Present day use of selected plants from Zielnik [The Herbal] (1613) by Syreniusz.

Celem pracy magisterskiej jest porównanie współczesnych sposobów użytkowania wybranych gatunków roślin z zastosowaniami opisanymi w renesansowym Zielniku (1613) autorstwa polskiego lekarza i zielnikarza Szymona Syreńskiego (Syreniusza) (ok. 1540-1611). Zielnik ten jest syntezą wiedzy o roślinach i ich stosowaniu w ówczesnej Polsce i Europie. Problematyka niniejszej pracy jest interdyscyplinarna, łącząca nauki przyrodnicze, medyczne i humanistyczne, tzn. botanikę, historię botaniki, farmację, etnobotanikę i etnologię. Punktem wyjścia było przetłumaczenie z języka staropolskiego fragmentów Zielnika dotyczących wykorzystywania 11. wybranych gatunków. Na tej podstawie skonstruowano kwestionariusz sondażowy, który wysłano do dwóch grup respondentów - studentów biologii oraz osób zajmujących się ogrodnictwem i uprawą roślin na działkach. Respondenci byli mieszkańcami Krakowa i okolic. Wyniki porównano między grupami, a następnie zestawiono wraz z wyodrębnionymi wcześniej zastosowaniami z renesansowego Zielnika. Choć część zastosowań roślin z dawnych czasów przetrwała, sposób ich użytkowania nabrał wymiaru bardziej praktycznego, zatracając swoją rolę w świecie duchowym i rytuałach.This master's thesis aims to make a comparative analysis between the contemporary uses of the selected plant species and their uses described in the Renaissance The Herbal written by Szymon Syreński (Syreniusz) (ca. 1540-1611), a Polish physician and herbalist. The Herbal is considered to be a synthesis of knowledge about plants and their uses in Poland and Europe. The thesis addresses interdisciplinary issues, combining the achievements of natural sciences, medical sciences, and humanities, i.e. botany, botanical history, pharmacy, as well as ethnobotany, and ethnology. The Syreniusz’s herbal passages concerning the use of 11 selected species were translated from the Old Polish. Developed on the basis of the translation, a questionnaire was administered to two groups of respondents: biology students and people engaged in gardening and planting. Respondents were inhabitants of Cracow and vicinities. Collected results were compared between the groups and correlated with the uses previously selected from the Renaissance herbal. While certain uses of plants from the past are still well-known, their character became rather practical and deprived of its spirituality

The influence of active protection on structure of weevil assemblages (Coleoptera, Curculionoidae) under grazing management practices.

Celem pracy jest ustalenie, czy zabieg wypasu ma pozytywny wpływ na determinację struktury zgrupowań ryjkowcowatych, a także, czy sukcesja związana z brakiem wypasu może powodować obniżenie różnorodności. Badania prowadzone były na powierzchniach polan reglowych Gorczańskiego Parku Narodowego w 7 typach zbiorowisk roślinnych różniących się stadium sukcesji – od pastwisk użytkowanych rokrocznie do borówczysk, na których nie wypasano bydła od kilkunastu lat. Analiza wariancji dla parametrów struktury wykazała, że jedynym czynnikiem obniżającym różnorodność gatunkową jest długoterminowy brak wypasu. Sam zabieg nie miał znaczącego wpływu na zróżnicowanie parametrów zgrupowań. Skalowanie wielowymiarowe ujawniło istotne różnice w składzie gatunkowym zgrupowań wczesno i późnosukcesyjnych. Powyższe analizy wskazują, że coroczny regularny wypas jest ważnym czynnikiem wpływającym na różnorodność zgrupowań chrząszczy roślinożernych. Zabieg ten okazał się skutecznym elementem aktywnej ochrony ekosystemów pastwiskowych na terenie Gorczańskiego Parku Narodowego.Aim of this work was to establish if pasture management has a positive effect on structure of Curculionoidae's assemblages and also if succession caused by lack of pasturage can influence nagetively on species diversity. Researches were conducted on glades of The Gorce National Park in 7 types of plant communities, each in different stage of succession: from pastures used every year toVaccinium myrtillus communities unused for several years. Analysis of variance revealed that long-term lack of grazing is the only factor which impoverishes species diversity. Grazing didn't have any significant effect on differentiation of assemblages and their parameters. Multidimensional scaling showed important differences in species composition of assemblages of early and late stages of succession. Analyses above show that annual regular grazing is an important factor affecting the diversity of the assemblages of the herbivorous beetles. That procedure turned out to be the effective element of the active protection on the area of pasture ecosystems in The Gorce National Park

