Notes on Quercus ilex L. in Liguria (NW Italy)

The climatic characteristics of the Liguria region have been outlined by means of raw data and derived indices (water balance related to potential evapotraspiration, Rivas-Martinez's index of mediterraneity and thermicity, De Martonne's index of dryness, and Emberger's pluviothermic quotient and index of summer dryness). Their interpretation suggests that Liguria is a boundary region between two different climatic areas: the Mediterranean and that of Central Europe.The distribution of Quercus ilex communities in Liguria have suffered the heavy consequences of human activity on the coastal belt of the region. There is, however, sufficient evidence to show that their presence is closely linked to climatic conditions. Quercus ilex communities are absent from the western coastal belt where the annual water balance is below –50 mm and high mean temperatures occur. They are also absent from marly limestone dominated areas where annual water balance is below 300 mm. Quercus ilex woods show a preference for water balance values between 0 and 600, with the better developed forests being found in central and eastern coastal Liguria.The Ligurian Quercus ilex woods are ascribed to Quercetum ilicis Br.-Bl. 1915. Given that the presence within their floristic composition of a group of species of Querco-Fagetea (more species in eastern stands, few in western ones) is an almost constant characteristic, the subass. fraxino-ostryetosum Mariotti 1984 can be retained for many of them. Quercus ilex is not present in the initial succession stages of Mediterranean Liguria vegetation. It can be found in later stages when the vegetation is more fully developed towards a maquis type structure. In this case it tends to become dominant and the community develops (if no fire or other human interference occurs) into a Quercus ilex forest. Frequently, this succession takes place under an old tree layer cover (generally Pinus sp.), a remanant of man's past management of the vegetation in the area.     

Antibacterial activity of Penicillium spp. strains isolated in extreme environments

Penicillium spp. isolated from the sediments of ponds in continental Antarctica have been studied and compared with species obtained from similar environments in the Apennines of the Liguria region, in northwestern Italy. The antibacterial activity exhibited by some strains was evaluated against standard strains using both liquid and solid media. The preliminary data suggest an antibacterial activity similar to β-lactam antibiotics. Accepted: 24 October 1999     

Large‐scale simulation of temperature‐dependent phenology in wintering populations of Bactrocera oleae (Rossi)

To implement Area‐Wide Pest Management protocols at a regional scale (Liguria, northern Italy), egg deposition and adult flight of olive fruit fly, Bactrocera oleae, were monitored during 2009, 2010 and 2011. The consequence of complete generation in late winter – early spring was also examined. The reliability of a degree‐day model was tested to simulate the insect cycle, starting from October oviposition and considering a 379.01°C cumulative degree‐day (CDD) needed to complete development. The model was validated and then used to simulate olive fruit fly phenology in the region of Liguria, using a GIS approach and the agrometeorological network in the region. The output of the CDD model was mapped with two different spatialization modelling techniques, geostatistical autocorrelation and regression correlation, and altitude, aspect and distance from the sea were assessed as elements of variability. The regression correlation model provided a more accurate indication of B. oleae diversity at the local scale than the geostatistical autocorrelation model and identified the high spatial climatic variability of Liguria. The potential application of the distribution of days after oviposition and prediction error maps in support of pest management planning is discussed.     

Grading of laboratories on CD4+ T-lymphocyte evaluations based on acceptable data boundaries defined by the measurement error

