An evaluation of the perceptions of products derived from gene technology among undergraduates at the University of Malta

A pilot study on the perceptions of genetically engineered-derived produce was carried out among undergraduates in their final year of study at the University of Malta. 68% of the students interviewed accepted the idea of genetically modifying plants (GM) but the idea of creating GM animals was not acceptable to the same cohort with approval falling to 30.2% of the group. Gender was found to be important in influencing choices made by students. Females were less accepting of GM organisms and they were significantly less likely to buy GM produce, such as GM derived milk (p<0.001), tomatoes (p<0.05), and beef (p<0.01) than males. Subject background was also found to influence student opinions. Students with a strong background in biology were less likely to have faith in statements concerning GM products made by the farming community (p<0.05). However, the same students were more willing to accept statements about GM products by government organisations (p<0.01) and environmental groups (p<0.05) than those who had minimal or no biology in their background. The study is interesting, as it shows that at a fundamental level, complex factors are influencing the individual's choices on biotech derived products.peer-reviewe

Raccomandazioni per la gestione e la conservazione di due popolazioni di Aphanius Fasciatus Nardo dalle Isole Maltesi

The Aphanius fasciatus populations at the two Maltese wetlands of Simar and Ghadira were monitoired during the May-October 2008 period for signs of pathogenesis and in terms of sex ratio and individual morphology. The putative impact of a number of abiotic factors on populaiton structure was also assessed. The study concludes that the percentage of juveniles within the two killifish populations is highest during the July-August period, and that reproductive activity resumes in October at the end of the dry season which coincides with a stalling of reproductive activity and with a high juvenile mortality. Recommendations for the amplification of killifish-specific monitoring protocols are also made.peer-reviewe

Application of elemental analysis via energy dispersive x-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) for the authentication of Maltese extra virgin olive oil

Elemental analysis using energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence on extra virgin olive oils and seed oils revealed the presence of two major concentration related clusters, one containing elements of pedological origin, whilst the other consisted of heavy metals. Seed oils were found to contain a higher concentration of titanium when compared to extra virgin olive oils, whilst extra virgin olive oils derived from the Maltese Islands had a significantly higher concentration of barium and phosphorus on using the Kruskal–Wallis one-way ANOVA (p-value < 0.05 for both elements). Application of stepwise linear canonical discriminate analysis proved to be highly superior to PCA, as it was able to distinguish between seed oils from extra virgin olive oils and distinguish between foreign and locally produced extra virgin olive oils.peer-reviewe

Analysis of the molecular diversity of Olea Europaea in the Mediterranean Island of Malta

The island of Malta is a small densely populated land mass located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. Genetic material from local olive tree varieties on the island was amplified using RAPD, 36 loci were subsequently generated and a dendrogram based on Jaccard’s similarity coefficient constructed. Analysis of clustering patterns indicated a high degree of genetic diversity (0.18–0.68), an early separation between the majority of the native varieties and more recently introduced varieties, supporting the idea of a history of limited genetic exchange and indicating a separate clustering for the majority of the ‘Malti’ and ‘Bidni’ varieties. Principal Component Analysis of banding patterns confirmed these clustering patterns and analysis of the incidence of bands for primers OPA-17, OPC-19, OPI-18 (vector correlation significance\0.01) as well as for OPAG-13, OPAN-15 (vector correlation between 0.01 and 0.05) showed strong correlation. Native Maltese varieties were characterised by a higher number of bands arising from the former group of primers indicating their use as a possible means to distinguish between local and imported varieties.peer-reviewe

Application of 1h and 13c nmr fingerprinting as a tool for the authentication of Maltese extra virgin olive oil

The application of 1H and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) in conjunction with chemometric methods was applied for the discrimination and authentication of Maltese extra virgin olive oils (EVOOs). A total of 65 extra virgin olive oil samples, consisting of 30 Maltese and 35 foreign samples, were collected and analysed over four harvest seasons between 2013 and 2016. A preliminary examination of 1H NMR spectra using unsupervised principle component analysis (PCA) models revealed no significant clustering reflecting the geographical origin. In comparison, PCA carried out on 13C NMR spectra revealed clustering approximating the geographical origin. The application of supervised methods, namely partial least squares discriminate analysis (PLS-DA) and artificial neural network (ANN), on 1H and 13C NMR spectra proved to be effective in discriminating Maltese and non-Maltese EVOO samples. The application of variable selection methods significantly increased the effectiveness of the different classification models. The application of 13C NMR was found to be more effective in the discrimination of Maltese EVOOs when compared to 1H NMR. Furthermore, results showed that different 1H NMR pulse methods can greatly affect the discrimination of EVOOs. In the case of 1H NMR, the Nuclear Overhauser Effect (NOESY) pulse sequence was more informative when compared to the zg30 pulse sequence, since the latter required extensive spectral manipulation for the models to reach a satisfactory level of discrimination.peer-reviewe

