Indagine sull’Acarofauna in alcune aree cerealicole di Puglia e Basilicata

ACAROFAUNA IN SOME CEREAL AREAS OF APULIA AND BASILICATA (SOUTHERN ITALY) A faunistical study on mites in some cereal areas of Apulia and Basilicata was made during 1991-1993. 72 species, whose 12 are new for Italy and 1 for Europe, belonging to 31 different families have been carried out. The fundamental bio-ethological notes for each species are repor- ted. Key words: mites, Triticum durum Desf., faunistics, weeds. Una indagine sull’acarofauna in alcune aree cerealicole pugliesi e lucane è stata effettuata negli anni 1991-1993. Sono state rinvenute 72 specie, delle quali 12 nuove per la fauna italiana e 1 per l’Europa, appartenenti a 31 famiglie per le quali vengono riportati gli aspetti bioetologici essenziali. Parole chiave: acari, Triticum durum Desf., faunistica, infestanti

Landscape restoration due to Xylella fastidiosa invasion in Italy: Assessing the hypothetical public’s preferences

Since 2013, the olive landscapes have gradually degenerated due to the spread and establishment of Xylella fastidiosa subsp. pauca (hereafter Xf) in Apulia, southern Italy. From 2013 to 2019, a total of approximately 54,000 hectares of olive orchards in the south of this region have been seriously damaged, and their restoration will progressively regenerate the economic, social, cultural and environmental nonmarket benefits. Since there is a willingness to restore the affected landscape in the best interest of the local citizens, this research aims to predict their preference heterogeneity and willingness to pay (WTP) to improve this landscape and continue research and experimentation in relation to Olive Quick Decline Syndrome Disease by the bacterium. For this purpose, a choice experiment method is used. The social field survey includes a representative sample of 683 respondents in three major cities (Foggia, Bari and Lecce) of Apulia region. The results reveal that for the local citizens interviewed, the most appreciated olive landscape services are cultural heritage and aesthetic values. In addition, the findings revealed citizens’ positive appreciation of improving the damaged olive landscape, while respondents are not willing to pay a premium for research. The results show that the average value that Apulians are willing to pay for landscape restoration is about 5.7 million of € per year. Further, this research has implications for land use planners in the study area, which faces issues of harmful pathogen management and land revival

Genetic diversity and signature of divergence in the genome of grapevine clones of Southern Italy varieties

Sexual reproduction has contributed to a significant degree of variability in cultivated grapevine populations. However, the additional influence of spontaneous somatic mutations has played a pivotal role in shaping the diverse landscape of grapevine agrobiodiversity. These naturally occurring selections, termed 'clones,' represent a vast reservoir of potentially valuable traits and alleles that hold promise for enhancing grape quality and bolstering plant resilience against environmental and biotic challenges. Despite their potential, many of these clones remain largely untapped.In light of this context, this study aims to delve into the population structure, genetic diversity, and distinctive genetic loci within a collection of 138 clones derived from six Campanian and Apulian grapevine varieties, known for their desirable attributes in viticulture and winemaking. Employing two reduced representation sequencing methods, we extracted Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) markers. Population structure analysis and fixation index (FST) calculations were conducted both between populations and at individual loci. Notably, varieties originating from the same geographical region exhibited pronounced genetic similarity.The resulting SNP dataset facilitated the identification of approximately two hundred loci featuring divergent markers (FST ≥ 0.80) within annotated exons. Several of these loci exhibited associations with essential traits like phenotypic adaptability and environmental responsiveness, offering compelling opportunities for grapevine breeding initiatives. By shedding light on the genetic variability inherent in these treasured traditional grapevines, our study contributes to the broader understanding of their potential. Importantly, it underscores the urgency of preserving and characterizing these valuable genetic resources to safeguard their intra-varietal diversity and foster future advancements in grapevine cultivation

Biology and Ultrastructural Characterization of Grapevine Badnavirus 1 and Grapevine Virus G

The biological characteristics of grapevine viruses, such as their transmission and host range, are important for the adoption of successful prophylaxis strategies. The aim of this study was to investigate the traits of two newly described grapevine viruses widely distributed in Croatia, grapevine badnavirus 1 (GBV-1) and grapevine virus G (GVG). The vine mealybug (Planoccocus ficus) proved to be a vector of GBV-1 and GVG capable of vine-to-vine transmission with overall experimental transmission rates of 61% and 14.6%, respectively. Transmission was also demonstrated by grafting, with an overall transmission rate of 53.8% for GBV-1 and 100% for GVG, as well as by green grafting using the T-budding technique. Symptoms of GBV-1 and GVG were not observed on the woody cylinders of the indicators LN 33, Kober 5BB, 110 Richter and cvs. Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. Seed transmission and mechanical transmission were not confirmed. Electron microscopy revealed accumulation of GBV-1 particles and viroplasms in the cytoplasm, but no alternations of the cell structure. Infection with GVG revealed the proliferation of tonoplast-associated vesicles inside phloem cells and cell wall thickening

