High infection rate of Trichophyton verrucosum in calves from Central Italy     

Papini R  Nardoni S  Fanelli A  Mancianti F 《Zoonoses and public health》2009,56(2):59-64

Recent epidemiological features of the zoonotic dermatophyte Trichophyton verrucosum were investigated in 294 calves from 20 farms located in Central Italy. By the combination of microscopic examinations and fungal cultures, the total prevalence rate of T. verrucosum infection was found to be high, with 87.7% of samples yielding positive results and 100% of farms being infected. Farm to farm prevalence of infection varied from 25% to 100% of the examined calves. Prevalence rates were higher in females than males (91.6% versus 84%), in >3-< or =6 than >6-< or =9 month old calves (89.8% versus 85.7%), in purebred than in crossbred (88.5% versus 81.8%), and in symptomatic than asymptomatic ones (95.7% versus 80.4%). T. verrucosum was as prevalent in semi-intensive as in intensive breeding system (88.2% versus 87.6%) but more prevalent in calves raised for meat rather than milk production (91.1% versus 84.9%), and reared under conventional than organic production management system (89.3% versus 82.6%). Prevalence rates were also higher when the cattle present in the farm were of mixed origin, rather than when the whole stock was purchased or was born in the farm (92% versus 88.2% and 85.7%), when other cattle in the farm were showing skin signs (90% versus 84.2%), and at least one case of human ringworm was recorded in the farm (90.9% versus 86.1%). No statistically significant association was found. Therefore, T. verrucosum infection may be more widespread in calves from Central Italy than it was previously thought to be. Calves of any sex, breed, age, and of any of the farm condition considered, are highly exposed to the risk of infection. As calves may play a considerable role as reservoirs of the infection, our results highlight the need to determine the incidence and the importance of T. verrucosum ringworm in personnel involved with cattle care in Italy and elsewhere.  相似文献   

Optimizing forage yield of durum wheat/field bean intercropping through N fertilization and row ratio     

M. Mariotti  A. Masoni  L. Ercoli  I. Arduini 《Grass and Forage Science》2012,67(2):243-254

Intercropping (IC) cereals and legumes could be an option for obtaining forage suitable for ensiling and enabling reduced N fertilization. Two experiments were performed in central Italy with durum wheat (Triticum durum Desf.) and field bean (Vicia faba L. var. minor) grown for forage production in IC and as sole crops (SC) with different N rates (20 and 50 kg ha^?1) and row ratios (1:1 and 2:1 cereal/legume). The aims were to assess (i) whether IC is a feasible option to reduce N fertilization; (ii) the best combination of practices to obtain forage suitable for ensiling; and (iii) competition/facilitation effects exerted by field bean on durum wheat. Results showed IC allowed fertilizer‐N reduction and led to improved forage yield with better quality, compared with SC. Land equivalent ratio indicated a high efficiency of the IC, by up to 26% with respect to SC. Field bean was the dominant species of IC, but N fertilization reduced its competitive ability and enhanced that of wheat. In the intercrop fertilized with 50 kg N ha^?1, the proportion of the wheat in the herbage (0·34–0·41 of the total dry matter) was sufficient for ensiling of the forage mass. Field bean exerted both competition and facilitation effects on the cereal. N uptake of durum wheat was greater under IC with beans than as wheat SC.  相似文献   

Note: Molecular identification of ‘Candidatus phytoplasma asteris’ inducing histological anomalies inSilene nicaeensis     

Radiana Cozza  Liliana Bernardo  Alberto Calari  Graziella Silvestro  Bojan Duduk  Assunta Bertaccini 《Phytoparasitica》2008,36(3):290-293