Population, ecology and genetic characteristics of the Mediterrannean box jellyfish Carybdea Marsupialis in the island of Malta

The main aims of this study were to investigate the environmental parameters associated with blooming events of Carybdea marsupialis and to genetically compare the box jellyfish in Malta to other Mediterranean and Atlantic samples. The numbers of adult individuals, as well as abiotic and biotic factors were monitored in situ and analysed statistically. Phenological patterns were determined and the abundance of C. marsupialis at the Maltese sites was shown to be strongly and positively correlated with sea water temperature. Genetic analysis indicated a high degree of homology between the sequences derived from the analysed Mediterranean specimens, which was not apparent in the genetic material derived from specimens from the Eastern Atlantic (Cadiz).peer-reviewe

The first identification of the uniqueness and authentication of Maltese extra virgin olive oil using 3D-fluorescence spectroscopy coupled with multi-way data analysis

The potential application of multivariate three-way data analysis techniques, namely parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) and discriminant multi-way partial least squares regression (DN-PLSR), on three-dimensional excitation emission matrix (3D-EEM) fluorescent data were used to identify the uniqueness and authenticity of Maltese extra virgin olive oil (EVOO). A non-negativity constrained PARAFAC model revealed that a four-component model provided the most appropriate solution. Examination of the extracted components in mode 2 and 3 showed that these belonged to different fluorophores present in extra virgin olive oil. Application of linear discriminate analysis (LDA) and binary logistic regression analysis on the concentration of the four extracted fluorophores, showed that it is possible to discriminate Maltese EVOOs from non-Maltese EVOOs. The application of DN-PLSR provided superior means for discrimination of Maltese EVOOs. Further inspection of the extracted latent variables and their variable importance plots (VIPs) provided strong proof of the existence of four types of fluorophores present in EVOOs and their potential application for the discrimination of Maltese EVOOs.peer-reviewe

Resultados do inquérito aos apicultores realizado no âmbito do projeto MEDIBEES

No âmbito do projeto MEDIBEES - Monitorização das subespécies de abelhas do Mediterrâneo e a sua resiliência às mudanças climáticas para o melhoramento sustentável dos agroecossistemas – realizou-se um inquérito, entre outubro e novembro de 2021, com o objetivo ultimo de se caracterizar e compreender a atividade apícola e os seus principais problemas em Portugal, relativamente a outros países da bacia Mediterrânea. Este inquérito foi simultaneamente implementado em Espanha, Itália, Malta, Turquia, Argélia, Líbano e Jordânia, países parceiros no consorcio MEDIBEES. O inquérito foi divulgado em Portugal através de correio eletrónico, enviado para todas as associações de apicultores listadas no portal da FNAP, do Facebook e de contactos telefónicos.peer-reviewe

Tyrosol, at the concentration found in Maltese extra virgin olive oil, induces HL-60 differentiation towards the monocyte lineage

Tyrosol is a phenolic found in extra virgin olive oil (EVOO). In a Maltese monocultivar EVOO, it was present at a concentration of 9.23 ppm. The HL-60 acute myeloid leukaemia cell line, which can be differentiated to both monocytes and neutrophils, was exposed to tyrosol at this concentration and analysed for evidence of differentiation and effects of cytotoxicity. The polyphenol induced a 1.93-fold increase in cellular oxidative activity (p-value 0.044) and enhanced surface expression of CD11b and CD14. This indicates that tyrosol induces monocytic-like differentiation. An RNA-seq analysis confirmed the upregulation of monocyte genes and the loss of neutrophil genes concomitant with the bi-potential promyelocyte precursor moving down the monocytic pathway. A cell cycle analysis showed an accumulation of cells in the Sub G0/G1 phase following tyrosol exposure for 5 days, which coincided with an increase in apoptotic and necrotic markers. This indicates differentiation followed by cell death, unlike the positive monocyte differentiation control PMA. This selective cytotoxic effect following differentiation indicates therapeutic potential against leukaemia.peer-reviewe

Management of threatened Aphanius Fasciatus at Il-Maghluq, Malta

Over the last decade the distribution of Aphanius fasciatus Nardo has regressed sharply across the Maltese Islands despite numerous legal conservation instruments. In this study we present the results of a one-year phenological study at the protected wetland site known as Il-Maghluq. The A. fasciatus population structure and a number of water physical characteristics were monitored. The biotic data collected was found to be consistent with that of a highly vulnerable population. The authors make a number of management recommendations to improve the conservation status of this population.peer-reviewe