Regional asynchronicity in dairy production and processing in early farming communities of the northern Mediterranean

In the absence of any direct evidence, the relative importance of meat and dairy productions to Neolithic prehistoric Mediterranean communities has been extensively debated. Here, we combine lipid residue analysis of ceramic vessels with osteo-archaeological age-at-death analysis from 82 northern Mediterranean and Near Eastern sites dating from the seventh to fifth millennia BC to address this question. The findings show variable intensities in dairy and nondairy activities in the Mediterranean region with the slaughter profiles of domesticated ruminants mirroring the results of the organic residue analyses. The finding of milk residues in very early Neolithic pottery (seventh millennium BC) from both the east and west of the region contrasts with much lower intensities in sites of northern Greece, where pig bones are present in higher frequencies compared with other locations. In this region, the slaughter profiles of all domesticated ruminants suggest meat production predominated. Overall, it appears that milk or the by-products of milk was an important foodstuff, which may have contributed significantly to the spread of these cultural groups by providing a nourishing and sustainable product for early farming communities

Regional diversity in subsistence among early farmers in Southeast Europe revealed by archaeological organic residues

The spread of early farming across Europe from its origins in Southwest Asia was a culturally transformative process which took place over millennia. Within regions, the pace of the transition was probably related to the particular climatic and environmental conditions encountered, as well as the nature of localized hunter-gatherer and farmer interactions. The establishment of farming in the interior of the Balkans represents the first movement of Southwest Asian livestock beyond their natural climatic range, and widespread evidence now exists for early pottery being used extensively for dairying. However, pottery lipid residues from sites in the Iron Gates region of the Danube in the northern Balkans show that here, Neolithic pottery was being used predominantly for processing aquatic resources. This stands out not only within the surrounding region but also contrasts markedly with Neolithic pottery use across wider Europe. These findings provide evidence for the strategic diversity within the wider cultural and economic practices during the Neolithic, with this exceptional environmental and cultural setting offering alternative opportunities despite the dominance of farming in the wider region