Genomic and physiological basis of resistance to Xylella fastidiosa in olive

<p>It is almost 10 years since the discovery of Xylella fastidiosa in the southern part of the region of Apulia (southern Italy) [1]. The rapid spread of the infections and the large territory interested by the epidemics, urged for the adoption of containment strategies in place of the eradication measures. In the frame of these strategies a breakthrough is represented by the discovery of traits of resistance in the cvs Leccino and FS17. Replanting olive groves with resistant cultivars is of fundamental importance to restore the landscape and the agriculture of the devastated area. Investigations on the mechanisms governing the resistance phenomena in olives, showed that, for example in Leccino, resistance appears to develop from a complex of mechanisms, involving both genomic and physiological basis that keep the bacterium population lower than in the highly susceptible cultivars such as Cellina di Nardò or Ogliarola salentina or other susceptible cultivars. Extensive or targeted gene expression studies indicated that Leccino senses the bacterium by cell wall receptors and manages to contain the induced drought stress by modulating genes involved in the sugar metabolism and water flux across membranes [2,3]. Moreover, the bacterium spread trough the xylem network is likely enhanced in the susceptible Cellina di Nardò because of its facilitated exploitations of pit membranes interconnecting xylem vessels. These studies show that Leccino is more resilient to the infection, whose physiological response to the water stress is not as extreme as in susceptible cultivars. In addition, recent genomic investigations on spontaneous seedlings or cross-bred progenies derived from Leccino, support the evidence that the genetic traits of resistance can be transferred from resistant parentals to the progenies and pave the way to widening the olive germplasm resistant to Xylella. <br>                </p><p>[1]Saponari M. et al., 2019. Phytopathology, 109, 175-186.</p><p>[2]Giampetruzzi A. et al., 2016. BMC Genomics, 17:475</p><p>[3]Sabella E. et al., 2019. Scientific Reports, 9:9602          </p&gt

The potential direct economic impact and private management costs of an invasive alien species: Xylella fastidiosa on Lebanese wine grapes

Since its outbreak in 2013 in Italy, the harmful bacterium Xylella fastidiosa has continued to spread throughout the Euro-Mediterranean basin and, more recently, in the Middle East region. Xylella fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa is the causal agent of Pierce’s disease on grapevines. At present, this alien subspecies has not been reported in Lebanon but if this biological invader was to spread with no cost-effective and sustainable management, it would put Lebanese vineyards at a certain level of risk. In the absence of an Xylella fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa outbreak, the gross revenue generated by Lebanese wine growers is estimated as close to US$22 million/year for an average period of 5 years (2015–2019). The potential quantitative economic impacts of an Xylella fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa outbreak and particularly, the private control costs have not been assessed yet for this country as well as for others which Xylella fastidiosa may invade. Here, we have aimed to estimate the potential direct economic impact on growers’ livelihoods and provide the first estimate of the private management costs that a theoretical Xylella fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa outbreak in Lebanon would involve. For this purpose, we used a Partial Budget approach at the farm gate. For the country as a whole, we estimated that a hypothetical full spread of Xylella fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa on Lebanese wine grapes would lead to maximum potential gross revenue losses of almost US$ 11 million for an average recovery period of 4 years, to around US$82.44 million for an average grapevine life span period of 30 years in which infected plants are not replaced at all. The first yearly estimated additional management cost is US$853 per potentially infected hectare. For a recovery period of 4 years, the aggregate estimated additional cost would reach US$2374/ha, while the aggregate net change in profit would be US$-4046/ha. Furthermore, additional work will be needed to estimate the public costs of an Xylella fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa outbreak in Lebanon. The observed costs in this study support the concerned policy makers and stakeholders to implement a set of reduction management options against Xylella fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa at both national and wine growers’ levels. This re-emerging alien biota should not be neglected in this country. This understanding of the potential direct economic impact of Xylella fastidiosa subsp. fastidiosa and the private management costs can also benefit further larger-scale studies covering other potential infection areas and plant hosts

A new grapevine virus discovered by deep sequencing of virus-and viroid-derived small RNAs in Cv Pinot gris

Field symptoms of chlorotic mottling and leaf deformations were observed on the cv Pinot gris (PG) in the Trentino region (Italy). Extensive assays excluded the presence of widely distributed nepo-, ampelo- and vitiviruses. An analysis of small RNA populations from two PG grapevines showing or not symptoms was carried out by Illumina high throughput sequencing. The study disclosed the virus and viroids contents of the two vines that was composed by Grapevine rupestris stem pitting-associated virus (GRSPaV), two viroidsHop stunt viroid (HSVd) and Grapevine yellow speckle viroid 1 (GYSVd1), the marafivirusesGrapevine rupestrisvein feathering virus (GRVFV)and Grapevine Syrah virus 1 (GSyV-1), and a hitherto unrecorded virus. This virus had a genome organization identical to that of Grapevine berry inner necrosis virus (GINV), a trichovirus reported only from Japan, with which it grouped in phylogenetic trees constructed with sequences of the RdRp domain and the coat proteinproteingene. However, molecular differences with GINV are wide enough to warrant classification of the virus in question as a new species, for which the provisional name of Grapevine Pinot gris virus (GPGV) is proposed. A limited field survey for the presence of GPGV in diseased and symptomless plants from three different cultivars did not allow to clearly associating the virus to the observed symptoms

Genetic diversity and signature of divergence in the genome of grapevine clones of Southern Italy varieties

Although sexual reproduction has resulted in an extraordinary degree of Q7 variability among cultivated grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.), spontaneous somatic mutations have further shaped the kaleidoscope of grapevine agrobiodiversity. For centuries, growers have been collecting and propagating these various selections, calling them “clones”. The objective of this work was to analyse the population structure and the genetic diversity of six grapevine varieties from Campania and Apulia considered as panels of clones. In detail, more than 130 clones were genotyped by two reduced representation sequencing methods. Inter- and intra-varietal genetic diversity was analysed using metrics such as population structure and fixation index (FST) between populations and at single loci. Varieties belonging to the same area showed high levels of genetic similarity. The obtained Single-Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) data were used to identify Q6 two hundred loci with divergent markers (FST ≥ 0.80) within annotated exons. Some of them were found to be associated with phenotypic plasticity, adaptation to environmental conditions and other key traits interesting and useful for grapevine breeding. The results presented here allowed to increase our knowledge about the genetic variability of valuable traditional grapevines, highlighting the need to recover these promising genetic resources, characterise them and conserve their intra-varietal diversity