BACKGROUND: We addressed the definition of limits of error of %CD4+ and CD4+ counts (AbsCD4+) typical of laboratories of excellence, as well as the grading of laboratories based on the decision to take these limits as boundaries of unacceptable data. METHODS: We studied the 99.9% confidence intervals of the means of 24 human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)+ and HIV- blood samples analyzed by 18 laboratories of the Liguria Region Quality Assessment Program (Liguria Region QALI). Regression equations of lower (L1) and upper (L2) confidence limits over the means of data cleared of unusual results were used to interpolate limits of error for mean values in the tested range. RESULTS: L1 and L2 were symmetric around the mean and a single absolute difference (Abs Res) between the limits and the mean was found. Abs Res significantly increased over mean values (P = 0.0005 for %CD4+, P < 0.0001 for AbsCD4+). Limits were compatible with errors shown with blind replicates. Unacceptable results, outside the limits, accounted for 25% and 30% of %CD4+ and for 18% and 35% AbsCD4+ in the Liguria Region QALI and in the Piemonte Region QA Program, respectively. Limits interpolated over the median showed a similar grading. A comparable fraction of unacceptable data was also found with the method used in the U.K. National External Quality Assessment Scheme (NEQAS) immune monitoring scheme. CONCLUSIONS: We propose the general use of these regression equations to determine bounds for unacceptable data in proficiency testing and to identify laboratories of excellence.     

The impact of malignant pleural mesothelioma throughout Italy in the years 1995–2002: a geo-referenced study relating death rate to population distribution

We analyzed the official yearly mortality data due to malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) from 1995 to 2002 in all 107 Italian provinces, and we related them to provincial resident population in the same years. The resulting ratios are displayed as geographically referenced maps, which enhance the visual impact on how that fatal disease distributes over the country. The following results are statistically meaningful: (1) internal migration changed the Italian population distribution, with major increases in regions Lombardy, Trentino–Alto Adige, Veneto, and Emilia–Romagna, and moderate decreases in Piemonte, Liguria, and Friuli–Venezia Giulia. (2) MPM mortality is increasing overall, with five provinces largely exceeding the average Italian rate: Alessandria (Piemonte), Genoa and La Spezia (Liguria), and Gorizia and Trieste (Friuli–Venezia Giulia). (3) There is a substantial mortality rate increase in the same provinces which shows decreasing population. Results are discussed with reference to well-known cases of asbestos-polluted sites such as Balangero and Casale Monferrato (Piemonte), Genoa and La Spezia (Liguria), and Monfalcone and Trieste (Friuli–Venezia Giulia). General unquestionable conclusions are (a) occupational exposure, especially working conditions, increases MPM mortality; (b) non-occupational exposure data are scattered, as are male versus female data, and cannot be dealt with statistically on a nation-wide scale; (c) natural environmental exposure may contribute to MPM mortality, but its effect is still statistically minor. The MPM mortality apex is currently reached at Trieste, a province free of asbestos minerals occurring in their natural setting, but where MPM affects workers in the marine industry strongly who operated in contact with insulating outfits. Information on content and type of amphibole present in the asbestos materials used for industrial applications is scattered and generally scarce, thus making the evaluation of the amphibole versus chrysotile relative impact on MPM mortality rates statistically unsound.     

The influence of climate on the distribution of lichens: a case study in a borderline area (Liguria,NW Italy)

The purposes of this article are to quantify the relationship between epiphytic lichen distribution and macroclimatic variables in the study area and to provide a case study for evaluating the predictive role of epiphytic lichens as bioclimatic indicators. The study was carried out in the Liguria region (NW-Italy), a small (5432 km²) borderline area, where phytoclimatic features range from the dry Mediterranean to the Alpine in a few kilometers. Epiphytic lichen diversity was sampled using a standardized protocol [Asta et al (2002) In: Nimis et al (eds) Monitoring with lichens: monitoring lichens. Kluwer, Dordrecht]. Abundance of the species in the sampling sites was related to macroclimatic parameters (yearly average temperature and rainfall) and non-parametric multivariate models were calculated to find significative relationships among predictive and response variables. A total of 59 species showed highly significant relation with macroclimatic parameters. Four groups were selected, by means of a cluster analysis, related to four climatic niches (warm-humid, cold-humid, mesothermic-humid, warm-dry). Distributional pattern of the groups in the survey area showed a good correspondence with the bioclimatic units of Liguria region described by Nimis [(2003) Checklist of the Lichens of Italy 3.0. University of Trieste, Dept of Biology. http://www.dbiodbs.univ.trieste.it. Cited 1 Jun 2006]. A significant subset of epiphytic lichen species in the study area have been proved to be efficient bioclimatic indicator and it is supposed to give good results to monitor climatic changes, in a long-term perspective.     