Keratinophilic and Keratinolytic Fungi in Cave Ecosystems: A Culture-Based Study of Brestovská Cave and Demänovská Ľadová and Slobody Caves (Slovakia)

Despite speleomycological research going back to the 1960s, the biodiversity of many specific groups of micromycetes in underground sites still remains unknown, including keratinolytic and keratinophilic fungi. These fungi are a frequent cause of infections in humans and animals. Since subterranean ecosystems are inhabited by various animals and are a great tourist attraction, the goal of our research was to provide the first report of keratinophilic and keratinolytic fungal species isolated from three caves in Tatra Mts., Slovakia (Brestovská, Demänovská Ľadová and Demänovská Slobody). Speleomycological investigation was carried out inside and outside the explored caves by combining culture-based techniques with genetic and phenotypic identifications. A total of 67 fungal isolates were isolated from 24 samples of soil and sediment using Vanbreuseghem hair bait and identified as 18 different fungal species. The study sites located inside the studied caves displayed much more fungal species (17 species) than outside the underground (3 species), and the highest values of the Shannon diversity index of keratinophilic and keratinolytic fungi were noted for the study sites inside the Demänovská Slobody Cave. Overall, Arthroderma quadrifidum was the most common fungal species in all soil and/or sediment samples. To the best of our knowledge, our research has allowed for the first detection of fungal species such as Arthroderma eboreum, Arthrodermainsingulare, Chrysosporiumeuropae, Chrysosporiumsiglerae, Keratinophytonwagneri, and Penicillium charlesii in underground sites. We also showed that the temperature of soil and sediments was negatively correlated with the number of isolated keratinophilic and keratinolytic fungal species in the investigated caves

First Speleomycological Study on the Occurrence of Psychrophilic and Psychrotolerant Aeromycota in the Brestovská Cave (Western Tatras Mts., Slovakia) and First Reports for Some Species at Underground Sites

Most underground ecosystems are heterotrophic, fungi in these objects are dispersed in the air in the form of spores, and they may be potentially hazardous to mammals. Research in underground sites has focused on mesophilic airborne fungi and only a few concerned cold-adapted species. Therefore, the goal of our research was the first report of psychrophilic and psychrotolerant aeromycota in the Brestovská Cave using culture-based techniques with genetic and phenotypic identification. Plates with PDA medium containing sampled biological material were incubated at 8 ± 0.5 °C. The density of mycobiota inside the cave ranged from 37.4 to 71 CFU 1 m−3 of air and 63.3 CFU 1 m−3 of air outside the cave. Thus, the level of fungal spores did not exceed the standards for the mycological quality of the air. A total of 18 species were isolated during the study, and some species may be potentially dangerous to people with weakened immune system. All fungal species were present inside the cave and only seven of them were outside. Cladosporium cladosporioides dominated in the external air samples and Mortierella parvispora was cultured most frequently from internal air samples. To our knowledge, this is the first discovery of the fungal species such as Coniothyrium pyrinum, Cystobasidium laryngis, Filobasidium wieringae, Leucosporidium drummii, M. parvispora, Mrakia blollopis, Nakazawaea holstii, and Vishniacozyma victoriae in the air inside the underground sites. Moreover, C. pyrinum, C. laryngis, L. drummii, M. blollopis, and N. holstii have never been detected in any component of the underground ecosystems. There are possible reasons explaining the detection of those species, but global warming is the most likely

