Morphological variation of the newly confirmed population of the javelin sand boa, Eryx jaculus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Serpentes, erycidae) in Sicily, Italy

The presence of the Javelin sand boa in Sicily has recently been confirmed. Here the morphological characters and sexual dimorphism of the Sicilian population of Eryx jaculus are presented. Seven meristic and six metric characters in 96 specimens from Sicily were examined. The results show that tail length, snout-vent length, the distance between nostrils and the number of ventral and subcaudal scales are different between sexes. The characters found in the Sicilian population of the Javelin sand boa resemble those of the African population (ssp. jaculus) rather than the Eurasian population (ssp. turcicus), but biomolecular studies are necessary to understand its taxonomic identity

Electrophysiological and Behavioral Responses of Oriental Fruit Moth to the Monoterpenoid Citral Alone and in Combination With Sex Pheromone

The monoterpenoid citral synergized the electroantennogram (EAG) response of male Grapholita molesta (Busck) antennae to its main pheromone compound Z8 Ð12:OAc. The response to a 10-g pheromone stimulus increased by 32, 45, 54, 71 and 94% with the addition of 0.1, 1, 10, 100 and 1,000 g of citral, respectively. There was no detectable response to 0.1, 1, or 10 g of citral; the response to 100 and 1,000 g of citral was 31 and 79% of the response to 10 g of Z8 Ð12:OAc. In a ßight tunnel, citral affected the mate-seeking behavior of males. There was a 66% reduction in the number of males orientating by ßight to a virgin calling female when citral was emitted at 1,000 ng/min 1 cm downwind from a female. Pheromone and citral induced sensory adaptation in male antennae, but citral did not synergize the effect of pheromone. The exposure of antennae to 1 ng Z8Ð12:OAc/m3 air, 1 ng citral/m3 air, 1 ng Z8 Ð12:OAc 1 ng citral/m3 air, or to 1 ng Z8 Ð12:OAc 100 ng citral/m3 air for 15 min resulted in a similar reduction in EAG response of 47Ð63%. The exposure of males to these same treatments for 15 min had no effect on their ability to orientate to a virgin calling female in a ßight tunnel. The potential for using citral to control G. molesta by mating disruption is discusse

Image analysis with the computer vision system and the consumer test in evaluating the appearance of Lucanian dry sausage

The object of the investigation was the Lucanian dry sausage appearance, meant as color and visible fat ratio. The study was carried out on dry sausages produced in 10 different salami factories and seasoned for 18 days on av- erage. We studied the effect of the raw material origin (5 producers used meat bought from the market and other 5 producers used meat from pigs bred in their farms) and of the salami factories or brands on meat color, fat color and visible fat ratio in dry sausages. The sausages slices were photographed and the images were analysed with the computer vision system to measure the changes in the colorimetric characteristics L*, a*, b*, hue and chroma and in the visible fat area ratio. The last parameter was assessed on the slice surface using image binarization. A consumer test was conducted to determine the relationship between the perception of visible fat on the sausage slice surface and acceptability and preference of this product. The consumers were asked to look carefully at the 6 sausages slices in a photo, minding the presence of fat, and to identify (a) the slices they considered unacceptable for consumption and (b) the slice they preferred. The results show that the color of the sausage lean part varies in relation to the raw material employed and to the producer or brand (P b 0.001). Besides, the sausage meat color is not uniform in some salami factories (P b 0.05–0.001). In all salami factories the sausages show a high unifor- mity in fat color. The visible fat ratio of the sausages slices is higher (P b 0.001) in the product from salami facto- ries without pig-breeding farm. The fat percentage is highly variable (P b 0.001) among the sausages of each salami factory. On the whole, the product the consumers consider acceptable and is inclined to eat has a low fat percentage (P b 0.001). Our consumers (about 70%) prefer slices which are leaner (P b 0.001). Women, in particular, show a higher preference for the leanest (P b 0.001)

Pressure Dependence of Fragile-to-Strong Transition and a Possible Second Critical Point in Supercooled Confined Water

By confining water in nano-pores of silica glass, we can bypass the crystallization and study the pressure effect on the dynamical behavior in deeply supercooled state using neutron scattering. We observe a clear evidence of a cusp-like fragile-to-strong (F-S) dynamic transition. Here we show that the transition temperature decreases steadily with an increasing pressure, until it intersects the homogenous nucleation temperature line of bulk water at a pressure of 1600 bar. Above this pressure, it is no longer possible to discern the characteristic feature of the F-S transition. Identification of this end point with the possible second critical point is discussed.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Catalytic asymmetric C–C cross-couplings enabled by photoexcitation

Enantioselective catalytic processes are promoted by chiral catalysts that can execute a specific mode of catalytic reactivity, channeling the chemical reaction through a certain mechanistic pathway. Here, we show how by simply using visible light we can divert the established ionic reactivity of a chiral allyl–iridium(iii) complex to switch on completely new catalytic functions, enabling mechanistically unrelated radical-based enantioselective pathways. Photoexcitation provides the chiral organometallic intermediate with the ability to activate substrates via an electron-transfer manifold. This redox event unlocks an otherwise inaccessible cross-coupling mechanism, since the resulting iridium(ii) centre can intercept the generated radicals and undergo a reductive elimination to forge a stereogenic centre with high stereoselectivity. This photochemical strategy enables difficult-to-realize enantioselective alkyl–alkyl cross-coupling reactions between allylic alcohols and readily available radical precursors, which are not achievable under thermal activation. [Figure not available: see fulltext.