The effect of olive mill wastewater on soil suppressiveness

Olive mill wastewaters (OMW) constitute a major environmental problem especially for the Mediterranean countries, which are responsible for the largest part of the olive oil produced worldwide. On the other hand, many researchers have established the high fertilizing value of these wastes when they are applied to the soil: OMW are known to increase the soil organic matter content and the concentration of inorganic elements essential for plant growth. Nevertheless, OMW are also known to be highly phytotoxic, which has proven to be a strong limitation to their application to cultivated soils. Untreated wastewater can be applied to fallow soils or to soils that will only be cultivated after a period of time during which the phytotoxic substances will have been degradated. A solution to the problem of the direct application of the wastewater to the cultivated land is its biological treatment / bioremediation. Such an approach is the aerobic bioremediation of the olive mill wastewater with the nitrogen-fixing bacterium Azotobacter vinelandii. The use of organic amendments as a method for the biological control of soilborne plant pathogenic fungi has been reported by many researchers. In the context of this thesis, the effect of the addition to the soil of untreated olive mill wastewater and bioremediated olive mill wastewater on the suppressiveness against the plant pathogen Rhizoctonia solani was investigated. Several biological parameters have been investigated for the interpretation of the suppressive effects that have been observed. When the soil treated with OMW was infected with Rhizoctonia solani after a certain period of time from the last OMW application, the infection of lettuce seedlings was limited compared to the control (soil treated with water). Suppressiveness was also observed when the soil was infected with the pathogen during the period of the wastewater additions, but to a lesser degree. The effect of a low and a high dose of OMW addition was also examined and a higher suppressiveness was observed in soil treated with the high dose of the wastewater. The use of bioremediated OMW did not reveal any significant suppressive effect against R. solani, neither when the soil was infected with the pathogen during the waste addition nor after a period of time from the last addition of the wastewater nor when a high dose of wastewater was used. The effect of the OMW to the pathogen growth was investigated. It was observed that the wastewater did not prevent the fungus growth; on the contrary it slightly promoted it. It is known that R. solani is a saprophytic fungus able to grow on organic residues. The fungus is also equipped with a specific enzymatic system (lacasses) that is related to the oxidation of phenolic compounds and lignin.Τα υγρά απόβλητα ελαιοτριβείων αποτελούν ένα σημαντικό περιβαλλοντικό πρόβλημα ιδιαίτερα για τις Μεσογειακές χώρες οι οποίες είναι υπεύθυνες για το μεγαλύτερο μέρος της παγκόσμιας παραγωγής ελαιολάδου. Ωστόσο, από πολύ νωρίς διαπιστώθηκε η λιπαντική αξία των αποβλήτων αυτών, αφού οι εφαρμογές τους στο έδαφος οδηγούν τόσο στην αύξηση της οργανικής ουσίας όσο και στην αύξηση της συγκέντρωσης ανόργανων στοιχείων τα οποία είναι απαραίτητα στη θρέψη των φυτών. Περιορισμό για την εφαρμογή των αποβλήτων σε καλλιέργειες αποτελεί η έντονα φυτοτοξική τους δράση. Τα ανεπεξέργαστα απόβλητα μπορούν να εφαρμοστούν σε ακαλλιέργητα εδάφη τα οποία θα χρησιμοποιηθούν μόνο μετά την πάροδο κάποιου χρονικού διαστήματος κατά τη διάρκεια του οποίου θα αποικοδομηθούν οι φυτοτοξικές ενώσεις. Μπορούν επίσης να εφαρμοστούν απ’ ευθείας σε καλλιέργειες κατόπιν αερόβιας βιολογικής επεξεργασίας και μια τέτοια προσέγγιση αποτελεί η μεθοδολογία της αερόβιας επεξεργασίας με το αζωτοδεσμευτικό βακτήριο Azotobacter vinelandii. Η χρήση οργανικών προσθηκών στο έδαφος έχει αναφερθεί ως πρακτική για το βιολογικό έλεγχο εδαφογενών φυτοπαθογόνων μυκήτων. Στο πλαίσιο της παρούσας διατριβής μελετήθηκε η επίδραση που έχουν οι προσθήκες ανεπεξέργαστων και επεξεργασμένων υγρών αποβλήτων ελαιοτριβείων στην επισχετικότητα του εδάφους έναντι του φυτοπαθογόνου μύκητα Rhizoctonia solani. Η επισχετικότητα που εκδηλώθηκε έναντι του μύκητα στο έδαφος που δέχθηκε τα απόβλητα, ερμηνεύτηκε με τη μεταβολή διαφόρων βιολογικών παραμέτρων. Παρατηρήθηκε ότι όταν έδαφος το οποίο είχε δεχθεί ανεπεξέργαστα απόβλητα ελαιοτριβείων μολύνονταν με το παθογόνο μετά την πάροδο κάποιου χρονικού διαστήματος από την τελευταία διάβρεξη, η προσβολή των φυτών μαρουλιού ήταν περιορισμένη σε σχέση με τον μάρτυρα (έδαφος το οποίο δέχονταν νερό). Όταν χρησιμοποιήθηκαν μεγαλύτερες ποσότητες αποβλήτων, η επισχετικότητα του εδάφους έναντι του Rhizoctonia solani ήταν εντονότερη. Όταν το παθογόνο εισήχθηκε στο έδαφος κατά τη διάρκεια των διαβρέξεων του εδάφους με τα απόβλητα, εκδηλώθηκε κάποια επισχετικότητα αλλά σε μικρότερο βαθμό. Η χρήση του επεξεργασμένου αποβλήτου ελαιοτριβείων δεν οδήγησε στην εκδήλωση σημαντικής επισχετικότητας, σε καμία από τις περιπτώσεις που μελετήθηκαν (εισαγωγή του παθογόνου μετά την πάροδο κάποιου χρονικού διαστήματος από την τελευταία διάβρεξη, χρήση μεγαλύτερης ποσότητας αποβλήτων, εισαγωγή του παθογόνου κατά τη διάρκεια των διαβρέξεων με το απόβλητο). Μελετήθηκε επίσης το κατά πόσο τα ίδια τα απόβλητα παρεμποδίζουν την ανάπτυξη του παθογόνου και διαπιστώθηκε ότι δεν έχουν παρεμποδιστική δράση και ότι η όποια επίδρασή τους είναι ελαφρώς ευνοϊκή. Άλλωστε ο Rhizoctonia solani είναι σαπροφυτικός μύκητας και μπορεί να αυξάνεται εκμεταλλευόμενος τα υπολείμματα οργανικής ουσίας και επιπλέον διαθέτει ενζυμικό σύστημα (λακάσσες) το οποίο σχετίζεται με την οξείδωση των φαινολικών ενώσεων και της λιγνίνης. (σπόρια, ενδοσπόρια)

