Identità territoriale, partecipazione e rappresentanza politica

Identità territoriale e ambiti territoriali. Primarie e rappresentanza socio-territoriale. Difficoltà e opportunità

Sulla dinamica della disoccupazione e della crescita nelle regioni italiane: note teoriche ed empiriche.

Lo scopo di questa tesi è presentare una rassegna della letteratura e un'analisi personale sull'evoluzione dei tassi di disoccupazione regionali in Italia. Dopo aver discusso le principali spiegazioni del dualismo Nord-Sud nei mercati del lavoro regionali, si propone un collegamento tra la dinamica dei tassi di disoccupazione e la mancata convergenza regionale nel prodotto pro capite. Alla luce delle non linearità individuate nel sentiero di crescita delle regioni italiane, si conclude che l'approccio neoclassico, basato sulle rigidità salariali e lo schema di wage-setting, non può spiegare del tutto l'andamento divergente dei tassi di disoccupazione. Serve uno scenario alternativo che si ricolleghi al ruolo degli shock e ai ritardi strutturali dell'economia meridionale. Le istituzioni del mercato del lavoro hanno comunque svolto un ruolo importante, probabilmente interagendo con gli shock asimmetrici

Sviluppo di metodiche basate sulla caratterizzazione molecolare per l’identificazione di frodi nel comparto ittico

L’aumento dell’attività di pesca a livello mondiale e il depauperamento delle risorse nazionali in risposta all’incremento della domanda di mercato dei prodotti ittici hanno determinato il progressivo aumento delle importazioni, sia da Paesi Comunitari che da Paesi Terzi, in particolar modo dalla Cina. Nel settore ittico, la Cina produce, allo stato attuale, oltre il 38% del fatturato mondiale, grazie soprattutto alla promozione di strategie commerciali estremamente concorrenziali. Tali livelli produttivi non sono supportati, però, dalla messa in atto di procedure efficienti, ai fini di una corretta tracciabilità dei prodotti alimentari lungo la filiera produttiva, con notevoli ripercussioni a livello commerciale e sanitario. Inoltre, in risposta alla crescente domanda da parte del consumatore di alimenti pronti al consumo e di facile utilizzo, negli ultimi anni si è assistito ad un aumento della commercializzazione di prodotti ittici trasformati e precotti. Il riconoscimento di specie assume un’importanza fondamentale per la prevenzione di fenomeni di falsificazione e contraffazione a tutela e protezione del consumatore. Considerando che la tecnica di identificazione di specie su base morfologica, unica riconosciuta in Italia in sede legale, risulta inapplicabile in tali tipologie di prodotto, l’attenzione è stata rivolta all’individuazione di strumenti analitici alternativi. Le metodiche analitiche basate sull’analisi del DNA finalizzate all’identificazione di specie sono quelle maggiormente utilizzate in virtù dell’elevato grado di resistenza dell’acido nucleico a trattamenti fisico-chimici e a fenomeni di degradazione, offrendo un valido strumento per il controllo della tracciabilità nelle diverse tipologie di prodotto (fresco, trasformato, conservato). In quest’ottica, i progetti di studio sviluppati sono stati rivolti sia al miglioramento delle tecniche per l’estrazione del DNA in matrici fresche o conservate, in grado di garantire soddisfacenti caratteristiche quali-quantitative dell’acido nucleico ottenuto ed un minore impegno dell’operatore, sia allo sviluppo di strumenti analitici basati sull’utilizzo della PCR per la discriminazione di specie diretta o post sequenziamento del target selezionato. Sono state sviluppate con successo metodiche per la discriminazione diretta tra specie di provenienza cinese e specie mediterranee o atlantiche di maggior valore commerciale e realizzati studi di caratterizzazione di prodotti ittici reperibili in esercizi commerciali etnici e di mangimi per animali domestici, ai fini del controllo di conformità su quanto dichiarato in etichetta. Infine, le metodiche sviluppate sono state utilizzate per effettuare controlli su prodotti commerciali acquistati presso la piccola e grande distribuzione, evidenziando come il fenomeno di sostituzione di specie, volontaria o involontaria, rappresenti una problematica reale, la cui entità suggerisce la necessità di potenziare le attività di controllo da parte degli organi ufficiali e ulteriori studi. In questo contesto, un adeguato livello di tutela del consumatore non può prescindere dallo sviluppo di metodiche analitiche sempre più rapide e performanti. The global increase of fishing activities, together with the depletion of national marine resources, in response to the rising demand for seafood, led to a progressive growth in imports, both from European Union countries and Third countries, particularly from China. In the fishery sector, China produces, at present, over 38% of the world output, thanks to the promotion of very competitive commercial strategies. These production rates are not supported, however, by the implementation of efficient systems of traceability of food products along the supply chain, with significant repercussions on trade and health issues. In addition, in recent years the commercialization of processed and precooked fish products has increased, in response to the growing demand for ready to cook and ready to eat food products. Thus, species identification acquires fundamental importance in the prevention of phenomena of counterfeiting and adulteration for consumer protection. Considering that the morphological identification of seafood species, the only official method approved in Italy, is inapplicable in these types of products, alternative analytical tools are needed. DNA-based analytical methods are the most applied for species identification due to the high resistance of nucleic acid to physical-chemical treatments and degradation, representing a valuable tool for traceability in different types of products (fresh, processed, canned). In this perspective, the research activities were aimed: I) to the improvement of DNA extraction techniques in fresh or processed matrices , in order to ensure satisfactory qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the obtained nucleic acid and simplify the laboratory workflow, II) to the development of analytical tools based on PCR for direct or post sequencing species discrimination using selected targets. Methods for direct discrimination between Chinese fish species and Mediterranean or Atlantic species of higher commercial value have been successfully developed, as well as studies on the identification of fish products sold in ethnic shops and of pet food, with the aim of evaluating the label correctness. Finally, the developed methods have been used to carry out analysis on commercial products directly purchased in small and large retailers, highlighting that the phenomenon of species substitution, whether deliberate or accidental, represents a real problem, suggesting the need for the implementation of further Official control activities and research studies. In this context, the development of rapid and performing analytical tools is essential to ensure an adequate level of consumer protectio