Numerous plants ofSilene nicaeensis having symptoms resembling those associated with the presence of phytoplasmas were observed in an extensive coastal area in the south of Italy. Microscopic observation showed histological abnormalities in the organization of tissues in symptomatic plants, and molecular tests, including PCR/RFLP analyses and nucleic acid sequencing, revealed the presence of phytoplasmas belonging to the aster yellows group (‘Candidatus phytoplasma asteris’). This is the first report of phytoplasma infection inS. nicaeensis, a wild species that colonizes the Calabrian coast. http://www.phytoparasitica.org posting June 12, 2008  相似文献   

Fine‐scale analysis of heavily invaded Italian freshwater fish assemblages          下载免费PDF全文

Annamaria NOCITA  Elena TRICARICO  Sandro BERTOLINO 《Integrative zoology》2017,12(6):500-511

Inland waters are highly vulnerable to the introduction and spread of non‐native species, due to heavy human use of aquatic ecosystems and the natural linkages among streams and lakes. This is particularly noticeable in freshwater fish communities. To better evaluate how these communities are affected by non‐native species introductions, we conducted a fine‐scale analysis of the changes in Italian freshwater fish assemblages after species introduction. For this analysis, we collected information on fish species present in 44 basins. The present Italian freshwater fish fauna is composed of 48 native and 41 established introduced species, while a further 15 introduced species have been reported but are not yet considered naturalized. The changes in the fish assemblages mostly took place in the past 2 centuries and have increased recently, with nearly 60% of the species introduced in the past 3 decades. The number of species introduced per basin ranged from 0 to 35 (mean 10.85 ± 7.77 species/basin), and in 10 basins the number of species introduced is now equal to or even higher than the number of native species. In the past, introduced species mainly originated from America, but over the past three decades, an increase of introductions from other parts of Europe and Asia has been recorded. Our results show that basins already rich in native species tend to become even richer as a consequence of the establishment of introduced species. This confirms the trend toward a biotic homogenization of ecosystems even at a local scale, due to an increase in the human‐mediated spread of generalist species.  相似文献   

Fasciola hepatica in wild boar (Sus scrofa) from Italy     

《Comparative immunology, microbiology and infectious diseases》2021

Fasciola hepatica is a trematode infecting ruminants worldwide, occasionally reported in a wide range of animal species, including humans. According to the WHO, fasciolosis is recognized as a re-emerging neglected tropical disease, responsible for endemic and epidemic outbreaks in humans. Although the main hosts of the parasite are represented by cattle, sheep and goats, wildlife may be involved in its circulation. Here we firstly report F. hepatica in a wild boar from Italy (southern area) and characterize it both morphologically and molecularly. The nad1 gene analysis of specimens analyzed, revealed a high genetic similarity with those of humans from Iran and Peru, as well as a close phylogenetic relationship to those in ruminants from Brazil, Ecuador and Egypt. Considering the increase in the wild boar populations in urban and peri-urban areas, a potential role of this ungulate in the circulation of this zoonotic trematode is suggested.  相似文献   

Detection and molecular characterization of Theileria sp. in fallow deer (Dama dama) and ticks from an Italian natural preserve     

R. Galuppi  S. Aureli  C. Bonoli  M. Caffara  M.P. Tampieri 《Research in veterinary science》2011,91(1):110-115

The prevalence of piroplasms in a closed population of fallow deer (Dama dama L.) living in the Italian preserve of “Bosco della Mesola” - Ferrara (Mesola wood) was investigated. Blood samples and ticks were collected from 62 fallow deer. On microscopic observation, 28 (45.0%) blood samples were positive for piroplasms while PCR provided evidence for piroplasms infection in 47 (75.8%) fallow deer. The 67 ticks, collected from positive and negative animals, were identified as Ixodesricinus L., 1758 (89.6%) and Haemaphysalisconcinna Koch, 1844 (10.4%). At the PCR, four samples of I. ricinus were positive for piroplasms. The sequences of the 18S rRNA gene from both blood and ticks were identical and showed high identity (99.6%) with Theileria sp. 3185/02 (DQ866842) and Theileria capreoli (AY726011) from roe deer. Interestingly, the phylogenetical analyses evidenced differences between the Theileria strain from Mesola wood and the ones isolated in fallow deer from other Italian areas.  相似文献   

