204 research outputs found
Evidence from multivariate morphometric study of the quercus pubescens complex in southeast Italy
The name Quercus pubescens s.l. encompasses a complex of deciduous oak taxa with mainly southeastEuropean
distribution and a large ecological niche. As the easternmost region of Italy, Apulia is
rather isolated from a geographical and physiographical viewpoint and counts the highest number
of oak species (10). In the taxonomic and phytosociological literature, the occurrence of several
species belonging to the Quercus pubescens collective group is reported for this region. In order to
verify if different sets of morphological characters are associated with different taxa, 24 populations
of Quercus pubescens s.l. located in different ecological-geographical areas of Apulia were sampled.
A total of 367 trees, 4254 leaves and 1120 fruits were collected and morphologically analysed.
Overall, 25 morphological characters of oak leaves and fruits were statistically treated using both
univariate and multivariate analysis. Nested ANOVA showed that leaves collected from a single tree
exhibited a degree of morphological variability higher than that observed when comparing leaves
coming from different trees of the same population and from different trees of different populations
as well. Almost all the morphological characters analysed exhibited a continuous trend of variation
so that none of them can be used as a character to discriminate between populations. Only leaf
and fruit “size” and fruit petiole length emerged as slightly discriminating characters. Our results
suggest that it is unlikely that more than one species belonging to the Quercus pubescens complex
occurs in the Apulia region. Comparison between the Apulian populations and a genetically
pure Q. pubescens population coming from a different area (the Molise region) strengthened the
assumption as to the existence of a single species that can provisionally be classified under the name
of Q. pubescens s.
A multivariate morphometric analysis of diagnostic traits in southern Italy and Sicily pubescent oaks
Species identification within the species complex
of Q. pubescens is a well-known taxonomic challenge
among European botanists. Some of the specific
pubescent oak binomials currently accepted in various
European floras and checklistswere originally described
in Sicily and southern Calabria. As a consequence,
several species belonging to the pubescent oaks group
(Q. pubescens, Q. amplifolia, Q. congesta,
Q. dalechampii, Q. leptobalana and Q. virgiliana) are
reported in the taxonomic and phytosociological literature.
To verify whether it was possible to associate a
diverse set of morphological characters with each of
these different taxa, thirteen natural populations of pubescent
oak from Sicily and southern Calabria were
sampled. A total of 391 trees, 3,887 leaves and 1,047
fruits were collected. Overall, 28 morphological characters
of oak leaves and fruits were statistically analysed
using univariate and multivariate procedures. The results
showed that neither the groups of morphological
diversity identified by cluster analysis, nor those obtained
by our expert identification through the use of analytical
keys, matched with the current taxonomical
frameworks as proposed by the most recent floras and
checklists. Nearly all of the morphological characters
considered displayed a more or less continuous trend of
variation, both within and among populations. In the
light of these findings it seems unlikely that more than
one biological species of pubescent oak occurs in Sicily
and southern Calabria
preliminary characterization of the quercus pubescens complex in southern italy using molecular markers
Quercus pubescens s.l. is a group of taxonomically intricate and highly debated deciduous white oaks widely distributed in southern Europe. The Apulia Region occupies the south-easternmost part of the Italian peninsula; the land-use pattern is based on extensive agricultural systems and only 10% is covered by forests that are mainly composed of oak woods. It is the region in Italy showing the highest number of oak species, among which four putative species of the Quercus pubescens group, have been reported in floras and checklists with uncertain taxonomic value because of the overlapping of diagnostic characters. In this paper, we carried out a molecular analysis on natural populations of Q. pubescens s.l. distributed throughout the Apulian region. Individuals from 24 pubescent oak populations were sampled and each tree was genotyped at 11 polymorphic microsatellite markers. Overall, the average expected heterozygosity (He) was 0.629, and the allelic richness (Ar) ranged between 2.130 and 7.187. No differentiation was observed among the populations investigated, and the genetic differentiation coefficient (FST) was 0.036. Gene flow among populations was found to be relatively high (Nm = 6.664). From a taxonomic point of view, the possibility of the coexistence of more than one species among the Apulian pubescent oaks reported in the taxonomic and syntaxonomic literature is not supported by the results of this molecular analysis
Role of endogenous interferon and LPS in the immunomodulatory effects of bovine lactoferrin in murine peritoneal macrophages
Lactoferrin (Lf) plays an important role in host defense against infection and excessive inflammation. Although the mechanisms underlying its immunomodulatory properties have not been fully elucidated yet, recent evidence suggests that some of these effects may be related to its capacity to form complexes with LPS. We report that the culture of resting mouse peritoneal macrophages (PM) with bovine Lf (bLf), prior to infection with the vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), resulted in a significant reduction of virus yield with respect to control cultures. The antiviral activity of bLF was related to its capacity of inducing IFN-α/β expression, which in turn inhibited VSV replication. Indeed, the accumulation of IFN-β but not of IFNα 1-2 transcripts was up-modulated markedly early after bLf addition. Furthermore, bLf did not exert any antiviral activity in the presence of neutralizing antibodies to IFN-α/β in PM from wildtype mice, as well as in PM from mice genetically defective for the response to IFN. The antiviral activity of bLf relied on its intrinsic capacity to bind LPS, as this protein did not induce IFN expression in PM from LPS-hyporesponsive mice. It is interesting that this LPS-binding property was dispensable for the production of TNF-α, which also occurred in LPS-hyporesponsive mice. Overall, these results indicate that some of the immunomodulatory effects ascribed to Lf may be related to its capacity to favor Type I IFN expression and argue in favor of an important role of the LPS-binding feature and TLR4 in some of the effects ascribed to this molecule. © Society for Leukocyte Biology
Lista bibliografica
Questa lista bibliografica contiene il secondo aggiornamento della bibliografia della Lisy e deriva dall’assemblaggio da parte della redazione (M. Serdoz ed E. Panfili) dei contributi parziali stilati dai gruppi regionali
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