Strengths and weaknesses of different italian fish indices under the water framework directive guidelines

The ISECI (or F index) has been the first fish index to be recommended by the Italian Ministry of the Environment to assess the rivers ecological status with regard to fish communities, in accordance with the Water Framework Directive 2000/60 EC. In addition to ISECI, other fish indices have been developed such as the Forneris Ichthyic Index (I.I.) and a revised version of ISECI, the so-called NISECI. The latter is nowadays the reference Italian index in the framework of the Water Framework Directive. In this work, we analyzed 30 sampling sites along 18 watercourses in Northern Italy and computed the results of fish monitoring to evaluate the strength of ISECI and NISECI, as well as to assess weak points limiting their application. We detected several issues that undermine the ISECI effectiveness. The weakest point regarded the mismatch between the expected reference fish community and the sampled ones, which decreased the overall algorithm efficiency in the evaluation process. On the other hand, the results confirm the improvements introduced by NISECI. Although with some advancement, all three proposed indices revealed their weaknesses in the overall assessment of the ecological status of the water course, as also highlighted by a pioneering comparison with three expert-based blind judgements

Motivation to donate, job crafting, and organizational citizenship behavior in blood collection volunteers in non-profit organizations

This study assesses the levels of and relationships between the Motivation to donate, Job crafting propensity, and the Organizational citizenship behavior of blood collection volunteers in a non-profit association. An Italian sample of AVIS (the Italian Association of Voluntary Blood donors) blood donors (N = 1215) actively involved in organizing blood collection, were asked to complete the Italian version of the Volunteer Function Index, the Job crafting scale, and the Organizational citizenship behavior scale. The tools were verified by Confirmatory factor analysis and their relationships were explored using Structural equation modeling for hidden variables. The three constructs have overall high scores. Motivation to donate and Job crafting show a clear correlation, with the latter influencing volunteer Organizational citizenship behavior. The study highlights the need to take into consideration the Motivation to donate, Job crafting and Organizational citizenship behavior of volunteers, particularly in countries such as Italy, where blood collection is almost exclusively carried out thanks to spontaneous, altruistic, and disinterested commitment

Burnout syndrome in reception systems for illegal immigrants in the Mediterranean. A quantitative and qualitative study of Italian practitioners

Illegal immigration throughout the Mediterranean Sea is an intense and epoch-making phenomenon. This quantitative and qualitative study, based on the framework of the JD-R Model of burnout, described and assessed the risk of burnout among practitioners working in the reception system for illegal immigrants. A sample of Italian practitioners completed the Link Burnout Questionnaire (N = 193) and a semistructured interview (N = 108). The analysis of the questionnaires was carried out via ANOVA and χ2 test. The content of the interviews was examined using T-LAB. Quantitative results showed that the sample was generally at risk of burnout, and about a quarter were at severe risk. Qualitative results highlighted aspects of burnout that are specific to this working context: large workload, mental fatigue, and lack of social support; inability to understand the language and cultural differences of the immigrants; having to deal with organisational problems that come up repeatedly. This study offers coping strategies that can improve organisational health and performance of practitioners working in illegal immigration. Italy's shape, geographical location, and geo-political role make it a case in point for the whole European continent regarding the sustainability of illegal immigration across the Mediterranean Sea

Ovothiol ensures the correct developmental programme of the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus embryo

Ovothiols are π-methyl-5-thiohistidines produced in great amounts in sea urchin eggs, where they can act as protective agents against the oxidative burst at fertilization and environmental stressors during development. Here we examined the biological relevance of ovothiol during the embryogenesis of the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus by assessing the localization of the key biosynthetic enzyme OvoA, both at transcript and protein level, and perturbing its protein translation by morpholino antisense oligonucleotide-mediated knockdown experiments. In addition, we explored the possible involvement of ovothiol in the inflammatory response by assessing ovoA gene expression and protein localization following exposure to bacterial lipopolysaccharide. The results of the present study suggest that ovothiol may be a key regulator of cell proliferation in early developing embryos. Moreover, the localization of OvoA in key larval cells and tissues, in control and inflammatory conditions, suggests that ovothiol may ensure larval skeleton formation and mediate inflammatory processes triggered by bacterial infection. This work significantly contributes to the understanding of the biological function of ovothiols in marine organisms, and may provide new inspiration for the identification of the biological activities of ovothiols in humans, considering the pharmacological potential of these molecules

Cortisol, Temperament and Serotonin in Karate Combats: An Evolutionary Psychobiological Perspective

