Wild grapevine (Vitis vinifera var. silvestris) in Italy: Distribution, characteristics and germplasm preservation-1989 report

Research on the distribution and characteristics of wild grapevines (Vitis vinifera var. silvestris) in Italy was started whose main goals are: the preservation of the germplasm by setting up plant collections;the furthering of biological knowledge about this plant;the study of relations between wild and cultivated grapevines by means of chemotaxonomic techniques;the assessment of the possibility of using wild plants for genetic improvement of grapevines.The gathering of data began in 1984. 221 sites in 15 out of the 20 Italian regions have been indicated as possible locations in which wild grapevines grow. So far, 49 of these sites have been inspected. The greatest number of individuals were found in central Italy. This population is dioecious (male/female = 1.8) with few (2.0 %) hermaphrodite examples.The leaves of the Italian wild grapevines generally have 3 lobes (57 %), but 5 to 7-lobe (36%) and non-lobed (8.9 %) plants exist. Lower variability exists with regard to leaf shape. The study of seed morphology has classified the plants into three groupe, one of which is very numerous.Two germplasm collections have been established with approximately 400 vines

Relationships between seed number, gibberellin and abscisic acid levels and ripening in Cabernet Sauvignon grape berries

In grapes of Cabernet Sauvignon, berry growth, content of anthocyanin and hormonal composition affected by seed number were investigated.Gibberellin-like substance content showed highest values 45 d after anthesis, while abscisic acid content (on a per-berry basis) had two peaks, the first one just after berry set, the second coinciding with ripening phenomenon.Seed number was positively correlated with the cöncentrations of gibberellinlike substances and abscisic acid (on a per-berry basis). One-seeded berries, however, had a higher amount of anthocyanin than two or three-seeded ones.Beziehungen zwischen Anzahl der Samen sowie Gibberellin- und Abscisinsäuregehalt und Reifeverlauf der Traubenbeeren bei Cabernet SauvignonBei den Trauben von Cabernet Sauvignon wurden das Beerenwachstum, der Anthocyangehalt und die Zusammensetzung der Phytohormone in Beziehung zur Anzahl der Samen untersucht.Die Gibberellinaktivität erreichte 45 d nach der Anthese ihren höchsten Stand, während der Abscisinsäuregehalt (je Beere) zwei Maxima zeigte; das erste trat kurz nach dem Beerenansatz auf, das zweite fiel mit dem Beginn der Beerenreife zusammen. Die Anzahl der Samen war positiv mit der Gibberellinaktivität und der Abscisinsäurekonzentration (je Beere) korreliert. Einsamige Beeren. wiesen jedoch einen höheren Anthocyangehalt als zwei- oder dreisamige Beeren auf

clinical and surgical features of lower brainstem hemangioblastomas in von hippel-Lindau disease

none5BACKGROUND: In the context of von Hippel-Lindau disease (VHL), the medulla oblongata is a relatively frequent site of growth of hemangioblastomas, posing related clinical and surgical difficulties. Their management requires a close correlation between clinical evolution and morphological surveillance. In order to describe their clinical and surgical features, we reviewed our experience in the treatment of these lesions. METHODS: Between 2001 and 2009, 14 patients (9 female and 5 male, mean age 34 years) underwent removal of 15 lower brain stem hemangioblastomas. Based on the review of the clinical records and outpatient long-term follow-up visits, their clinical course was analyzed. Functional evaluation was measured with the Karnofsky Performance Scale (KPS) on admission, at discharge and at the last follow-up. The mean follow-up period was 30.8 months (range 4-99). RESULTS: All the operated hemangioblastomas were located in the dorsal medulla oblongata, in the context of multiple lesions, cerebellar and/or spinal. In ten patients hemangioblastomas were located in a median position at the obex area; in four cases a lateral location was observed. Cystic component was absent in two cases. Clinical onset preceded surgery by a mean of 8.5 months. Preoperatively three patients showed a KPS lower than 80, ten patients between 80 and 90, and one patient scored 100 (asymptomatic). There was no surgical mortality. Nine out of 14 patients showed a temporary surgical morbidity. One patient required a tracheostomy. At follow-up ten patients scored a KPS better than before the operation, while the other four patients remained stable. Permanent morbidity was observed in three patients. CONCLUSIONS: Lower brain stem hemangioblastomas in the context of VHL show an often gradual onset of signs and symptoms except for patients who develop an obstructive hydrocephalus. Although transient surgical complications are possible, surgery provides favorable long-term results.nonePAVESI G; BERLUCCHI S; MUNARI M; MANARA R; SCIENZA R; OPOCHER G.Pavesi, G; Berlucchi, S; Munari, M; Manara, R; Scienza, R; Opocher, Giusepp

