This page has only limited features, please log in for full access.
Sub-Saharan African crop production largely relies on smallholder farms, located both in urban and agricultural landscapes. In this context, the investigation of plant and pollinator diversity and their interactions is of primary importance since both these factors are threatened by land use intensification and the consequent loss of natural habitats. In this study, we evaluated for the first time how plant and pollinator insect assemblages and interactions in Sub-Saharan farming conditions are shaped by land use intensification. To do that, we complemented biodiversity field surveys in Northern Tanzania with a modern DNA metabarcoding approach to characterize the foraged plants and thus built networks describing plant-pollinator interactions at the individual insect level. Moreover, we coupled this information with quantitative traits of landscape composition and floral availability surrounding each farm. We found that pollinator richness decreased with increasing impervious and agricultural cover in the landscape, whereas the flower density at each farm correlated with pollinator richness. The intensification of agricultural land use and urbanization correlated with a higher foraging niche overlap among pollinators due to convergence of individuals’ flower visiting strategies. Furthermore, within farms, the higher availability of floral resources drove lower niche overlap among individuals, while a greater flower visitors abundance shaped higher generalization at the networks level (H2′), possibly due to increased competition. These mechanistic understandings leading to individuals’ foraging niche overlap and generalism at the network level, could imply stability of interactions and of the pollination ecosystem service. Our integrative survey proved that plant-pollinator systems are largely affected by land use intensification and by local factors in smallholder farms of Sub-Saharan Africa. Thus, policies promoting nature-based solutions, among which the introduction of more pollinator-friendly practices by smallholder farmers, could be effective in mitigating the intensification of both urban and rural landscapes in this region, as well as in similar Sub-Saharan contexts.
Nicola Tommasi; Paolo Biella; Lorenzo Guzzetti; Julius Vincent Lasway; Henry Kenneth Njovu; Andrea Tapparo; Giulia Agostinetto; Marcell Karl Peters; Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter; Massimo Labra; Andrea Galimberti. Impact of land use intensification and local features on plants and pollinators in Sub-Saharan smallholder farms. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 2021, 319, 107560 .
AMA StyleNicola Tommasi, Paolo Biella, Lorenzo Guzzetti, Julius Vincent Lasway, Henry Kenneth Njovu, Andrea Tapparo, Giulia Agostinetto, Marcell Karl Peters, Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter, Massimo Labra, Andrea Galimberti. Impact of land use intensification and local features on plants and pollinators in Sub-Saharan smallholder farms. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment. 2021; 319 ():107560.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicola Tommasi; Paolo Biella; Lorenzo Guzzetti; Julius Vincent Lasway; Henry Kenneth Njovu; Andrea Tapparo; Giulia Agostinetto; Marcell Karl Peters; Ingolf Steffan-Dewenter; Massimo Labra; Andrea Galimberti. 2021. "Impact of land use intensification and local features on plants and pollinators in Sub-Saharan smallholder farms." Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment 319, no. : 107560.
DNA metabarcoding approaches to analyse complex mixtures of pollen has become the standard in pollination biology, especially in the light of recent threats affecting pollination. In spite of the increasing adoption of High Throughput Sequencing (HTS) approaches, these studies generate huge numbers of raw reads, some of which might be associated to false positives or infrequently recorded species with potentially little biological information. If these reads are not discarded (i.e. pruned), they can lead to changes in the ecological findings and lead to biased conclusions. In this study we reviewed 42 papers in the recent pollen DNA metabarcoding literature and focused on the type of pruning applied. We also tested whether the different types of those cut off threshold may leave a mark on the DNA metabarcoding data. To do so, we compared for the first time community composition, species richness and networks of species interactions (i.e. Connectace, Modularity, Connectivity and Shannon entropy) associated with the most relevant ways of treating HTS outputs: no cut (no reads filtering), or cutting levels obtained as proportional 1% of sample total reads, or as fixed amount of 100 reads, or from ROC (Receiver operator characteristic). Results clearly indicated that pruning type shapes species composition and that to apply or not a threshold dramatically impacts ecological indices, potentially increasing the risk of misinterpreting DNA metabarcoding data under an ecological point of view. Given the high methodological heterogeneity from the revised literature, we discuss in what conditions filtering types may be more appropriate, and also recommend to biologically justify the pruning threshold when analysing DNA metabarcoding raw reads, and to develop shared approaches to make future studies more comparable.
