TECHNICAL AND ECONOMICAL FEASIBILITY OF SEABASS FRY PRODUCTION ACCORDING TO ORGANIC TECHNIQUES

Over the past few years, consumers have been increasing their awareness about environmental, health and safety concerns and they have been gradually changing their habits in favor of organic food. In aquaculture sector, the most recent legislative framework regarding the organic production in Europe is the Commission Regulation (EC) 710/2009, where chapter for aquaculture animals include requirement for animal welfare conditions in husbandry and maximum stocking densities. In Italy, only ten farms are involved in the supply of certified organic fish and only some pilot projects were carried out for organic farming of different species. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to define or verify the principal standards for organic seabass farming, evaluating technical feasibility and production costs, comparing them with conventional production. This study contains the first considerations about organic production and its relative costs for sea bass fry, one of the most reared species of the country. Conversion to organic production naturally involves additional costs concerning the conversion process itself, the production of a new type of product and the lower output. In fact, results have shown that certification and feed costs represented the most significant difference between conventional and organic production. Finally, the current market situation is characterized by a low demand, an inadequately product differentiation from conventional (domestic or foreign) ones, a legislation still in progress, an unstructured and lower offer of organic products which does not allow to consider organic aquaculture as an activity that today can assure adequate profitability for the most part of Italian aquaculture firms

Quinolines: microwave-assisted synthesis and their antifungal, anticancer and radical scavenger properties

An efficient method for the synthesis of quinolines using microwave irradiation was developed providing 28 quinolines with good yields. The reaction procedures are environmentally friendly, convenient, mild and of easy work-up. Quinolines were evaluated for their antifungal, anticancer and antioxidant properties and exhibited high activities in all tests performed.Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ciencias Aplicada

Diablo/SMAC: A novel biomarker of pollutant exposure in European flounder (Platichthys flesus)

Diablo (or SMAC) is a protein released from mitochondria following apoptotic stimuli and inhibits the actions of Inhibitors of Apoptosis (IAP) proteins. IAPs regulate the activity of caspases and NFkB, the primary executioners of apoptosis and of inflammation respectively. Thus, Diablo is important for the regulation of cellular responses to damage. In Northern Europe, statutory governmental marine monitoring programs measure various biomarkers in flounder to indicate biological effects of pollutant exposure. More recently transcriptomic techniques have been applied in flounder to gain a more comprehensive understanding of pollutant effects, and to discover novel biomarkers. In most of these studies utilising flounder, Diablo was amongst the most highly increased transcripts identified. The aim of this study was to further examine piscine Diablo, at the gene level and mRNA level, after exposure to prototypical pollutants, and in flounder caught from polluted environments. The results show that two genes encoding Diablo exist in fish species, and in flounder one of these genes is increased in liver after exposure to polyaromatic hydrocarbons and polychlorinated biphenyls, and also in livers from fish living on contaminated estuarine sediments. Therefore, Diablo measurement has potential as a biomarker of pollutant exposure, and could indicate damaging effects of chemical contaminants

effects of afb1 on liver phase i and phase ii enzymes induced in vitro on sparus aurata hepatocytes primary culture

Among all know mycotoxins, aflatoxin B1 is one of the most studied for its hepatotoxic, carcinogenic, mutagenic, teratogenic, and immunosuppressant effects. This work aimed to study the effects of AFB1 acute and chronic exposure on CYP1A and GST enzymes induced in vitro on S. aurata hepatocytes by immunoblot analysis, thus relating the cytotoxic effects leading to cell death by apoptotic studies. Immunofluorescence analysis revealed that cell damage was not recoverable but permanent, as the cellular repair systems were unable to recover the induced toxic insult. Our results showed detection of several CYP1A bands, enlightening an indirect correlation between induction of CYP1A with dose and time of exposure. The decreased expression of CYP1A over prolonged exposure times, along with high toxic concentration, could be related with lethal damage observed on hepatocytes by contrast phase and immunofluorescence analysis. A particular pattern of expression was found for GST isoforms upon AFB1 exposure, identifying each isoform profile two different kind of toxic insult. The 65 KDa and the 49 KDa bands being suggestive for markers of acute and chronic response respectively. Interestingly, apoptosis induction, considered an early lesion to DNA, was found associated with the chronic damage along with the low toxic concentration. The new cell model from S. aurata has been proven to be a useful and valid tool to further investigate the modulated response of liver phase I and II enzymes to AFB1

A multidisciplinary study of the extracutaneous pigment system of European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax L.) : a possible relationship between kidney disease and dopa oxidase activity level

\u3cp\u3eInfectious diseases and breeding conditions can influence fish health status. Furthermore it is well known that human and animal health are strongly correlated. In lower vertebrates melano-macrophage centres, clusters of pigment-containing cells forming the extracutaneous pigment system, are widespread in the stroma of the haemopoietic tissue, mainly in kidney and spleen. In fishes, melano-macrophage centres play an important role in the immune response against antigenic stimulants and pathogens. Hence, they are employed as biomarker of fish health status. We have investigated this cell system in the European sea bass ( Dicentrarchus labrax L.) following the enzyme activities involved in melanin biosynthesis. We have found a possible relationship between kidney disease of farmed fishes and dopa oxidase activity level, suggesting it as an indicator of kidney disease. Moreover variations of dopa oxidase activity in extracutaneous pigment system have been observed with respect to environmental temperature. At last, for the first time, using femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy (Femto-TA), we pointed out that pigment-containing cells of fish kidney tissue present melanin pigments.\u3c/p\u3

Quinolines: Microwave-assisted synthesis and their antifungal, anticancer and radical scavenger properties

An efficient method for the synthesis of quinolines using microwave irradiation was developed providing 28 quinolines with good yields. The reaction procedures are environmentally friendly, convenient, mild and of easy work-up. Quinolines were evaluated for their antifungal, anticancer and antioxidant properties and exhibited high activities in all tests performed.Fil: Liberto, Natália Aparecida. Universidade Federal de Viçosa. Departamento de Química. Grupo de Química Supramolecular e Biomimética (GQSB); BrasilFil: Baptista Simões, Juliana. Universidade Federal de Viçosa. Departamento de Química. Grupo de Química Supramolecular e Biomimética (GQSB); BrasilFil: Paiva Silva, Sarah de. Universidade Federal de Viçosa. Departamento de Química. Grupo de Química Supramolecular e Biomimética (GQSB); BrasilFil: Silva, Cristiane Jovelina da. Universidade Federal do Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Modolo, Luzia Valentina. Universidade Federal do Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Fátima, Ângelo de. Universidade Federal do Minas Gerais; BrasilFil: Silva, Luciana Maria. Fundação Ezequiel Dias. Laboratório de Biologia Celular; BrasilFil: Derita, Marcos Gabriel. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Bioquímicas y Farmacéuticas. Departamento de Química Orgánica. Área Farmacognosia; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe; ArgentinaFil: Zacchino, Susana Alicia Stella. Universidad Nacional de Rosario. Facultad de Ciencias Bioquímicas y Farmacéuticas. Departamento de Química Orgánica. Área Farmacognosia; ArgentinaFil: Portilla Zúñiga, Omar Miguel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ciencias Aplicadas "Dr. Jorge J. Ronco". Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ciencias Aplicadas; ArgentinaFil: Romanelli, Gustavo Pablo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - La Plata. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ciencias Aplicadas "Dr. Jorge J. Ronco". Universidad Nacional de La Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo en Ciencias Aplicadas; ArgentinaFil: Fernandes, Sergio Antonio. Fundação Ezequiel Dias. Laboratório de Biologia Celular; Brasi