements to be used as an in situ bioindicator (Doley, 2010). In particular, the actual responsiveness to ozone of native plants and the relationship between the intensity of responses and the levels of exposure to the pollutant under field conditions remain to be evaluated. For these purposes, two field studies were carried out in Trentino (North Italy) at local (1) and large scale (2). (1) Firstly, at local level, we considered two 1x1 km quadrates characterized by different ozone levels. A fully randomized design was adopted to ensure within-quadrate replications and to select V. lantana plants for the monitoring of ozone-specific foliar symptoms development, the chlorophyll (Chl) content and the fluorescence of Chl a during the entire growing season. (2) Secondly, a stratified (elevation x ozone) random design was used to test the response of V. lantana in terms of symptomatic plant percentage at larger scale (6200 km2). Overall, the results of the two field studies allowed to verify a temporal development of the responses of V. lantana consistent with the trend of ozone exposure (Gottardini et al., 2010), and an higher frequency of symptomatic plants where ozone levels were also higher. However, the frequency of symptoms was not always proportionate to the level of ozone exposure. At the same time of the onset and spread of foliar symptoms, a decrease in the foliar Chl content and in photosynthetic performance occurred. V. lantana seems suitable as a bioindicator in situ to qualitatively assess the potential impact of ozone

Rilevamento di ozono presso i siti forestali UN/ECE Level I nella Provincia di Trento nel 2007

A causa del suo alto potere ossidante, dei suoi elevati livelli e della sua ampia diffusione in aree rurali e forestali, l’ozono troposferico (O3) è ritenuto il contaminante gassoso di potenziale maggiore pericolosità per la vegetazione agraria, semi-naturale e forestale. L’obiettivo del presente studio è ottenere stime realistiche dell’esposizione ad O3 della vegetazione forestale della provincia di Trento, essenziali per poter valutare se siano ipotizzabili effetti di questo inquinante sulla vegetazione. A tale scopo sono stati installati 15 siti di misura delle concentrazioni di O3, riferendosi ai punti della rete UE e UN/ECE di monitoraggio delle foreste di Livello I della provincia di Trento; l’ozono è stato misurato utilizzando campionatori passivi, che forniscono un dato settimanale, successivamente convertito in valori di concentrazione media oraria. L’affidabilità dei dati ottenuti è stata verificata per confronto con i dati forniti in parallelo da centraline automatiche. Le concentrazioni medie settimanali di O3 rilevate nel periodo 6 giugno - 19 settembre 2007 sono risultate comprese tra 62.4±12.4 e 130.6±22.3 μg*m-3. In termini di AOT40, l’indicatore di rischio utilizzato dalla normativa UE e dall’UN/ECE, i valori sono tali da prefigurare frequenti superamenti dei livelli critici nel corso della stagione estiva 2007. Si discutono nel dettaglio andamenti spaziali e temporali dei dati raccolti e si ipotizza una linea futura per la prosecuzione del lavoro nell’ottica di una maggiore comprensione del fenomeno

Do ecosystem services have a biological cost? Ozone and climate regulation by Norway spruce forests along an Alpine altitudinal transect in Trentino, northern Italy

Regulating air pollution and climate are important ecosystem services provided by forests. Among air pollution, ozone is particularly important because its high values and wide distribution in remote forest areas. Forests may help in reducing ozone concentration because stomatal and non-stomatal deposition. Ozone, however, can potentially affect the vegetation, leading to a reduction of photosynthesis with consequences, from plant to ecosystem level. In a cost-benefit approach, this may be considered as a biological cost. To assess the size of ozone and climate regulating services provided by Alpine forests, a fully randomized study was established along an altitudinal gradient (900 - 1500 m a.s.l.) in Trentino, northern Italy. Environmental variables (O3, NO2, T, RH, LAI) were measured between May and August 2013. Tree response variables (crown condition, needle weight, shoot length, chlorophyll fluorescence, C and O isotopes) were also investigated on mature Norway spruce trees. Ozone concentration increased with altitude, both inside and outside forests. Significant (P<0.001; Wilcoxon test) lower ozone concentrations, however, were observed within the forest (64.8 g m-3) with respect to open areas (71.3 g m-3). Effect of forests on temperature was particularly marked for maximum daily values. As for response indicators, a distinct elevation pattern with concurrent increase of crown transparency and decrease of shoot growth, needle weight and photosynthetic activity potential was obvious. Nested within such a superimposed effect, the various response indicators were related to each other. Estimates of ozone removal in terms of AOT40, relationship between exposure to ozone, ozone removal and tree- and plot-related variables will be presented and discussed. This will allow (i) the evaluation of possible biological costs of removing air pollutants and (ii) the functional interpretation of monitoring data. All together, this will help understanding the role of tree health on the regulating services provided by forests and vice versa

