SOLANUM LYCOPERSICUM X S. PENNELLII INTROGRESSION LINES WERE USEFUL TO CHARACTERISE THE IONOME OF TOMATO FRUIT

In the frame of "GenoPom" PON-MIUR project, we have began a study of tomato ionome in order to identify the contribution of specific chromosome and part of them on the ionome. For this purpose, we have analysed by ICP-MS plants of an introgression line (IL) population derived from the cross between Solanum lycopersicum cv. M82 and S. pennellii (Eshed and Zamir, 1995) grown under controlled environmental conditions.we report results derived from tomato whole fruits ionome analysis of 30 IL, covering all 12 tomato chromosomes, along with the recurrent parent cv. M82. Among several detected elements, the following ones have firstly been analysed: Ca, Fe, Cu, Zn and Se. Each element concentration data were referred to cv. M82

Nested interactions between chemosynthetic lucinid bivalves and seagrass promote ecosystem functioning in contaminated sediments

In seagrass sediments, lucinid bivalves and their chemoautotrophic bacterial symbionts consume H2S, relying indirectly on the plant productivity for the presence of the reduced chemical. Additionally, the role of lucinid bivalves in N provisioning to the plant (through N2 fixation by the symbionts) was hypothesized. Thus, lucinids may contribute to sediment detoxification and plant fitness. Seagrasses are subject to ever-increasing human pressure in coastal environments. Here, disentangling nested interactions between chemosynthetic lucinid bivalves and seagrass exposed to pollution may help to understand seagrass ecosystem dynamics and to develop successful seagrass restoration programs that consider the roles of animal-microbe symbioses. We evaluated the capacity of lucinid bivalves (Loripes orbiculatus) to promote nutrient cycling and seagrass (Cymodocea nodosa) growth during a 6-week mesocosm experiment. A fully crossed design was used to test for the effect of sediment contamination (metals, nutrients, and hydrocarbons) on plant and bivalve (alone or interacting) fitness, assessed by mortality, growth, and photosynthetic efficiency, and for the effect of their nested interaction on sediment biogeochemistry. Plants performed better in the contaminated sediment, where a larger pool of dissolved nitrogen combined with the presence of other trace elements allowed for an improved photosynthetic efficiency. In fact, pore water nitrogen accumulated during the experiment in the controls, while it was consumed in the contaminated sediment. This trend was accentuated when lucinids were present. Concurrently, the interaction between clams and plants benefitted both organisms and promoted plant growth irrespective of the sediment type. In particular, the interaction with lucinid clams resulted in higher aboveground biomass of C. nodosa in terms of leaf growth, leaf surface, and leaf biomass. Our results consolidate the notion that nested interactions involving animal-microbe associations promote ecosystem functioning, and potentially help designing unconventional seagrass restoration strategies that exploit chemosynthetic symbioses.Versión del edito

Characterization of Extracts from Haematococcus pluvialis Red Phase by using Accelerated Solvent Extraction

The request for natural products such as antioxidant pigments derived from microalgae, i.e. ß-carotene, lutein and astaxanthin, is growing. In this context, astaxanthin, a powerful antioxidant produced by Haematococcus pluvialis, used as an additive in animal feed and as a food supplement, has been extracted by accelerated solvent extraction using acetone and ethanol as green and safe solvents, and hexane and chloroform:methanol (1:1) performing the best operating conditions. The obtained extracts showed not only the recovery of mainly astaxanthin but also other carotenoids, such as lutein and in lesser part of ß-carotene. In addition, the composition of the extracts was analyzed by highlighting the content of other valuable bio-products such as proteins, carbohydrates, lipids and Total Dietary Fibers. The best extraction performance was found using acetone and ethanol as solvent