Contrasted invasion processes imprint the genetic structure of an invasive scale insect across southern Europe

Deciphering the colonization processes by which introduced pests invade new areas is essential to limit the risk of further expansion and/or multiple introductions. We here studied the invasion history of the maritime pine bast scale Matsucoccus feytaudi. This host-specific insect does not cause any damage in its native area, but it devastated maritime pine forests of South-Eastern France where it was detected in the 1960s, and since then reached Italy and Corsica. We used population genetic approaches to infer the populations'' recent evolutionary history from microsatellite markers and Approximate Bayesian Computation. Consistent with previous mitochondrial data, we showed that the native range is geographically strongly structured, which is probably due to the patchy distribution of the obligate host and the limited dispersal capacity of the scale. Our results show that the invasion history can be described in three successive steps involving different colonization and dispersal processes. During the mid-XXth century, massive introductions occurred from the Landes planted forest to South-Eastern France, probably due to transportation of infested wood material after World War II. Stepping-stone expansion, consistent with natural dispersal, then allowed M. feytaudi to reach the maritime pine forests of Liguria and Tuscany in Italy. The island of Corsica was accidentally colonized in the 1990s, and the most plausible scenario involves the introduction of a limited number of migrants from the forests of South-Eastern France and Liguria, which is consistent with an aerial dispersal due to the dominant winds that blow in spring in this region.     

Habitat and occurrence of ixodid ticks in the Liguria region,northwest Italy

Questing ticks were collected during monthly dragging sessions (March–August 2011) in three provinces of the Liguria region, north-western Italy, to evaluate the species occurrence, spatial distribution and relative abundance. A total of 1,464 specimens were collected in 94 dragging sites. Ixodes ricinus was the most abundant species (81.3 % of collected ticks), followed by Haemaphysalis punctata (10.9 %), Dermacentor marginatus (5.5 %), Ixodes frontalis (1.3 %), and Rhipicephalus spp. (0.9 %). Ixodes frontalis is reported for the first time in Liguria. An aggregation of I. ricinus positive sites was observed in inland areas characterized by dense forests dominated by deciduous trees (Castanetum and Fagetum phytoclimatic zones), especially in the west of the region where the differences in the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) were higher between inland and coastal sites. Negative binomial regression for repeated measures was used to model the associations of NDVI and season with counts of host-seeking I. ricinus nymphs. The NDVI was a good predictor of I. ricinus nymphs abundance, and confirmed its utility in discriminating habitat suitability for this vector in north-western coastal Italy, where dry habitat conditions may limit the distribution of this species.     

Ecology and diversity of Cortinarius species (Agaricales,Basidiomycota) associated with Quercus ilex L. in the Mediterranean area of Liguria (North-western Italy)

Cortinarius is one of the most widespread macrofungal genera. Although Mediterranean basin is considered a biodiversity hotspot, very few studies have addressed the presence and importance of Cortinarius species in such area. Surveys were carried out in Liguria (NW Italy) in different habitats characterized by the presence of Quercus ilex. Altogether 67 taxa were observed: 49 of them are new records for Liguria while 23 represent new records for Italy. In addition, we report the distinguishing characters and ecological traits of the species which are also rare in Europe.     