Objectives: There is evidence suggesting that in martial arts competitions athletes characterized by higher anxiety and harm avoidance may be more likely to lose a fight. This psychological profile has been hypothesized to explain in part the observation that cortisol is higher in losers before and in response to a competition. An important research target that needs further exploration is the identification of phenotypic traits that can be helpful in predicting athletes’ performance. Here we present a brief description of the theoretical bases that drives our research in the evolutionary psychobiology of sports and illustrate preliminary data on the relationship between the 5HTTLPR genotype, salivary cortisol, temperament and competition. Methods: Sixty-five healthy male non-professional athletes provided saliva samples 10 min before and after a kumite session and filled out the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire. Results: Salivary cortisol levels 10 min before the competition were higher in losers and in athletes with the S allele. Temperament was associated with competition outcome and cortisol: losers were characterized by higher scores of harm avoidance and harm avoidance was positively correlated with cortisol levels. Conclusions: The results confirm previous findings linking temperamental traits, pre-and post- competition physiological stress response with competition outcome in kumite fight. Moreover, they indicate an association between the 5HTTLPR polymorphism and pre-competition salivary cortisol, thus providing a preliminary but non-conclusive evidence on the role played by the 5HTTLPR genotype as a vulnerability factor in sport competition

Mapping the stranger: genetic diversity of Manila clam in European coastal lagoons.

Manila clam Ruditapes philippinarum - synonym Venerupis philippinarum (Adams and Reeve, 1850) is one of the most successful marine invaders worldwide and represents almost 20% of worldwide mollusc total production. Originally distributed in the Indo-Pacific region, the species was introduced for aquaculture and fisheries in North America, Polynesia, the US Virgin Islands, as well as in Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts of Europe. Due to the commercial value of the species, population genetics and stock composition are of primary importance both in natural and invaded environments. Moreover, molecular genetics can provide valuable data in invasion biology, as, for example, the structure of the exploited populations, the origin of source populations and the routes of invasions. Furthermore, molecular data might be useful for the tracking of seafood products, as requested by the European Commission for European seafood products (see EC laws n° 178/2002, 509/2006, 510/2006 and their improvements). Despite all these considerations genetic data are lacking, especially for introduced populations, and should be urgently provided. In a framework of an European network of researchers involved in Manila clam studies, clams were collected in coastal lagoons and estuaries in both Mediterranean (Northern Adriatic Sea, Italy) and Atlantic (Spain and Portugal) coasts of Europe. Both mitochondrial and nuclear molecular markers were applied to investigate the genetic structure of populations, specifically by the direct sequencing of 16S rDNA gene fragments and by the genotyping of 7 microsatellite markers previously used in native populations. Results demonstrated the occurrence of multiple haplotypes for 16S rDNA, even if one main haplotype was identified in the European analyzed populations. However, few sequences were available in Genbank to make comparisons with native populations. Concerning the microsatellite data, the genotyping of Manila clam populations showed low genetic diversity among them, considering the Fst values, and a lack of genetic structuring when analysed by Structure software. Both these data suggest the absence of geographic differentiation among the introduced populations of Manila clam, as a result of introgression due to translocations and other human activities. The levels of genetic diversity within introduced populations were comparable to those described from native regions, suggesting that multiple introduction events and mixed source populations can counterbalance the loss of genetic diversity caused by the founder effect. However, it must be remarked that microsatellites showed a strong occurrence of null alleles when tested by Micro-checker, as previously observed in other bivalves, suggesting that the problem is differently distributed among Manila clam populations or specific loci, thus microsatellites should be carefully checked before used in extensive population studies. In the near future, population genetics and stock identification of this species on a large scale should be assessed using new powerful markers such as those obtained by NGS (Next Generation Sequencing) methods. In conclusion, this research represents the very first extensive genetic investigation on Manila clam’s European populations, defining the levels of genetic diversity that will help to inform management practices

The genetics of adaptation in freshwater Eurasian shad (Alosa)

Studying the genetics of phenotypic convergence can yield important insights into adaptive evolution. Here, we conducted a comparative genomic study of four lineages (species and subspecies) of anadromous shad (Alosa) that have independently evolved life cycles entirely completed in freshwater. Three naturally diverged (A. fallax lacustris, A. f. killarnensis, and A. macedonica), and the fourth (A. alosa) was artificially landlocked during the last century. To conduct this analysis, we assembled and annotated a draft of the A. alosa genome and generated whole-genome sequencing for 16 anadromous and freshwater populations of shad. Widespread evidence for parallel genetic changes in freshwater populations within lineages was found. In freshwater A. alosa, which have only been diverging for tens of generations, this shows that parallel adaptive evolution can rapidly occur. However, parallel genetic changes across lineages were comparatively rare. The degree of genetic parallelism was not strongly related to the number of shared polymorphisms between lineages, thus suggesting that other factors such as divergence among ancestral populations or environmental variation may influence genetic parallelism across these lineages. These overall patterns were exemplified by genetic differentiation involving a paralog of ATPase-α1 that appears to be under selection in just two of the more distantly related lineages studied, A. f. lacustris and A. alosa. Our findings provide insights into the genetic architecture of adaptation and parallel evolution along a continuum of population divergence