Pimpinella anisoides Briganti     

K. Hammer  G. Laghetti  S. Cifarelli  M. Spahillari  P. Perrino 《Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution》2000,47(2):223-225

Pimpinella anisoides Briganti is newly reported as a minor crop plant from Basilicata, South Italy. It is used in some parts of this region particularly for flavouring traditional pastries.  相似文献   

Influence of Sowing and Harvest Time on Fibre Flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) in the Mediterranean Environment     

F. Rossini  R. Casa 《Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science》2003,189(3):191-196

Triennial field trials were carried out at Viterbo, central Italy, to investigate the influence of the sowing time, nitrogen fertilization and harvest dates of the two fibre flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) varieties Belinka and Ariane. Our results showed that warm and dry weather conditions, prevailing from late spring onwards, caused excessive shortening of the growing cycle of spring crops, with negative consequences for seed and fibre yield and quality. However, autumn sowings gave interesting results. Stem dry weight ranged between 5.6 and 6.7 t ha^?1 for autumn sowings and between 1.9 and 4.1 t ha^?1 for spring sowings. In autumn sowings, plant height and seed yields were also increased. Seed germinability was good even for early harvest dates. Stem dry weight remained constant at harvest dates following yellow‐green ripening, indicating that biomass was no longer allocated to the stems after that phase.  相似文献   

Fruit Branding: Exploring Factors Affecting Adoption of the New Pear Cultivar ‘Angelys’ in Italian Large Retail     

Daniele Asioli  Maurizio Canavari  Luca Malaguti  Chiara Mignani 《International Journal of Fruit Science》2016,16(3):284-300

‘Angelys’ is a new brand of pear cultivar, produced and marketed under the trademark license model called “Club variety.” The main aim of this article was to evaluate factors triggering a potential interest in Italian large-scale retail regarding the marketing of ‘Angelys’ and how large-scale retailers would exploit it to enhance their market potential. An explorative analysis approach was applied via in-depth, semi-structured qualitative interviews with major Italian large-scale retail fruit purchase managers. The results show that although sensory properties, handling features, and Italian origin are highly appreciated by professional customers, the need to sell at a premium price might limit the interest of retailers for this new variety. Finally, implications and recommendations for academics and operators are discussed.  相似文献   

Interaction of food resources and landscape structure in determining the probability of patch use by carnivores in fragmented landscapes     

Alessio Mortelliti  Luigi Boitani 《Landscape Ecology》2008,23(3):285-298

Studies on the distribution of mammalian carnivores in fragmented landscapes have focused mainly on structural aspects such as patch and landscape features; similarly, habitat connectivity is usually associated with landscape structure. The influence of food resources on carnivore patch use and the important effect on habitat connectivity have been overlooked. The aim of this study is to evaluate the relative importance of food resources on patch use patterns and to test if food availability can overcome structural constraints on patch use. We carried out a patch-use survey of two carnivores: the beech marten (Martes foina) and the badger (Meles meles) in a sample of 39 woodland patches in a fragmented landscape in central Italy. We used the logistic model to investigate the relative effects on carnivore distribution of patch, patch neighbourhood and landscape scale variables as well as the relative abundance of food resources. Our results show how carnivore movements in fragmented landscapes are determined not only by patch/landscape structure but also by the relative abundance of food resources. The important take-home message of our research is that, within certain structural limits (e.g. within certain limits of patch isolation), by modifying the relative amount of resources and their distribution, it is possible to increase suitability in smaller/relatively isolated patches. Conversely, however, there are certain thresholds above which an increase in resources will not achieve high probability of presence. Our findings have important and generalizable consequences for highly fragmented landscapes in areas where it may not be possible to increase patch sizes and/or reduce isolation so, for instance, forest regimes that will increase resource availability could be implemented. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.  相似文献