Plant biodiversity assessment through pollen DNA metabarcoding in Natura 2000 habitats (Italian Alps)

11openInternationalInternational coauthor/editorMonitoring biodiversity is of increasing importance in natural ecosystems. Metabarcoding can be used as a powerful molecular tool to complement traditional biodiversity monitoring, as total environmental DNA can be analyzed from complex samples containing DNA of different origin. The aim of this research was to demonstrate the potential of pollen DNA metabarcoding using the chloroplast trnL partial gene sequencing to characterize plant biodiversity. Collecting airborne biological particles with gravimetric Tauber traps in four Natura 2000 habitats within the Natural Park of Paneveggio Pale di San Martino (Italian Alps), at three-time intervals in 1 year, metabarcoding identified 68 taxa belonging to 32 local plant families. Metabarcoding could identify with finer taxonomic resolution almost all non-rare families found by conventional light microscopy concurrently applied. However, compared to microscopy quantitative results, Poaceae, Betulaceae, and Oleaceae were found to contribute to a lesser extent to the plant biodiversity and Pinaceae were more represented. Temporal changes detected by metabarcoding matched the features of each pollen season, as defined by aerobiological studies running in parallel, and spatial heterogeneity was revealed between sites. Our results showcase that pollen metabarcoding is a promising approach in detecting plant species composition which could provide support to continuous monitoring required in Natura 2000 habitats for biodiversity conservation.openLeontidou, Kleopatra; Vokou, Despoina; Sandionigi, Anna; Bruno, Antonia; Lazarina, Maria; De Groeve, Johannes; Li, Mingai; Varotto, Claudio; Girardi, Matteo; Casiraghi, Maurizio; Cristofori, AntonellaLeontidou, K.; Vokou, D.; Sandionigi, A.; Bruno, A.; Lazarina, M.; De Groeve, J.; Li, M.; Varotto, C.; Girardi, M.; Casiraghi, M.; Cristofori, A

Studio di un modello per la stima dell’ozono troposferico in provincia di Trento: relazione tecnica dello studio realizzato nell’ambito della convenzione tra IASMA e Servizio Foreste e Fauna della Provincia Autonoma di Trento (Convenzione N. 4297 del 12/3/08)

Nel 2007 sono state condotte due campagne di misura dell’ozono troposferico in provincia di Trento, una a scala locale (Maggio-Giugno) ed una provinciale (Giugno- Settembre). I dati così raccolti, unitamente a quelli della rete di centraline automatiche APPA, ai dati meteoclimatici (Temperatura e Precipitazioni) ed ai dati territoriali (quote, uso del suolo) sono stati considerati per valutare la possibilità di modellare le concentrazioni di ozono sul territorio provinciale. Sono stati seguiti due approcci, uno di tipo statistico, mediante l’uso della PLSR (Partial Least Square Regression), ed uno di tipo geostatistico, che ha considerato la dipendenza spaziale dei dati. Questi due approcci sono stati dapprima studiati relativamente ad un periodo di due settimane, tra il 13 ed il 27 Giugno 2007, considerando separatamente ciascuna settimana e poi la media delle due. Questo periodo è stato scelto perché era quello comune alle due campagne di misurazione e permetteva di massimizzare la numerosità delle osservazioni. Entrambi gli approcci hanno identificato la quota, la temperatura e le precipitazioni come i principali predittori dei livelli di ozono in Trentino, seppur con pesi diversi a seconda del periodo considerato. La validazione su siti indipendenti ha evidenziato errori medi assoluti pari al 28.6% (approccio statistico) e 16.1% (approccio geostatistico). L’RMSEP (Root- Mean-Square-Error of Prediction, una misura delle differenze tra il valore vero ed il valore predetto, espressa nella stessa unità di misura della variabile di interesse) è risultato leggermente migliore nel modello derivante dall’approccio geostatistico, per il quale anche la varianza spiegata è risultata superiore. In virtù dei minori errori, l’approccio geostatistico è stato quindi applicato per le stime a scala provinciale e per la previsione delle concentrazioni medie sul periodo Giugno-Settembre. Quota e precipitazioni sono risultati i predittori significativi che permettono di massimizzare la prestazione del modello con il minor numero di predittori. Le stime così ottenute sono state validate mediante Cross-Validation attraverso la procedura di Leave-One-Out, che ha evidenziato scostamenti medi dai dati misurati pari a 13.98 μg*m-3. Le stime indicano valori di ozono superiori (fino anche ad oltre 180 μg*m-3) nella parte occidentale della provincia, a ridosso dell’Adamello, e nel settore nord-orientale, dalla Marmolada al Primiero (120-180 μg*m-3). In queste zone l’AOT40 (stimato sul periodo metà Giugno-metà Settembre) arriva a valori 3-4 volte superiori al Target stabilito dalla Direttiva EU per la protezione della vegetazione. Merita ricordare tuttavia che esistono aree con misurazioni assenti (es. area centro-occidentale della provincia) che possono avere influenza nella formulazione del modello e sulla precisione delle stime. I risultati ottenuti sono promettenti e dimostrano la praticabilità dell’approccio seguito, che potrebbe portare a sviluppi applicativi interessanti: con l’aggiunta di una componente dinamica (tempo), si potrebbero ottenere stime e previsioni più robuste; sovrapponendo le stime dei livelli di ozono con altri layer informativi sarebbero possibili stime di rischio, oltrechè per la popolazione, anche per ecosistemi e vegetazione; diventerebbero fattibili una mappatura routinaria delle aree a rischio e studi correlativi sul possibile ruolo dell’ozono sulle condizioni dei boschi trentini