Inhibition of <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i> Growth, Adherence and Invasion in Caco-2 Cells by Potential Probiotic Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated from Fecal Samples of Healthy Neonates

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from healthy humans may prove an effective tool against pathogen growth, adherence and invasion in intestinal epithelial cells. This study aimed to evaluate the antilisterial properties of LAB isolated from fecal samples of healthy neonates. Forty-five LAB strains were tested for their antimicrobial activity against ten Listeria monocytogenes strains with spot-on-lawn and agar-well diffusion assays, and ten lactobacilli strains were further assessed for their inhibitory effect against adherence and invasion of Caco-2 cells by L. monocytogenes EGDe. Inhibition was estimated in competition, exclusion or displacement assays, where lactobacilli and L. monocytogenes were added to Caco-2 monolayers simultaneously or 1 h apart from each other. Inhibition of L. monocytogenes growth was only displayed with the spot-on-lawn assay; cell-free supernatants of lactobacilli were not effective against the pathogen. Lactobacillus (L.) paragasseri LDD-C1 and L. crispatus LCR-A21 were able to adhere to Caco-2 cells at significantly higher levels than the reference strain L. rhamnosus GG. The adherence of L. monocytogenes to Caco-2 cells was reduced by 20.8% to 62.1% and invasion by 33.5% to 63.1% during competition, which was more effective compared to the exclusion and displacement assays. These findings demonstrate that lactobacilli isolated from neonatal feces could be considered a good candidate against L. monocytogenes

Inhibition of Listeria monocytogenes Growth, Adherence and Invasion in Caco-2 Cells by Potential Probiotic Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated from Fecal Samples of Healthy Neonates

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) isolated from healthy humans may prove an effective tool against pathogen growth, adherence and invasion in intestinal epithelial cells. This study aimed to evaluate the antilisterial properties of LAB isolated from fecal samples of healthy neonates. Forty-five LAB strains were tested for their antimicrobial activity against ten Listeria monocytogenes strains with spot-on-lawn and agar-well diffusion assays, and ten lactobacilli strains were further assessed for their inhibitory effect against adherence and invasion of Caco-2 cells by L. monocytogenes EGDe. Inhibition was estimated in competition, exclusion or displacement assays, where lactobacilli and L. monocytogenes were added to Caco-2 monolayers simultaneously or 1 h apart from each other. Inhibition of L. monocytogenes growth was only displayed with the spot-on-lawn assay; cell-free supernatants of lactobacilli were not effective against the pathogen. Lactobacillus (L.) paragasseri LDD-C1 and L. crispatus LCR-A21 were able to adhere to Caco-2 cells at significantly higher levels than the reference strain L. rhamnosus GG. The adherence of L. monocytogenes to Caco-2 cells was reduced by 20.8% to 62.1% and invasion by 33.5% to 63.1% during competition, which was more effective compared to the exclusion and displacement assays. These findings demonstrate that lactobacilli isolated from neonatal feces could be considered a good candidate against L. monocytogenes