L'«Avvizzimento» del cartamo (<i>Carthamus tinctorius</i> L.) causato da <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> Kleb.

The wilt of safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) by Verticillium dahliae Kleb., hitherto unreported in Italy, has been found on last two years in Sardinia. The disease symptoms and the pathogen characters are described. Artificial inoculation tests allowed to state that our isolate is highly virulent to this host

Prove di lotta contro il <i>Cladosporium cucumerinum</i> Ell. <i>et</i> Arth. agente della «cladosporiosi» dello zucchino

The results of control trials against Cladosporium cucumerinum Ell. et Arth. artificially inoculated on aged pumpkin plants and in soil belore seeding, are referred. All the tested fungicides (benomyl, captafol, chlorothalonil, iprodione, mancozeb, procymidone, thiram, thyophanate-methyl), although with dlfference according to the kind of treatment, limited infections powerfully. Thyophanate-methyl and benomyl in foliar sprays, thyophanate-methyl and chlorothalonil in soil drench, thyophanate-methyl, benomyl and captafol in seed dressing, gave best results. By these results, tha Authors point out that a very good control of pumpkin scab is attainable avoiding primary infections on seedlings by soil drench and se ed dressing

Il «Marciume molle» dei frutti di pomodoro da <i>Pseudomonas virdiflava</i> (Burkholder) Dowson

The Authors report on the results of researches about a serious soft rot of greenhouse tomato fruits in southern Sardinia (Italy). The disease symptoms and the characteristics of the causal agent, identified by its morphological and cultural characters, and by biochemical and serological lests, as Pseudomonas viridiflava (Burkholder) Dowson, are described

L'«Alternariosi» del cartamo (<i>Carthamus tinctorius</i> L.) da <i>Alternaria cartami</i> Ch. in Sardegna

A stem and leaf spot of safflower by Alternaria carthami Ch. has been found on last three years in Sardinia (Italy). The disease symptoms and the pathogen characters are described. The susceptibility of 7 safflower expe rimental cvs. has been assessed, and by artificial inoculations the fungus pathogenicity was checked. Finally, the Authors examine some epidemiological aspects of the disese and briefly expose the control means

La «maculatura batterica» del pomodoro (<i>Lycopersicum esculentum</i> Mill.) causata da <i>Pseudomonas syringae</i> van Hall.

The Authors report on a serious bacterial spot of greenhouse tomato found in Sardinia (Italy) on last years. The symptomatology, epidemlology and inducing factors are described, as well as the results of pathogenicity test. The causal agent has been isolated in pure culture and identified by means of morfological, cultural, biochemical, and serological characters as Pseudomonas syringae van Hall. Furthermore, methods of dlsease preventlon and control are brlefly exposed

Osservazioni sul «marciume dei capolini» del carciofo (<i>Cynara scolymus</i> L.) da <i>Botrytis cinerea</i> Pers. in Sardegna

The «head rot» of globe artichoke (Cynara scolymus L.) induced by Botrytis cinerea Pers., which occurs more and more damaging in sardinian crops, 15 described. The inciting factors (of agronomic, climatic, and biotic nature) are reviewed, and the risks of heavy losses for the collected and packed artichokes are pointed out. Suitable means for preventing and controlling the disease are then suggested

L' «Avvizzimento» del pomodoro (<i>Lycopersicum esculentum</i> Mill.) causato da <i>Alternaria alternata</i> f. sp. <i>Lycopersici</i> Grogan, Kimble e Misaghi

A serious disease of tomato cultivar « Early pak 7 » for fresh-market production found in several greenhouses in southern Sardinia (ltaly) is described. Plants are affected in all stages of development with local lesions at the foot, and with typical symptoms of a vascular disease. The causal agent has been identified as Alternaria alternata f. sp. lycopersici Grogan, Kimble and Mis. Morphological and physiologlcal characters of the fungus grown in pure culture are described, and also data on pathogeniclty and host-specificity are reported. Laboratory cultural and crossinfection tests showed that this fungus strongly resembles to A. alternata f. sp.lycopersici isolated in California (USA) as « tomato stem canker » agent

Osservazioni sulla patogenesi e sulla epidemiologia dell'«avvizzimento» del pomodoro (<i>Lycopersicum esculentum</i> mill.) da <i> Alternaria alternata</i> f. sp. <i>Lycopersici</i> grogan, kimble e misaghi

Alternaria alternata f. sp. Lycopersici Grogan, Kimble and Misaghi is the causal agent of a serious wilt of greenhouse «Earlypak» tomato in Sardinia (Italy). In phytopathological tests this cv. displayed a very high susceptibility both to direct infection and to metabolites effect of the fungus; instead some newly introduced tomato hybrids proved, some more some less, all resistent. The possible infection sources have been found, and so the ways of disease spreading were examined. Finally, some measures in order to prevent the disease are suggested

Il «Disseccamento precoce» del cartamo (<i>Carthamus tinctorius</i> L.) causato da <i>Macrophomina phaseolina</i> (Tassi) goid

Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi) Goid. is reported on safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) for the first time in Italy. Symptoms of the disease and characters of the fungus are described. Artificial inoculation tests showed that our isolate can infect, even without any injury, young safflower plants

CRISIS AFAR: an international collaborative study of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health and service access in youth with autism and neurodevelopmental conditions

BackgroundHeterogeneous mental health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic are documented in the general population. Such heterogeneity has not been systematically assessed in youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and related neurodevelopmental disorders (NDD). To identify distinct patterns of the pandemic impact and their predictors in ASD/NDD youth, we focused on pandemic-related changes in symptoms and access to services.MethodsUsing a naturalistic observational design, we assessed parent responses on the Coronavirus Health and Impact Survey Initiative (CRISIS) Adapted For Autism and Related neurodevelopmental conditions (AFAR). Cross-sectional AFAR data were aggregated across 14 European and North American sites yielding a clinically well-characterized sample of N = 1275 individuals with ASD/NDD (age = 11.0 ± 3.6&nbsp;years; n females = 277). To identify subgroups with differential outcomes, we applied hierarchical clustering across eleven variables measuring changes in symptoms and access to services. Then, random forest classification assessed the importance of socio-demographics, pre-pandemic service rates, clinical severity of ASD-associated symptoms, and COVID-19 pandemic experiences/environments in predicting the outcome subgroups.ResultsClustering revealed four subgroups. One subgroup-broad symptom worsening only (20%)-included youth with worsening across a range of symptoms but with service disruptions similar to the average of the aggregate sample. The other three subgroups were, relatively, clinically stable but differed in service access: primarily modified services (23%), primarily lost services (6%), and average services/symptom changes (53%). Distinct combinations of a set of pre-pandemic services, pandemic environment (e.g., COVID-19 new cases, restrictions), experiences (e.g., COVID-19 Worries), and age predicted each outcome subgroup.LimitationsNotable limitations of the study are its cross-sectional nature and focus on the first six months of the pandemic.ConclusionsConcomitantly assessing variation in changes of symptoms and service access during the first phase of the pandemic revealed differential outcome profiles in ASD/NDD youth. Subgroups were characterized by distinct prediction patterns across a set of pre- and pandemic-related experiences/contexts. Results may inform recovery efforts and preparedness in future crises; they also underscore the critical value of international data-sharing and collaborations to address the needs of those most vulnerable in times of crisis