Towards an European good governance barometer

Good governance is a key element in achieving sustainable development. But how are both concepts linked in the practice of measuring sustainable development? Experts and representatives of the civil society cooperated to define good governance criteria for sustainable development indicators

Antiproliferative activity of lichen extracts on murine myeloma cells

In the present study we report some preliminary results concerning the evaluation of antiproliferative activity on murine myeloma cells (P3X63-Ag8.653) of crude extracts of two common lichen species, Evernia prunastri and Xanthoria parietina. The results were evaluated by means of the MTT [3-(4,5- dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide] test, which is commonly used to assess the activity of living cells through mitochondrial dehydrogenases. They indicated that extracts of E. prunastri had no effect, while those of X. parietina significantly affected murine myeloma cell proliferation, with a reduction down to 75% for methanolic extracts. This opens perspectives for deeper investigations extended also to other mammalian cell lines

Diversity of epiphytic lichens and Hg contents of Xanthoria parietina thalli as monitors of geothermal air pollution in the Mt. Amiata area (central Italy).

The diversity of epiphytic lichens and mercury concentrations in lichen samples were measured to monitor the release of airborne pollutants from the industrial exploitation of geothermal resources in the Mt. Amiata area (Italy). The lichen biodiversity showed a general condition of moderate environmental alteration around the geothermal power plants, contrasting with the low environmental alteration of the remaining sites investigated. According to the accumulated Hg in lichen thalli, it was possible to estimate mean Hg and H2 S concentrations in the air, which resulted in very good agreement with values measured instrumentally. Based on these data and the correlation between lichen diversity values and Hg concentrations in lichens, it was possible to calculate the threshold of 8 μg/m3 H2 S as responsible for the worsening from low to moderate environmental alteration according to the biodiversity of epiphytic lichens, and to infer that around geothermal power plants, although not toxic to humans, H2 S concentrations are such to alter the nasal quality of the air. Based on the growth rate of X. parietina, it was possible to convert Hg concentrations into estimates of average Hg deposition rates, which showed fluxes of the order of 65–100 mg/ha/y, indicating a dispersions factor of about 104 for the Hg emitted from the geothermal power plants

Frazionamento di elementi in traccia nei suoli dell'area urbana di Siena e loro assorbimento da parte dei lombrichi

Le aree urbane rappresentano ambienti a rischio di contaminazione da specie chimiche organiche ed inorganiche in quanto soggette alla pressione di diverse attività antropiche, tra cui il traico veicolare. Nell’area di Siena è stato condotto uno studio volto a valutare l’impatto del traffico veicolare sulla presenza e distribuzione areale di alcuni elementi in traccia nel suolo di zone urbane, peri-urbane ed extra-urbane, ed il loro trasferimento ai lombrichi della specie Nicodrilus caliginosus. I lombrichi sono organismi sensibili alla presenza di elementi in traccia nel suolo e per questo efficacemente utilizzati negli studi dei livelli di contaminazione. Nei campioni di suolo e negli esemplari di lombrico sono stati misurati i contenuti di Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Sb, U e Zn, ed è stata definita la loro ripartizione nelle principali frazioni del suolo: solubile, estraibile, riducibile, ossidabile e residuale. Pb e Sb sono risultati gli elementi il cui contenuto nel suolo è maggiormente inluenzato dal traffico veicolare, seguono Zn, Cd e Cu. Per tutti questi elementi le concentrazioni più elevate contraddistinguono i suoli urbani s.s. Gli elementi considerati mostrano tre diversi pattern di ripartizione nelle frazioni del suolo: Co, Cr, Cu, Ni, Sb, U e Zn sono presenti prevalentemente nella frazione residuale, Pb nelle frazioni riducibile e residuale, Cd principalmente in quella estraibile. Per Cd, Cu, Pb, Sb e Zn l’apporto del traffico veicolare si distribuisce a vario grado in tutte le frazioni non residuali. Negli esemplari di lombrico le concentrazioni degli elementi in traccia rivelano un modello di distribuzione analogo a quello descritto per i loro contenuti totali nel suolo. Le modalità ed il grado di assorbimento degli elementi in traccia da parte dei lombrichi appaiono influenzate dal tipo di ripartizione nel suolo. Nel complesso la frazione estraibile è quella che maggiormente determina le concentrazioni di Cd, Pb, Sb e Zn nei lombrichi, mentre un contributo minoritario è dovuto anche alle frazioni solubile ed ossidabile; la frazione ossidabile è quella che regola in maggior misura i contenuti di Cu nei lombrichi

Influence of sun irradiance and water availability on lichen photosynthetic pigments during a Mediterranean summer.