Nicola Tommasi; Andrea Ferrari; Andrea Galimberti; Paolo Biella. Harnessing the power of metabarcoding in the ecological interpretation of plant-pollinator DNA data: strategies and consequences of reads filtering. 2021, 1 .
AMA StyleNicola Tommasi, Andrea Ferrari, Andrea Galimberti, Paolo Biella. Harnessing the power of metabarcoding in the ecological interpretation of plant-pollinator DNA data: strategies and consequences of reads filtering. . 2021; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicola Tommasi; Andrea Ferrari; Andrea Galimberti; Paolo Biella. 2021. "Harnessing the power of metabarcoding in the ecological interpretation of plant-pollinator DNA data: strategies and consequences of reads filtering." , no. : 1.
BackgroundEvolutionary processes can cause strong spatial genetic signatures, such as local loss of genetic diversity, or conflicting histories from mitochondrial versus nuclear markers. Investigating these genetic patterns is important, as they may reveal obscured processes and players. The maternally inherited bacterium Wolbachia is among the most widespread symbionts in insects. Wolbachia typically spreads within host species by conferring direct fitness benefits, or by manipulating its host reproduction to favour infected over uninfected females. Under sufficient selective advantage, the mitochondrial haplotype associated with the favoured symbiotic strains will spread (i.e. hitchhike), resulting in low mitochondrial genetic variation across the host species range. The common bluetail damselfly (Ischnura elegans: van der Linden, 1820) has recently emerged as a model organism of the genetics and genomic signatures of range expansion during climate change. Although there is accumulating data on the consequences of such expansion on the genetic of I. elegans, no study has screened for Wolbachia in the damselfly genus Ischnura. Here, we present the biogeographic variation in Wolbachia prevalence and penetrance in 17 I. elegans populations across Europe and Japan, and from close relatives in the Mediterranean area (i.e. I. genei: Rambur, 1842; and I. saharensis: Aguesse, 1958). ResultsOur data reveal (a) multiple Wolbachia-strains, (b) potential transfer of the symbiont through hybridization, (c) higher infection rates at higher latitudes, and (d) reduced mitochondrial diversity in the north-west populations, indicative of hitchhiking associated with the selective sweep of the most common strain. We found low mitochondrial haplotype diversity in the Wolbachia-infected north-western European populations (Sweden, Scotland, the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Italy) of I. elegans, and, conversely, higher mitochondrial diversity in populations with low penetrance of Wolbachia (Ukraine, Greece, Montenegro and Cyprus). The timing of the selective sweep associated with infected lineages was estimated between 20 000 to 44 000 years before present, which is consistent with the end of the last glacial period about 20 000 ya. ConclusionsOur findings provide an example of how endosymbiont infections ca shape spatial variation in their host evolutionary genetics during postglacial expansion. These results also challenge population genetic studies that do not consider the prevalence of symbionts in many insects, which can impact geographic patterns of mitochondrial genetic diversity.
Junchen Deng; Giacomo Assandri; Pallavi Chauhan; Ryo Futahashi; Andrea Galimberti; Bengt Hansson; Lesley T. Lancaster; Yuma Takahashi; Erik I. Svensson; Anne Duplouy. Wolbachia-driven selective sweep in a range expanding insect species. 2021, 1 .
AMA StyleJunchen Deng, Giacomo Assandri, Pallavi Chauhan, Ryo Futahashi, Andrea Galimberti, Bengt Hansson, Lesley T. Lancaster, Yuma Takahashi, Erik I. Svensson, Anne Duplouy. Wolbachia-driven selective sweep in a range expanding insect species. . 2021; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJunchen Deng; Giacomo Assandri; Pallavi Chauhan; Ryo Futahashi; Andrea Galimberti; Bengt Hansson; Lesley T. Lancaster; Yuma Takahashi; Erik I. Svensson; Anne Duplouy. 2021. "Wolbachia-driven selective sweep in a range expanding insect species." , no. : 1.