Biomechanical approach to the reconstruction of activity patterns in Neolithic Western Liguria, Italy

This paper investigates the changes in upper and lower limb robusticity and activity patterns that accompanied the transition to a Neolithic subsistence in western Liguria (Italy). Diaphyseal robusticity measures were obtained from cross-sectional geometric properties of the humerus and femur in a sample of 16 individuals (eight males and eight females) dated to about 6,000-5,500 BP. Comparisons with European Late Upper Paleolithics (LUP) indicate increased humeral robusticity in Neolithic Ligurian (NEOL) males, but not in females, with a significant reduction in right-left differences in both sexes. Sexual dimorphism in robusticity increases in upper and lower limb bones. Regarding the femur, while all female indicators of bending strength decrease steadily through time, values for NEOL males approach those of LUP. This suggests high, and unexpected, levels of mechanical stress for NEOL males, probably reflecting the effects of the mountainous terrain on lower limb remodeling. Comparisons between NEOL males and a small sample of LUP hunter-gatherers from the same area support this interpretation. In conclusion, cross-sectional geometry data indicate that the transition to Neolithic economies in western Liguria did not reduce functional requirements in males, and suggest a marked sexual division of labor involving a more symmetrical use of the upper limb, and different male-female levels of locomotory stress. When articulated with archaeological, faunal, paleopathological, and ethnographic evidence, these results support the hypothesis of repetitive, bimanual use of axes tied to pastoral activities in males, and of more sedentary tasks linked to agriculture in females.     

Les cultures moustériennes en Ligurie italienne : analyse du matériel lithique de trois sites en grotte

Multidisciplinary studies realized these last years about cave sites of Madonna dell’Arma, Arma delle Manie and Santa Lucia superiore, in italian Liguria, have stated precisely the conditions of neandertalian frequentations of those sites, placing at intervals, according to the cases, from isotopic stage five to the beginning of stage three. The mousterian industries recovered in those sites, associated with a lot of faunal remains, are here analyzed about the different stratigraphic levels in each site. In Madonna dell’Arma and Arma delle Manie, those industries show a certain constancy in the different levels, about technological and typological point of view or about raw material management. In Santa Lucia superiore, on the contrary, two different types of occupation have let lithical vestiges with different facies in lower levels and above levels. For the three sites, the analysis of the raw material management shows an essentially local supplying, but also some origins much more far like in the case of the jasper. This carrying of distant stones reveals us one aspect of the mobility or at least the territories extension that were able to apprehend those neandertalian human groups in Liguria region and beyond also. Otherwise, some preferential choices for certain raw materials were done by knappers for the débitage or for the small retouched tool supports. The flaking technics are identified in each site and certain regularities have been stated, like the high frequency of Levallois flaking in the different levels (also external levels) of Madonna dell’Arma site that is not the case in the two other sites.     

Importance of the wild boar in the epidemiology of wild trichinellosis in Piedmont and Liguria

Muscle samples from 1,508 wild boars (Sus scrofa) harvested in Piedmont and Liguria between 1987 and 1990 were examined for larvae of Trichinella sp. by trichinelloscopy and peptic digestion. No wild boar was infected, though trichinellosis was present in foxes (Vulpes vulpes) from the same areas (14 positives out of 608) with the highest prevalence in the mountain range (25.0%). Infection was also not found in 40 stone martens, 5 badgers and 3 stoats. Five vulpine isolates were identified as belonging to T3 zymodeme. These results show that free-ranging wild boars, although being a source of trichinellosis infection for man in Italy (9.2% of the 584 cases diagnosed since 1961), have no significance in maintaining the sylvatic cycle of this parasite in the study area. The data agree with the low infectivity of Italian strains of fox origin for swine seen in the experimental infections carried out so far.     

Paleoenvironmental analysis

New analysis has been carried out concerning the palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of some Italian sites dating from the Middle Pleistocene to the Bronze Age. Different aspects have been investigated on each site considering the data collected. The following sites have been analyzed: Isernia La Pineta (Molise); Visogliano and Caverna degli Orsi (Tieste); Toirano Caves (Liguria); Grotta Paglicci (Gargano); Riparo del Molare (Salerno); Grotta del Cavallo (Lecce); Castellaro Lagusello (Monzambano, Mantova).     