Scenedesmus almeriensis solutions dewatering by using PVDF membrane

In this work, a membrane-based separation was investigate for Scenedesmus almeriensis solutions dewatering. A commercial polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane, having a pore size of 3 μm was used in order to allow the water passage through it (permeate), retaining, at the same time, algae biomass (retentate). The possibility to reuse the permeate for a second Scenedesmus almeriensis growth step, was also studied. The registered data evidenced the feasibility of the membrane-based dewatering as an alternative competitive technology, even though the recovery of water should need further investigations to be optimized

Surface water – groundwater connectivity implications on nitrate cycling assessed by means of hydrogeologic and isotopic techniques in the Alento river basin (Salerno, Italy): preliminary data

The knowledge of the mechanisms regulating the concentration of nutrients in rivers is of fundamental importance in maintaining the ecological functioning of streams. In particular, in the riverbed sediments, where the biogeochemical activity is enhanced, the study of retention mechanisms becomes crucial in order to determine the restoring capacity of a watercourse. In case of groundwater inflow, hot-spots in the recycling of nutrients within the riparian and hyporheic zones can be observed, influencing the nutrient load transported into the stream depending on retention mechanisms. Hence, the study of biotic and abiotic factors affecting retention and transport of nutrients in a riverine ecosystem at different spatial scales (from reach to catchment) becomes fundamental to understand the mechanisms regulating the concentration of nutrients, and in particular nitrates, in streams. The present work is developed within the framework of the IAEA Coordinated Research Project (CRP) “Environmental Isotopes and Age Dating Methods to Assess Nitrogen Pollution and Other Quality Issues in Rivers”. The main scope is to find a reliable methodology to, spatially and temporally, quantify groundwater inflows to a river in order to study nitrates contamination of a groundwater dependent river ecosystem. In particular, the overall objectives of the proposed project are: i) the identification and quantification of spatiotemporal variation of the connectivity between groundwater and surface water; ii) the identification of the nitrate contamination sources of shallow groundwater; iii) the study of the nitrates retention and recycling mechanisms in riverbed sediments in critical effluent river reaches (key sites) in order to determine the importance of hyporheic and riparian zones. Here, the preliminary results of the hydrogeological, chemical and isotopic (222Rn, δ18O, δD) monitoring are presented and discussed

Growth and metabolism of basil grown in a new-concept microcosm under different lighting conditions

To simulate a typical market-oriented cultivation in laboratory, plants of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) were grown from seedling to flowering stages in a new-concept microcosm device that enables roots and aerial parts to grow as under real crop conditions. To test the device efficacy, two microcosms were used with the same lighting architecture, temperature and photoperiodic conditions and with two different light spectra, white (W) or bluered (BR), displaying a similar spectral power in the blue region. Plant growth, biomass yield, photosynthetic efficiency and nutrient uptake were determined. An innovative analytical approach for secondary metabolic profile was also developed to determine basil quality. The plants grew vigorous and healthy for the whole cultivation period and under both the lighting regimes, giving a biomass yield similar to those of basil grown under conventional greenhouse and field conditions. The two lighting regimes differently affected plant growth and yield, with the BR light, that was characterized by a higher photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD), associated to higher plants, earlier flowering and greater yield. In the average, fresh and dry aerial biomasses per plant were about 250 g and 41 g under BR and about 114 g and 9 g under W light. Higher concentrations of major nutrients were detected in plants under W light, thus indicating that yield levels and major nutrient concentrations are not necessarily related to each other. Similar Fv/Fm (0.76–0.78) and ETR values were observed under the two light regimes , possibly indicating that plants under long lasting cultivation can adapt to different light regimes to reach similar photosynthetic efficiency levels. Different secondary metabolic profiles were detected in tissues sampled at the end of cultivation period and previously unreported profiles for basil were also recorded, possibly indicating that the extent of plant growth affects secondary metabolism in basil, in addition to light spectrum and PPFD level. This is the first report of basil grown under microcosm conditions from seedlings to adult plants. Our results indicate that the microcosm based-technology is effective in simulating a typical market-oriented cultivation and that long lasting cultivation emphasizes the effects of different environmental conditions on plant growth and metabolism