Landscape anthropization replaces natural areas with agricultural or urban covers, leading to land-use intensification. This worldwide phenomenon affects biodiversity, but little is known about the effects on the intraspecific variation of functional traits related to ecosystem services. By combining field data collection, remote sensing and land cover analysis we investigated how land use intensification affects functional traits in two bumblebee species. Namely, the impact of different land use cover (i.e., semi-natural, urban, and agricultural) and of multiple biotic and abiotic stressors (i.e., temperature, resource availability, and air pollutants) was investigated. Along a gradient of landscape anthropization, we sampled populations of two European bumblebee species (Bombus terrestris and B. pascuorum) at 37 sites in Northern Italy. Through geometric morphometrics we investigated the variation of morphological traits related to flight performance (i.e., wing centroid size and shape and size fluctuating asymmetry FA), previously used as indicators of stress during insect development. Our results point out an idiosyncratic response of the two species to landscape anthropization. Smaller individuals of B. pascuorum were observed in response to increased impervious cover and temperature. No similar patterns were noticed in B. terrestris, which was characterized by larger individuals in response to floral resource availability. Wing size FA was positively associated with warmer temperatures and increased levels of NO2 only in B. terrestris. Overall, this study found taxon-specific functional trait variation at the intraspecific level in syntopic organisms, expanding our understanding about the effects of land-use intensification on the ecological activity of pollinator model species.
Nicola Tommasi; Emiliano Pioltelli; Paolo Biella; Massimo Labra; Maurizio Casiraghi; Andrea Galimberti. EFFECTS OF LAND-USE INTENSIFICATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL STRESSORS ON INTRASPECIFIC FUNCTIONAL TRAITS VARIABILITY IN BUMBLEBEES. 2021, 1 .
AMA StyleNicola Tommasi, Emiliano Pioltelli, Paolo Biella, Massimo Labra, Maurizio Casiraghi, Andrea Galimberti. EFFECTS OF LAND-USE INTENSIFICATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL STRESSORS ON INTRASPECIFIC FUNCTIONAL TRAITS VARIABILITY IN BUMBLEBEES. . 2021; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicola Tommasi; Emiliano Pioltelli; Paolo Biella; Massimo Labra; Maurizio Casiraghi; Andrea Galimberti. 2021. "EFFECTS OF LAND-USE INTENSIFICATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL STRESSORS ON INTRASPECIFIC FUNCTIONAL TRAITS VARIABILITY IN BUMBLEBEES." , no. : 1.
BackgroundEvolutionary processes can cause strong spatial genetic signatures, such as local loss of genetic diversity, or conflicting histories from mitochondrial versus nuclear markers. Investigating these genetic patterns is important, as they may reveal obscured processes and players. The maternally inherited bacterium Wolbachia is among the most widespread symbionts in insects. Wolbachia typically spreads within host species by conferring direct fitness benefits, or by manipulating its host reproduction to favour infected over uninfected females. Under sufficient selective advantage, the mitochondrial haplotype associated with the favoured symbiotic strains will spread (i.e. hitchhike), resulting in low mitochondrial genetic variation across the host species range. The common bluetail damselfly (Ischnura elegans: van der Linden, 1820) has recently emerged as a model organism of the genetics and genomic signatures of range expansion during climate change. Although there is accumulating data on the consequences of such expansion on the genetic of I. elegans, no study has screened for Wolbachia in the damselfly genus Ischnura. Here, we present the biogeographic variation in Wolbachia prevalence and penetrance in 17 I. elegans populations across Europe and Japan, and from close relatives in the Mediterranean area (i.e. I. genei: Rambur, 1842; and I. saharensis: Aguesse, 1958). ResultsOur data reveal (a) multiple Wolbachia-strains, (b) potential transfer of the symbiont through hybridization, (c) higher infection rates at higher latitudes, and (d) reduced mitochondrial diversity in the north-west populations, indicative of hitchhiking associated with the selective sweep of the most common strain. We found low mitochondrial haplotype diversity in the Wolbachia-infected north-western European populations (Sweden, Scotland, the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Italy) of I. elegans, and, conversely, higher mitochondrial diversity in populations with low penetrance of Wolbachia (Ukraine, Greece, Montenegro and Cyprus). The timing of the selective sweep associated with infected lineages was estimated between 20 000 to 44 000 years before present, which is consistent with the end of the last glacial period about 20 000 ya. ConclusionsOur findings provide an example of how endosymbiont infections ca shape spatial variation in their host evolutionary genetics during postglacial expansion. These results also challenge population genetic studies that do not consider the prevalence of symbionts in many insects, which can impact geographic patterns of mitochondrial genetic diversity.