Brain tumours in the time of COVID-19: An online survey on patients’ disease experience in one Italian region

BackgroundSince the outbreak, in 2019, of COVID-19, the world has experienced marked changes in daily habits, partly reflecting the exceptional social restrictions and health measures adopted to contain the disease. All these measures significantly affected not only peoples’s daily lives and psychological well-being but also the possibility for the healthcare system to function properly. In this setting, brain tumour patients were at risk due to their higher physical and mental fragility and their need for regular care. The aim of the present study was to assess, using a self-reported online questionnaire, the patients’s perceptions regarding their disease experience.Materials and methodsWe developed an online anonymous self-report survey to assess patients’s disease experience during the pandemic. We investigated the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on patients’s cancer care schedules, their psychological distress and emotions felt during the pandemic, their levels of worry about COVID-19, and their oncological conditions.Results107 patients answered our survey, most of them suffering from a glioma. Less than one-third of the sample had their appointments cancelled, delayed or converted into online visits due to the pandemic. Of the patients who answered the survey, 95% declared they were satisfied with their Institute’s oncological management. The feelings reported most often were peacefulness or anxiety/worry; the majority of the sample reported high levels of loneliness, which tended to increase with age, whilst the psychological distress was correlated with age and with having a recurrence of the disease. Half of the sample declared severe worry about their oncological condition, in particular subjects with a recurrence or who were receiving adjuvant therapies. Patients with recurrence tended to worry more about the possibility of contracting COVID-19, and its effects.ConclusionOur findings illustrate how fragile and in need of care patients with a brain tumour may be, especially those with more severe clinical conditions. These data may help boost healthcare professionals’s knowledge about brain tumour patients’s needs and fears, so as to be able to offer them a better hospital experience and improve their clinical management, while possibly also reducing the psychological burden on patients and their families