Epicoccum nigrum link as a potential biocontrol agent against selected dermatophytes

Epicoccum nigrum Link is well known for producing biologically-active substances with activities against prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. The major goal of this study was to assess E. nigrum as a potential in vitro agent against selected species of dermatophytes. The effects of the types of media used in this study on the interactions between the microscopic fungi were also examined. Epicoccum nigrum’s bioactive metabolites exhibited a strong growth inhibitory effect against the dermatophytes, suggesting its potential as a biocontrol agent. Notably, the strength of these interactions was dependent on the type of the medium. These secondary metabolites are not toxic against the higher eukaryotic organisms, which was further demonstrated by using the Galleria mellonella model

First Report on the Occurence of Dermatophytes of Microsporum Cookei Clade and Close Affinities to Paraphyton Cookei in the Harmanecká Cave (Veľká Fatra Mts., Slovakia)

Keratinolytic and keratinophilic fungi, such as dermatophytes, are frequently a cause of infections in humans and animals. Underground ecosystems are inhabited by various animals and are of interest for tourists. Therefore, the main goal of our research was the first evaluation of sediment and soil samples taken inside and outside the Harmanecká Cave in Slovakia for the occurrence of keratinolytic and keratinophilic fungi. Tests with Vanbreuseghema bait, as well as phenotyping and molecular methods, showed that all of the sampling sites contained ten isolates, all of the same species of keratinophilic fungi, belonging to the Microsporum cookei clade and with close affinities to Paraphyton cookei (Ajello) Y. Gräser, Dukik & de Hoog. Our research showed that, dependent on the medium, its mycelium varied in color and showed different growth rates. It also produced metabolites alkalizing DTM (dermatophyte test medium) medium. It dissolved keratin in in vitro hair perforation tests and was able to utilize most substrates in the API® 20C AUX, except for MDG (α-methyl-D-glucoside). In addition, the vegetative structures of mycelium were viable after storage at temperatures from −72 to −5 °C for 56 days, and actively grew after 28 days at a temperature range from 15 to 37 °C, with 25 °C being optimal. It showed weak, but active, growth at 5 and 10 °C after 56 days. We can assume that due to the low temperature in the caves, this fungus will not be able to actively grow rapidly on keratin substrates, but the contact with mammals, along with other favorable factors, might lead to an infection

A Culture-Based Study of Micromycetes Isolated from the Urban Nests of Grey Heron (<i>Ardea cinerea</i>) in SW Poland

There are many positive relationships between micromycetes and birds: They can spread fungal spores, and fungi facilitate cavity woodpecker excavation by preparing and modifying excavation sites. In turn, bird nests are mainly a source of potentially zoopathogenic fungi. The Wrocław city centre hosts the biggest grey heron breeding colony in Poland with at least 240 breeding birds pairs. To assess the possible public health risks associated with bird nests, the goal of the present study was to identify cultivable fungi present in the nests of grey herons (Ardea cinerea) in Wrocław. Additionally, attempts were made to determine whether the obtained species of fungi may pose a potential threat to animal health. Fungi were cultured at 23 and 37 ± 0.5 °C, and identified based on phenotypic and genotypic traits. Moreover, during routine inspection, visible fungal growth in some of the nests was found. Overall, 10 different fungal species were obtained in the study (Alternaria alternata, Aspergillus fumigatus, Botryotrichum piluliferum, Cladosporium cladosporioides, Epicoccum layuense, Mucor circinelloides, M.hiemalis, Penicillium atramentosum, P.coprophilum, and P.griseofulvum). They are both cosmopolitan species and a source of potential threat to humans, homoiothermous animals and plants. The greatest number of fungal species was obtained from the nest fragments with visible fungal growth incubated at 23 °C, and the least from western conifer seed bugs (Leptoglossus occidentalis) inhabiting the nests. The species such as A. fumigatus, P. coprophilum, and P.griseofulvum can be directly related to the occurrence of visible fungal growth on plant fragments of grey heron’s nests