Junchen Deng; Giacomo Assandri; Pallavi Chauhan; Ryo Futahashi; Andrea Galimberti; Bengt Hansson; Lesley T. Lancaster; Yuma Takahashi; Erik I. Svensson; Anne Duplouy. Wolbachia-driven selective sweep in a range expanding insect species. 2021, 1 .
AMA StyleJunchen Deng, Giacomo Assandri, Pallavi Chauhan, Ryo Futahashi, Andrea Galimberti, Bengt Hansson, Lesley T. Lancaster, Yuma Takahashi, Erik I. Svensson, Anne Duplouy. Wolbachia-driven selective sweep in a range expanding insect species. . 2021; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJunchen Deng; Giacomo Assandri; Pallavi Chauhan; Ryo Futahashi; Andrea Galimberti; Bengt Hansson; Lesley T. Lancaster; Yuma Takahashi; Erik I. Svensson; Anne Duplouy. 2021. "Wolbachia-driven selective sweep in a range expanding insect species." , no. : 1.
Molecular-based approaches for species identification and delimitation strongly rely, in terms of universality and efficiency, on the selected markers. Conventionally, when adopting a DNA barcoding approach to discriminate (or identify) metazoans species, the marker choice falls on the 658 base pair region at the 5ʹ end of the mitochondrial COI gene. However, a growing number of studies suggest to use alternative and more variable genetic regions, even from the same gene, such as the 3ʹ end of the COI. In this work, we compared the identification performance of the 5ʹ and 3ʹ end COI regions on a large sequence dataset of odonate species, an order of arthropods among the most studied in terms of conservation importance for aquatic ecosystems. The genetic datasets comprised a total of 236 specimens, 113 species, 51 genera and 12 families spanning the two odonate suborders Zygoptera and Anisoptera, and were analysed under an integrative multiple approach including descriptive statistics and variability of the sequences, phylogenetic reconstructions, DNA-based species delimitations, genetic distances, identification of diagnostic characters and saturation plots. All analyses were congruent in recovering the COI-3ʹ region to be slightly more variable than the COI-5ʹ one, and both regions showed a saturation of transversion at the third codon position. However, phylogenetic reconstructions, genetic distances, and diagnostic characters identification resulted in a similar discrimination power for the two COI regions. Therefore, the COI-3ʹ region does not add much information to the standard COI-5ʹ barcode region, which has in turn largely been demonstrated to successfully delineate invertebrate communities through DNA and eDNA metabarcoding, and to have a much more extensive taxonomic coverage in public databases. Overall, the DNA barcoding inventory assembled in this study will provide valuable insights into the systematics and conservation of many odonate species with implications for future DNA and eDNA monitoring-based studies.
D. Maggioni; G. Assandri; F. Ramazzotti; D. Magnani; I. Pellegrino; E. Valsecchi; A. Galimberti. Differential genetic variability at two mtDNA COI regions does not imply mismatches in Odonata molecular identification performances. The European Zoological Journal 2021, 88, 425 -435.
AMA StyleD. Maggioni, G. Assandri, F. Ramazzotti, D. Magnani, I. Pellegrino, E. Valsecchi, A. Galimberti. Differential genetic variability at two mtDNA COI regions does not imply mismatches in Odonata molecular identification performances. The European Zoological Journal. 2021; 88 (1):425-435.
Chicago/Turabian StyleD. Maggioni; G. Assandri; F. Ramazzotti; D. Magnani; I. Pellegrino; E. Valsecchi; A. Galimberti. 2021. "Differential genetic variability at two mtDNA COI regions does not imply mismatches in Odonata molecular identification performances." The European Zoological Journal 88, no. 1: 425-435.