Productions lithiques et comportements techno-économiques de groupes humains acheuléens et moustériens en région liguro-provençale

Acheulean and Mousterian human occupations left an abundant record of lithic productions in the Liguro-Provençal region. Certain sites show the transition between the Lower and Middle Palaeolithic, yielding industries in which the shaping of bifaces continued along with partial Levallois reduction and the development of light-duty, retouched Mousterian tools. In the more recent sites, Mousterian lithic productions show further development in Levallois reduction techniques and sometimes blade production, while shaping techniques disappeared. The transport of artefacts of exotic lithic raw materials from sometimes very distant sources had already occurred by the end of the Acheulean, and the example of the use of allochthonous jasper illustrates an aspect of techno-economical behaviours and the mobility of these human groups. Such transport of jasper blanks from distant sources became further developed at certain Mousterian sites in Liguria, but with the addition of knapping and retouching activities at the occupation sites.     

Echinococcus multilocularis in north Italy

Alveolar echinococcosis is a zoonotic infection caused by the metacestode of the tapeworm Echinococcus multilocularis. Fox populations living in the Alpine regions of Italy had been considered free from this parasite until 2002, when two infected foxes were detected in Bolzano province (Trentino Alto Adige region) near Austrian border. A modified nested PCR analysis was used to detect E. multilocularis DNA in faecal samples belonging to red fox populations from five Italian regions. A total of 522 faecal samples were analysed from foxes shot in Valle d'Aosta (N = 65), Liguria (N = 44), Lombardy (N = 105), Veneto (N = 67), and Trentino Alto Adige (N = 241) regions. Among these, 24 samples, all from the Trentino Alto Adige region, were found positive. Moreoever, 1406 faecal samples of red foxes were analyzed by CA-ELISAs commercial test kit. This paper provides an update of the epidemiological knowledge of this parasite in north Italy.     

A catastrophic mass-mortality episode of gorgonians and other organisms in the Ligurian Sea (North-western Mediterranean), summer 1999

In the late summer of 1999, an extensive mortality of gorgonians and other epi-benthic organisms was observed in the Ligurian Sea (Mediterranean Sea) from the Tuscan Archipelago to Marseille. Quantitative data from Tino Island and Portofino Promontory indicated that the proportion of affected gorgonians ranged from 60% to 100% in populations having a density of 9–27.8 colonies m⁻², suggesting that millions of sea fans died along the coast of Liguria. This mass mortality episode coincided with a sudden increase of sea water temperature down to more than 50 m depth. Laboratory analyses showed that the colonies stressed by high temperature also underwent extensive attack by microrganisms (protozoans and fungi), which are interpreted as opportunistic pathogens.     

Quaternary refugia of the sweet chestnut (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Castanea sativa</Emphasis> Mill.): an extended palynological approach

Knowledge about the glacial refugia of the thermophilous European Castanea sativa Mill. (sweet chestnut) is still inadequate. Its original range of distribution has been masked by strong human impact. Moreover, under natural conditions the species was probably admixed with other taxa (such as Quercus, Fraxinus, Fagus, Tilia) and thus possibly represented by low percentages in pollen records. In this paper we try to overcome the difficulties related to the scarcity and irregularity of chestnut pollen records by considering 1471 sites and extending the palynological approach to develop a Castanea refugium probability index (IRP), aimed at detecting possible chestnut refugia where chestnuts survived during the last glaciation. The results are in close agreement with the current literature on the refugia of other thermophilous European trees. The few divergences are most probably due to the large amount of new data integrated in this study, rather than to fundamental disagreements about data and data interpretation. The main chestnut refugia are located in the Transcaucasian region, north-western Anatolia, the hinterland of the Tyrrhenian coast from Liguria to Lazio along the Apennine range, the region around Lago di Monticchio (Monte Vulture) in southern Italy, and the Cantabrian coast on the Iberian peninsula. Despite the high likelihood of Castanea refugia in the Balkan Peninsula and north-eastern Italy (Colli Euganei, Monti Berici, Emilia-Romagna) as suggested by the IRP, additional palaeobotanical investigations are needed to assess whether these regions effectively sheltered chestnut during the last glaciation. Other regions, such as the Isère Département in France, the region across north-west Portugal and Galicia, and the hilly region along the Mediterranean coast of Syria and Lebanon were classified as areas of medium refugium probability. Our results reveal an unexpected spatial richness of potential Castanea refugia. It is likely that other European trees had similar distribution ranges during the last glaciation. It is thus conceivable that shelter zones with favourable microclimates were probably more numerous and more widely dispersed across Europe than so far assumed. In the future, more attention should be paid to pollen traces of sporadic taxa thought to have disappeared from a given area during the last glacial and post-glacial period.Electronic Supplementary Material Supplementary material is available in the online version of this article at . A link in the frame on the left on that page takes you directly to the supplementary material.An erratum to this article can be found at     

