Influenza di alcuni fungicidi sullo sviluppo dei marciumi in frutti di fico d'India frigoconservati

Due to their juiciness and richness in sugars and low acidity, prickly pear fruit (Opuntia ficus-indica Mill.) are very susceptible to postharvest deterioration caused by pathogen micro-organisms. In addition, as most fruits of tropical and subtropical origin, they are subjected to chilling injury when exposed to low temperatures for long periods. The reduction of postharvest deterioration due to micro-organism invasion and severity of chilling injury represent therefore a priority for the Italian prickly pear industry. Objective of our trial was to verify the feasibility of some chemicals, either alone or in combination to control postharvest rot and to reduce chilling injury of prickly pear fruit in storage. Frutti di fico d'India della cultivar Gialla della prima fioritura, raccolti ad inizio Settembre, sono stati trattati per immersione con tiabendazolo, imazalil ed ortofenilfenato di sodio, secondo i seguenti trattamenti: 1 acqua, controllo; 2) 1.000 ppm di imazalil; 3) 1000 ppm di tiabendazolo; 4) 0,5% ortofenilfenato di sodio (pH 11,5-11,8); 5) 1.000 ppm di imazalil + 0,5% di ortofenilfenato di sodio; 6) 1000 ppm di tiabendazolo + 0,5% di ortofenilfenato di sodio. I frutti sono stati quindi trasferiti ad 8°C e 90% di umidità relativa(UR) e frigoconservati per 2 mesi a cui ha fatto seguito 1 settimana di shelf-life a 20°C e 75% di UR. Sia l'imazalil che il tiabendazolo utilizzati da soli sono stati molto efficaci nel contenere lo sviluppo dei marciumi e nel ridurre le fisiopatie da freddo durante tutto il periodo della prova. L'ortofenifenato sodico, sia da solo che in combinazione con il tiabendazolo o l'imazalil, è risultato fitotossico, ed il conseguente indebolimento dei tessuti ha favorito l'invasione microbica ed il decadimento qualitativo dei frutti. I parametri chimici non sono stati influenzati dai trattmenti, ma all'analisi gustativa i frutti trattati con l'ortofenifenato sodico, riportavano un punteggio più basso rispetto alle altre tesi principalmente per la presenza di "off-flavour"

Fine Mapping of Five Loci Associated with Low-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol Detects Variants That Double the Explained Heritability

Peer reviewe

High Differentiation among Eight Villages in a Secluded Area of Sardinia Revealed by Genome-Wide High Density SNPs Analysis

To better design association studies for complex traits in isolated populations it's important to understand how history and isolation moulded the genetic features of different communities. Population isolates should not “a priori” be considered homogeneous, even if the communities are not distant and part of a small region. We studied a particular area of Sardinia called Ogliastra, characterized by the presence of several distinct villages that display different history, immigration events and population size. Cultural and geographic isolation characterized the history of these communities. We determined LD parameters in 8 villages and defined population structure through high density SNPs (about 360 K) on 360 unrelated people (45 selected samples from each village). These isolates showed differences in LD values and LD map length. Five of these villages show high LD values probably due to their reduced population size and extreme isolation. High genetic differentiation among villages was detected. Moreover population structure analysis revealed a high correlation between genetic and geographic distances. Our study indicates that history, geography and biodemography have influenced the genetic features of Ogliastra communities producing differences in LD and population structure. All these data demonstrate that we can consider each village an isolate with specific characteristics. We suggest that, in order to optimize the study design of complex traits, a thorough characterization of genetic features is useful to identify the presence of sub-populations and stratification within genetic isolates

Adaptation, Biometric Traits and Performances of Guayule Lines Grown in Two Mediterranean Environments

The perennial shrub guayule (Parthenium argentatum A. Gray) has gained interest as a potential source of natural and hypoallergenic rubber in Southern Europe. Although, native to northern Mexico, it is suited to semi-arid and Mediterranean environments. A research study was conducted in Sardinia (Italy) to evaluate adaptation and biometric traits of introduced guayule lines and to determine the contents and yields of rubber and resin obtainable from its aboveground biomass. Seedlings of the accessions AZ-1, AZ-2, P803, and 11591 were field transplanted in 2015 at two locations of southern, and northern Sardinia, respectively, differing for annual precipitation. Plant survival rate, height and width, trunk diameter, leaf chlorophyll concentration and photosystem photochemical efficiency were monitored. Shoots were harvested at 30 months after transplanting and were partitioned into twigs and remaining stems and its rubber and resin contents were determined. Location markedly affected plant survival rates and biometric traits. Dry matter yield of aboveground components as well as contents of rubber and resin and plant rubber and resin yields differed significantly among accessions under comparison. We found that AZ1 and 11591 were the most successful accessions at southern Sardinia site, whereas 11591 was the only accession exhibiting a satisfactory plant survival rate in the northern location