Combining no-till and cover crops (NT + CC) as an alternative to conventional tillage (CT) is generating interest to build-up farming systems’ resilience while promoting climate change adaptation in agriculture. Our field study aimed to assess the impact of long-term NT + CC management and short-term water stress on soil microbial communities, enzymatic activities, and the distribution of C and N within soil aggregates. High-throughput sequencing (HTS) revealed the positive impact of NT + CC on microbial biodiversity, especially under water stress conditions, with the presence of important rhizobacteria (e.g., Bradyrhizobium spp.). An alteration index based on soil enzymes confirmed soil depletion under CT. C and N pools within aggregates showed an enrichment under NT + CC mostly due to C and N-rich large macroaggregates (LM), accounting for 44% and 33% of the total soil C and N. Within LM, C and N pools were associated to microaggregates within macroaggregates (mM), which are beneficial for long-term C and N stabilization in soils. Water stress had detrimental effects on aggregate formation and limited C and N inclusion within aggregates. The microbiological and physicochemical parameters correlation supported the hypothesis that long-term NT + CC is a promising alternative to CT, due to the contribution to soil C and N stabilization while enhancing the biodiversity and enzymes.
Eren Taskin; Roberta Boselli; Andrea Fiorini; Chiara Misci; Federico Ardenti; Francesca Bandini; Lorenzo Guzzetti; Davide Panzeri; Nicola Tommasi; Andrea Galimberti; Massimo Labra; Vincenzo Tabaglio; Edoardo Puglisi. Combined Impact of No-Till and Cover Crops with or without Short-Term Water Stress as Revealed by Physicochemical and Microbiological Indicators. Biology 2021, 10, 23 .
AMA StyleEren Taskin, Roberta Boselli, Andrea Fiorini, Chiara Misci, Federico Ardenti, Francesca Bandini, Lorenzo Guzzetti, Davide Panzeri, Nicola Tommasi, Andrea Galimberti, Massimo Labra, Vincenzo Tabaglio, Edoardo Puglisi. Combined Impact of No-Till and Cover Crops with or without Short-Term Water Stress as Revealed by Physicochemical and Microbiological Indicators. Biology. 2021; 10 (1):23.
Chicago/Turabian StyleEren Taskin; Roberta Boselli; Andrea Fiorini; Chiara Misci; Federico Ardenti; Francesca Bandini; Lorenzo Guzzetti; Davide Panzeri; Nicola Tommasi; Andrea Galimberti; Massimo Labra; Vincenzo Tabaglio; Edoardo Puglisi. 2021. "Combined Impact of No-Till and Cover Crops with or without Short-Term Water Stress as Revealed by Physicochemical and Microbiological Indicators." Biology 10, no. 1: 23.
A colorimetric assay, exploiting the combination of loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) with DNA barcoding, was developed to address the authentication of some cephalopod species, a relevant group in the context of seafood traceability, due to the intensive processing from the fishing sites to the shelf. The discriminating strategy relies on accurate design of species-specific LAMP primers within the conventional 5’ end of the mitochondrial COI DNA barcode region and allows for the identification of Loligo vulgaris among two closely related and less valuable species. The assay, coupled to rapid genomic DNA extraction, is suitable for large-scale screenings and on-site applications due to its easy procedures, with fast (30 min) and visual readout.
Giuseppina Tatulli; Paola Cecere; Davide Maggioni; Andrea Galimberti; Pier Pompa. A Rapid Colorimetric Assay for On-Site Authentication of Cephalopod Species. Biosensors 2020, 10, 190 .
AMA StyleGiuseppina Tatulli, Paola Cecere, Davide Maggioni, Andrea Galimberti, Pier Pompa. A Rapid Colorimetric Assay for On-Site Authentication of Cephalopod Species. Biosensors. 2020; 10 (12):190.
Chicago/Turabian StyleGiuseppina Tatulli; Paola Cecere; Davide Maggioni; Andrea Galimberti; Pier Pompa. 2020. "A Rapid Colorimetric Assay for On-Site Authentication of Cephalopod Species." Biosensors 10, no. 12: 190.