Seafood fraud incidents control: Histological based methods as reliable tools for fresh and frozen/thawed products discrimination

Freezing is one of the commonest methods applied for seafood shelf-life extension and long-term preservation. Nevertheless, the quality decay caused by water crystallization and cellular dehydration is responsible of significant reduction of the frozen-thawed products commercial value. Therefore, according to the European Legislation on food labelling, the declaration of freezing process represents a mandatory information for the protection of consumers’ rights. In fact, the lack of such information, besides entailing a non-conformity, can favor commercial frauds. The present work aims to present the development and validation of a histological approach, based on quali-quantitative histological markers, for the discrimination between fresh and thawed-frozen fishery products. In particular, the results of the application of the histological method on Merluccius merluccius and Octopus vulgaris, respectively selected as study models for white meat fish and cephalopods species, will be presented

Risks and critical issues related to the discovery on the market of unauthorized live alien species on the Italian territory: Chinese crab (Eriocheir sinensis)

Eriocheir sinensis, Chinese Crab or Chinese Mitten Crab is a catadromous species belonging to the Varunidae family, native to river and estuarine areas of North and South East China and Korea. At European level, E. sinensis is widespread in the main water basins of Central and Northern Europe and, since 2016, it has been included in the list of invasive species important for the European Union and subjected to confinement and eradication measures which include the prohibition of collection, transit and placing on the market of live specimens (Regulation (EC) N° 1143/2014). The Chinese Crab can represent a significant danger for the local ecosystem and for the native biota as well as contributing to the appearance of hydrogeological instability phenomena resulting from the intense excavation and erosion of the riverbanks. The first finding of 5 kg of live specimens of Eriocheir sinensis was recorded in the official control by the UFS (Functional Simple Unit) veterinary public health and food safety of the ASL Toscana Centro at an ethnic catering establishment. The specimens were subjected to seizure, photographed, identified morphologically, and subjected to euthanasia and destruction in accordance with the European requirements for welfare and management of animal by-products. From the sanitary point of view, the dangers associated with the consumption of this crab are mainly biological and chemical therefore, risk communication is fundamental, not only at the level of the competent authorities in the sector, but also for the food business operators

Fish species identification in canned pet food by BLAST and Forensically Informative Nucleotide Sequencing (FINS) analysis of short fragments of the mitochondrial 16s ribosomal RNA gene (16S rRNA)

Nowadays, pet food claiming high-valued fish among ingredients is largely available on the market. Unfortunately, the modifications induced by processing make species identification by visual inspection difficult and hinder the enforcement of the legislation on traceability. In this work, after aligning 819 sequences of Clupeidae, Engraulidae, Salangidae and Scombridae families, we developed new universal primers for the amplification and sequencing of 2 short fragments (±118 and ±213) of the mitochondrial 16s ribosomal RNA (16S rRNA) gene. Once tested on 130 DNA reference samples, these primers were used in the analysis of highly degraded DNA extracted from 43 canned cat food containing whole minnows (whitebait) (M) and tuna, or bonito or mackerel fillets (F). Three M and 2 F samples were analyzed for each can. A BLAST and a FINS analysis, the latter performed only on the 118 bp fragment, were performed separately on the sequences obtained from M and F samples. All the M samples were identified at the species or genus level by both BLAST and FINS analysis. This allowed to highlight an impressive rate of mislabeling (100%). F samples, for which FINS was less performing in species identification, resulted mislabeled in 40% of the products

An Authentication Survey on Retail Seafood Products Sold on the Bulgarian Market Underlines the Need for Upgrading the Traceability System

Economically motivated or accidental species substitutions lead to economic and potential health damage to consumers with a loss of confidence in the fishery supply chain. In the present study, a three-year survey on 199 retail seafood products sold on the Bulgarian market was addressed to assess: (1) product authenticity by molecular identification; (2) trade name compliance to the list of official trade names accepted in the territory; (3) adherence of the list in force to the market supply. DNA barcoding on mitochondrial and nuclear genes was applied for the identification of whitefish (WF), crustaceans (C) and mollusks (cephalopods-MC; gastropods-MG; bivalves-MB) except for Mytilus sp. products for which the analysis was conducted with a previously validated RFLP PCR protocol. Identification at the species level was obtained for 94.5% of the products. Failures in species allocation were reconducted due to low resolution and reliability or the absence of reference sequences. The study highlighted an overall mislabeling rate of 11%. WF showed the highest mislabeling rate (14%), followed by MB (12.5%), MC (10%) and C (7.9%). This evidence emphasized the use of DNA-based methods as tools for seafood authentication. The presence of non-compliant trade names and the ineffectiveness of the list to describe the market species varieties attested to the need to improve seafood labeling and traceability at the national level