Enantioselective Biocascade Catalysis with a Single Multifunctional Enzyme

Asymmetric catalytic cascade processes offer direct access to complex chiral molecules from simple substrates and in a single step. In biocatalysis, cascades are generally designed by combining multiple enzymes, each catalyzing individual steps of a sequence. Herein, we report a different strategy for biocascades based on a single multifunctional enzyme that can promote multiple stereoselective steps of a domino process by mastering distinct catalytic mechanisms of substrate activation in a sequential way. Specifically, we have used an engineered 4-oxalocrotonate tautomerase (4-OT) enzyme with the ability to form both enamines and iminium ions and combine their mechanisms of catalysis in a complex sequence. This approach allowed us to activate aldehydes and enals toward the synthesis of enantiopure cyclohexene carbaldehydes. The multifunctional 4-OT enzymes could promote both a two-component reaction and a triple cascade characterized by different mechanisms and activation sequences

Threshold Power of Canonical Antennas for Inducing SAR at Compliance Limits in the 300-3000 MHz Frequency Range

A study of the specific absorption rate (SAR) in an exposed body induced by canonical antennas is presented, with the aim of determining an upper bound for the antenna transmit power that demonstrates that a product is inherently compliant with internationally accepted radio frequency (RF) exposure limits. Starting from the fundamental limits in antenna quality factor (Q) and the corresponding bandwidth, several antenna sizes are selected, and their SAR distributions are computed using the method of moments (MoM) and finite-difference time domain (FDTD) method in the frequency range 300-3000 MHz. The threshold powers are then determined, below which the peak 1-g and 10-g averaged SAR would not exceed the limits specified in international exposure standards. From the data, simple expressions are derived to estimate the threshold power over a wide range of antenna sizes, frequencies, and distances from the body. It is demonstrated that the results presented in this paper are conservative in comparison with the measured SAR data of real products as well as other published data

A study of quantum well solar cell structures with bound-to-continuum transitions for reduced carrier recombination

A bound-to-continuum quantum well solar cell structure is proposed, and the band structure and absorption spectra are analyzed by the use of an eight band k⋅p model. The structure is based on quantum wells that only support bound states for the valence band. The absence of bound conduction band states has a number of potential advantages, including a reduction of electron trapping and, therefore, a reduction of quantum well induced photocarrier recombination due to reduced spatial overlap of the electron and hole wavefunctions.Thanks are due to the Australian Research Council for the financial support of this research

Distribution and natural history of Plutonium zwierleini (Chilopoda: Scolopendromorpha) in Sicily (Italy)

Plutonium zwierleini is a large plutoniumid centipede of great evolutionary interest, occurring with isolated populations along the western Mediterranean area, from Spain to Italy. Due to its rarity and the extreme paucity of available records, P. zwierleini is among the least known Mediterranean chilopods, and scarce information is currently available on its ecology and natural history. Based on an extensive sampling effort carried out in Sicily between 2022 and 2023, we here provide additional occurrence localities for the species across Sicily, and new insights into its ecology. Overall, 29 novel Sicilian records of P. zwierleini, scattered across 21 localities, were collected thus increasing its known Sicilian distribution area by 117%, and the number of localities by 110%. The species was found in a wide range of habitats such as open areas, woods, buildings, and caves, characterizing Plutonium zwierleini as a habitat generalist, whose fine ecological preferenda need to be further explored. Moreover, to explore the diet and behaviour of the species, some specimens were kept in captivity. The captive individuals fed mostly on dead or poorly mobile soft-bodied prey and inert food, without ever displaying predatory behaviour; this suggests that, contrarily to what is currently assumed, P. zwierleini might be a scavenger rather than a predator. The potential distribution of Plutonium zwierleini in Sicily was inferred based on georeferenced occurrence records and climatic variables. The implemented MaxEnt model forecasts the possible occurrence of P. zwierleini on the whole island, with the single exception of its south-easternmost part, possibly due to the local pattern of precipitation seasonality. We hope that the present work might pave the way for further surveys aimed at a better understanding of the ecology of Plutonium zwierleini and the collection of new data in the other regions inhabited by this secretive species

Phylogenetic relationships of the italian populations of horseshoe whip snake hemorrhois hippocrepis (Serpentes, colubridae)

Hemorrhois hippocrepis is a colubrid snake with a West Mediterranean distribution. It is widespread in the Iberian Peninsula and Northwest Africa. The only Italian populations are found on the islands of Sardinia and Pantel-leria. The phylogenetic relationships of these insular populations have been analysed for the first time on the basis of the mitochondrial DNA cytochrome b gene. The sequences were compared with those available from the geographic range of this species. The analyses showed that the Italian samples are part of a lineage that groups Tunisian and East Algerian samples, with which they share the same haplotype. These results strongly support the hypothesis of a recent origin of the Italian populations of Hemorrhois hippocrepis, probably determined by human-mediated dispersal from North Africa