Madonna dell'Arma (San Remo, Italie) : expression locale de la végétation ligure au cours du Paléolithique moyen

Pollen analysis of Madonna dell’Arma cave inside part (Liguria, Italy) allowed us to reconstitute, at local scale, the Ligurian coastal vegetation between the end of the last interglacial period and the beginning of the pleniglacial. This transition period shows an important representation of arboreal cover and a persistence of thermophilous elements that allowed us to considerate the western Liguria as a periglacial refuge. During the end of the last interglacial, xerophytic, halophytic herbs and shrubs taken over from a Mediterranean pre-forest unit in the first slopes constituted the coastal zone. The nearness of Argentina torrent and the Armea influenced, in the coast, the existence of marshy zones colonized by hygrophilous trees. In the Ligurian lowlands spread out sclerophyllous and mesophilous forests according to altitude. The beginning of the pleniglacial is indicated in the sequence by increases of Pinus, Cupressaceae and Artemisia in the context of a decline in the thermophilous components. This picture of vegetation has become integrated into the multidisciplinary studies of the site and contributed to the elaboration of palaeoclimatic hypothesis similar as those revealed by the fauna.     

Incidence of sensitisation to the pollens of urticaceae (Parietaria), Poaceae and Oleaceae (Olea europea) and pollen rain in Liguria (Italy)

Summary The authors examined 734 sensitised patients living in four localities in Liguria (Genoa, Savona, Pietra Ligure and Sanremo). The commonest source of sensitisation (62.7%) was Urticaceae (Parietaria), followed by Poaceae (52.5%) andOlea europaea L. (24.0%). A survey of airborne pollens revealed a greater presence of Urticaceae and Poaceae in Genoa and of Oleaceae in Pietra Ligure and Sanremo.     

The Massaciuccoli Holocene pollen sequence and the vegetation history of the coastal plains by the Mar Ligure (Tuscany and Liguria,Italy)

A 90 m deep core from the Massaciuccoli lake basin (Tuscany, Italy) offers new material for improving the knowledge of the Holocene vegetation history in the coastal plains in Tuscany and Liguria bordering the Mar Ligure (Ligurian sea). In this paper, an assessment of the upper part of the core is presented. During the Holocene, the area was covered by woodlands whose composition changed in time. Numerous oscillations of the tree taxa were recorded which can probably be connected to sea level variations that had a strong influence on the depth of the water table. Human impact is evident particularly at ca. 4200–2500 b.p. when traces of opening of the woodland accompanied by noticeable pollen percentages of Vitis could suggest an early agricultural practice favouring this native plant. The new data have been integrated with previous palaeobotanical and archaeobotanical research. The occurrence of coastal wetlands has been shown. Throughout the Holocene, Mediterranean evergreen vegetation is generally poorly represented; it becomes widespread only in the late Holocene, suggesting that its establishment was probably favoured by the management practices in the coastal plains, particularly land reclamations, starting from the Roman period.