Vitis vinifera - a chemotaxonomic approach: Seed storage proteins

The IEF pattern of the constituent peptides for the storage protein from Viris vinifera endosperm is used for the construction of a dendrogram relating 74 seed specimens

High-throughput 18K SNP array to assess genetic variability of the main grapevine cultivars from Sicily

The viticulture of Sicily, for its vocation, is one of the most important and ancient forms in Italy. Autochthonous grapevine cultivars, many of which known throughout the world, have always been cultivated in the island from many centuries. With the aim to preserve this large grapevine diversity, previous studies have already started to assess the genetic variability among the Sicilian cultivars by using morphological and microsatellite markers. In this study, simple sequence repeat (SSR) were utilized to verify the true-to-typeness of a large clone collection (101) belonging to 21 biotypes of the most 10 cultivated Sicilian cultivars. Afterwards, 42 Organization Internationale de la Vigne et du Vin (OIV) descriptors and a high-throughput single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping array (Vitis18kSNP) were applied to assess genetic variability among cultivars and biotypes of the same cultivar. Ampelographic traits and high-throughput SNP genotyping platforms provided an accuracy estimation of genetic diversity in the Sicilian germplasm, showing the relationships among cultivars by cluster and multivariate analyses. The large SNP panel defined sub-clusters unable to discern among biotypes, previously classified by ampelographic analysis, belonging to each cultivar. These results suggested that a very large number of SNP did not cover the genome regions harboring few morphological traits. Genetic structure of the collection revealed a clear optimum number of groups for K = 3, clustering in the same group a significant portion of family-related genotypes. Parentage analysis highlighted significant relationships among Sicilian grape cultivars and Sangiovese, as already reported, but also the first evidences of the relationships between Nero d’Avola and both Inzolia and Catarratto. Finally, a small panel of highly informative markers (12 SNPs) allowed us to isolate a private profile for each Sicilian cultivar, providing a new tool for cultivar identification

Clinical features and outcomes of elderly hospitalised patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart failure or both

Background and objective: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and heart failure (HF) mutually increase the risk of being present in the same patient, especially if older. Whether or not this coexistence may be associated with a worse prognosis is debated. Therefore, employing data derived from the REPOSI register, we evaluated the clinical features and outcomes in a population of elderly patients admitted to internal medicine wards and having COPD, HF or COPD + HF. Methods: We measured socio-demographic and anthropometric characteristics, severity and prevalence of comorbidities, clinical and laboratory features during hospitalization, mood disorders, functional independence, drug prescriptions and discharge destination. The primary study outcome was the risk of death. Results: We considered 2,343 elderly hospitalized patients (median age 81 years), of whom 1,154 (49%) had COPD, 813 (35%) HF, and 376 (16%) COPD + HF. Patients with COPD + HF had different characteristics than those with COPD or HF, such as a higher prevalence of previous hospitalizations, comorbidities (especially chronic kidney disease), higher respiratory rate at admission and number of prescribed drugs. Patients with COPD + HF (hazard ratio HR 1.74, 95% confidence intervals CI 1.16-2.61) and patients with dementia (HR 1.75, 95% CI 1.06-2.90) had a higher risk of death at one year. The Kaplan-Meier curves showed a higher mortality risk in the group of patients with COPD + HF for all causes (p = 0.010), respiratory causes (p = 0.006), cardiovascular causes (p = 0.046) and respiratory plus cardiovascular causes (p = 0.009). Conclusion: In this real-life cohort of hospitalized elderly patients, the coexistence of COPD and HF significantly worsened prognosis at one year. This finding may help to better define the care needs of this population