This study was carried out to investigate changes in lichen photosynthetic pigments induced by different combi- nations of light irradiance and water availability during a Mediterranean summer. To this purpose, thalli of three epiphytic lichens with a markedly different ecology concerning photo-hygrophytism, namely Evernia prunastri (hygro-mesophytic), Flavoparmelia caperata (mesophytic) and Xanthoria parietina (xero-mesophytic), were transplanted for 30 days to N- and S-facing cardinal exposures in central Italy. To investigate the effect of thallus hydration, at each cardinal exposure 50% of thalli were hydrated daily with deionised water. The results showed that changes in the concentrations of photosynthetic pigments are species-specific and consist in a general depression of photosynthetic pigments only in the hygro-mesophytic species E. prunastri. The pattern of photosynthetic pigments was also investigated in spontaneous samples along contrasting aspects. In this case, X. parietina from S-facing slopes, adapted to direct solar influx, showed higher pigment content than N-facing thalli; F. caperata and E. prunastri avoid direct extreme solar radiation and assimilation pigments were influenced more by the shadowing of tree canopies than by the cardinal exposure. The influence of drought on lichen photosynthetic pigments in the Mediterranean area is discussed

Reperti della prima età dei Metalli provenienti da una tomba a Monte San Savino (AR)

A typological study of some artefacts of the Copper Age (two copper daggers and a flint arrowhead) from a tomb at Monte San Savino (Ar) is presented. The copper artefacts have undergone a geochemical analysis to determine their elementary composition

Vertical distribution patterns of trace elements in an urban environment as reflected by their accumulation in lichen transplants.

The results of an investigation about the vertical distribution patterns of selected trace elements in an urban environment, as reflected by their accumulation in lichen transplants, are reported. Thalli of the lichen Pseudevernia furfuracea were transplanted in 2 sites in the urban area of Thessaloniki (N Greece), subjected to very different traffic loads: 1) Tsimiski, downtown of Thessaloniki, at one of the busiest streets of the city, a street canyon 2) Toumba, far from the city centre, at the edge of the city, at an open street. In each site, thalli were suspended along a vertical transect at 3, 6, 9 and 12 m, and retrieved after one year. The results showed that while at Toumba the elemental composition of lichen samples was essentially influenced by natural occurrence, mainly airborne soil dust, at Tsimiski also anthropogenic input of pollutants determined by vehicle traffic was involved for some elements such as Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn. The vertical distribution patterns of heavy metals accumulated in lichens showed that in general elevation has no statistically significant influence on the concentration of most metals, but this was not true for Pb, whose concentrations increased with increasing elevation from ground. Residents may thus be more exposed to high concentrations of Pb than pedestrians

Effects of high temperature on epiphytic lichens: issues for consideration in a changing climate scenario

The effect of high temperatures on the lichen Evernia prunastri was investigated by analysing the content of photosynthetic pigments, chlorophyll degradation, and the integrity of cell membranes. Results indicate that E. prunastri can tolerate a temperature of 40°C for 24 h, but for longer periods a reduction in chlorophyll b is apparent, suggesting that chlorophyll b could be used as a valuable parameter to detect changes caused by prolonged exposure to such temperatures. Exposure of E. prunastri to a temperature of 80°C had strongly negative effects on the content of photosynthetic pigments, causing both inhibition of chlorophyll synthesis and chlorophyll degradation to phaeophytin; slow acclimation was not capable of preventing such damage. Damage to cell membranes, as indicated by changes in electrical conductivity of the medium, proved to be a useful and simple tool for measuring damage caused by high temperatures. Besides the effects of temperature, results also indicate that exposure to a prolonged dark period has an important negative influence on the chlorophyll a/b ratio, suggesting that lichens could be profitably used not only to monitor climate changes, but also to monitor the effects of global dimming. © 2007 Società Botanica Italiana

Statistical and spatial analyses of correlations between spectral signatures and chemical data of lichens for environmental pollution assessing

Aim of the study is to evaluate the environmental impact of geothermic activities by the use of in site spectral analyses of different environmental components. Different analytical techniques have been applied basing on the study of the red edge shift (Gates et al., 1965). Interesting results have been achieved from vegetation and lichens which present evidences of correlation with chemical analyses when under stress conditions. The study allows to identify a quantitative method to measure the contamination index of plants and lichens