Palynological analyses on sediments of the Lake Tovel Behre K.E.,

SUMMARY -Palynological analyses on sediments of Lake Tovel (Trentino, Italy) -Palynological analyses on Tovel Lake sediments were conducted to reconstruct the local vegetation and land use history. Two of 30 collected cores for WP2 of SALTO project were chosen for palynological analyses: core TOV01-7, sampled in the centre of the main basin to obtain information of the vegetation development on a regional scale, and core TOV03-19, sampled in a littoral position, on local scale. The two cores of Tovel Lake encompass the recent vegetation development of the late Subatlantic: core TOV01-7 since about 900 AD, and core TOV03-19 since 1600 AD. Around 1100 AD a human impact on vegetation is recorded. Clearings in the valley bottoms are expanded and they transformed the thermophilous oak forests into farmland. Accompanied with this human interference is an intensifi cation of the agricultural activities. During the Middle Ages an anthropogenic disturbance was caused by grazing of the local forests surrounding the lake. Between 1400 AD and 1600 AD new clearings in lower altitudes caused a decrease of Ostrya carpinifolia as well as an increase in Castanea sativa and Juglans, implying the plantation of orchards. Later, during the middle of the 17 th to the 18 th century, the mixed oak forests in valley bottom regions are cleared again, but clearings happen also in the forests surrounding the lake, indicated by a Fagus, Abies and Picea decrease, whereas pioneer and light demanding species expand, e.g. Betula, Populus and Pinus. There existed an extensive land use in the valley recorded by high values of cultural (Hordeum-type, Secale) and settlement indicators (Artemisia, Chenopodiaceae, Urticaceae), but also from the increase of the Gramineae, Juniperus and Plantago laceolata as a consequence of pasture. During the 19 th century the percentage curve of Vitis refl ects the expansion of viticulture in the valley bottoms. A last remarkable change in the land use of the area happened around 1880 AD: a grazing management of the forests surrounding the lake as well as in the high altitudes is suggested by pasture indicators and respectively the expansion of Larix. It is conceivable that this intensifi ed pasture utilization may cause a higher input of nitrogen into the lake and the surroundings which favors the spread of Cyperaceae in the lakeshore vegetation and Sambucus nigra in the forests at the beginning of the 20 th century. Nevertheless, it does not seem to have a sustainable effect because in the most recent samples these eutrophic indicators are diminished. RIASSUNTO -Analisi palinologiche sui sedimenti del Lago di Tovel (Trentino, Italia) -Sui sedimenti del Lago di Tovel sono state effettuate analisi polliniche per ricostruire la storia della vegetazione e dell&apos;uso del territorio locale. Due delle 30 carote campionate per il WP2 del progetto SALTO sono state scelte per le analisi polliniche: la TOV01-7, prelevata al centro del bacino principale per ottenere informazioni sullo sviluppo della vegetazione su scala regionale, e la TOV03-19, campionata in posizione litorale per ottenere informazioni a livello locale. Le due carote del Lago di Tovel racchiudono lo sviluppo della vegetazione del tardo Subatlantico: approssimativamente, la TOV01-7 dal 900 AD e la TOV03-19 dal 1600 AD. Attorno al 1100 AD si nota già l&apos;impatto umano sulla vegetazione: nel fondovalle il Quercetum mixtum subisce dei tagli ed è convertito in terre coltivabili, con un aumento dell&apos;attività agricola. Durante il Medio Evo, un disturbo antropico locale è determinato dal taglio dei boschi. Tra il 1400 AD e il 1600 AD, il taglio alle basse quote causa una diminuzione di Ostrya carpinifolia e un aumento di Castanea sativa e Juglans. Tra la metà del XVII e il XVIII secolo si assiste ancora al taglio di boschi a querceto misto nel fondovalle. I tagli interessano anche i boschi limitrofi al lago e ciò è testimoniato dalla diminuzione di Fagus, Abies e Picea e dalla contemporanea espansione di specie pioniere eliofi le come Betula, Populus e Pinus. L&apos;uso estensivo del fondovalle è testimoniato dall&apos;elevata presenza d&apos;indicatori colturali (Hordeum-type, Secale) e antropici (Artemisia, Chenopodiaceae, Urticaceae), ma anche dall&apos;aumento di Gramineae, Juniperus e Plantago laceolata come conseguenza dell&apos;attività di pascolo. La curva pollinica di Vitis testimonia l&apos;introduzione della viticoltura in fondovalle durante il XIX secolo. Un ultimo evidente cambiamento nell&apos;uso del territorio si registra verso il 1880 AD: tagli dei boschi attorno al lago e alle quote superiori sono testimoniati rispettivamente dalla presenza di indicatori di pascolo e dall&apos;espansione di Larix.

A critical presentation of innovative techniques for automated pollen identification in aerobiological monitoring networks

Pollen grains are one of the major causes of respiratory allergies. We briefly review the role of aerobiological monitoring centers in providing information about airborne pollen concentration for helping allergic patients to reduce exposition to allergens and to start appropriate drug treatments. Spatial and temporal resolution of this information should be increased. However, the effort required by the technique currently used to identify and count the airborne pollen grains hinders this improvement. Therefore, innovative classification approaches were investigated. In particular, we studied the feasibility of methodologies developed in the spectroscopic and biomolecular field, with the aim at providing rapid, accurate and possibly automated airborne pollen concentration measurements. In this chapter the state of the art in this field is outlined as well as our obtained results; we discuss both the proof of principle of the applicability of such techniques for pollen quantification and, from a more practical point of view, the feasibility of implementing them in aerobiological centers as routine identification tools. Possible future improvements of developed techniques to solve current weaknesses are also examined