The genus Crocidura (Eulipotyphla, Soricidae) is the most speciose genus amongst mammals, i.e., it includes the highest number of species. Different species are distinguished by skull morphology, which often prevents the identification of individuals in the field and limits research on these species’ ecology and biology. We combined species distribution models and molecular analyses to assess the distribution of cryptic Crocidura shrews in Italy, confirming the occurrence of the greater white-toothed shrew Crocidura russula in the northwest of the country. The molecular identification ascertained the species’ presence in two distinct Italian regions. Accordingly, species distribution modelling highlighted the occurrence of areas suitable for C. russula in the westernmost part of northern Italy. Our results confirm the role of Italy as a mammal hotspot in the Mediterranean; additionally, they also show the need to include C. russula in Italian faunal checklists. To conclude, we highlight the usefulness of combining different approaches to explore the presence of cryptic species outside their known ranges. Since the similar, smaller C. suaveolens may be displaced by the larger C. russula through competitive exclusion, the latter might be the species actually present where C. suaveolens had been reported previously. A comprehensive and detailed survey is therefore required to assess the current distribution of these species.
Emiliano Mori; Mattia Brambilla; Fausto Ramazzotti; Leonardo Ancillotto; Giuseppe Mazza; Danilo Russo; Giovanni Amori; Andrea Galimberti. In or Out of the Checklist? DNA Barcoding and Distribution Modelling Unveil a New Species of Crocidura Shrew for Italy. Diversity 2020, 12, 380 .
AMA StyleEmiliano Mori, Mattia Brambilla, Fausto Ramazzotti, Leonardo Ancillotto, Giuseppe Mazza, Danilo Russo, Giovanni Amori, Andrea Galimberti. In or Out of the Checklist? DNA Barcoding and Distribution Modelling Unveil a New Species of Crocidura Shrew for Italy. Diversity. 2020; 12 (10):380.
Chicago/Turabian StyleEmiliano Mori; Mattia Brambilla; Fausto Ramazzotti; Leonardo Ancillotto; Giuseppe Mazza; Danilo Russo; Giovanni Amori; Andrea Galimberti. 2020. "In or Out of the Checklist? DNA Barcoding and Distribution Modelling Unveil a New Species of Crocidura Shrew for Italy." Diversity 12, no. 10: 380.
Analysis of mitochondrial DNA from reed warblers sampled in Italy reveals that they are most similar to the nominate race of European Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus scirpaceus. To fill gaps in our knowledge of the distribution of European/African Reed Warblers Acrocephalus scirpaceus/baeticatus in the Mediterranean region through genetic analysis of populations from the key biogeographic areas of Sicily, Sardinia and mainland Italy. We assessed the genetic placement of Italian reed warbler populations within a comprehensive dataset of this species complex, by sampling these birds from principal peninsular and insular breeding populations (for a total of 17 samples) and by comparing their mitochondrial cyt b sequences with those available in GenBank-NCBI. The final dataset included 171 cyt b sequences (763 base pair long). The analysis showed samples from Italy had a high similarity with the European Reed Warbler A. s. scirpaceus subspecies. This fills an important information gap in the phylogeography of the group. The genetic cohesion shown between Italian and other European populations may denote a structuring in at least three distinct refugia in the Western Palearctic: Iberia for A. baeticatus ambiguus, the Caucasus Mountains for A. s. fuscus, and both Italy and the Balkans for A. s. scirpaceus.
Luca Ilahiane; Giovanni Boano; Marco Pavia; Irene Pellegrino; Marcello Grussu; Gary Voelker; Andrea Galimberti. Completing the genetic puzzle of the reed warbler complex: insights from Italy. Bird Study 2020, 67, 440 -447.
AMA StyleLuca Ilahiane, Giovanni Boano, Marco Pavia, Irene Pellegrino, Marcello Grussu, Gary Voelker, Andrea Galimberti. Completing the genetic puzzle of the reed warbler complex: insights from Italy. Bird Study. 2020; 67 (4):440-447.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLuca Ilahiane; Giovanni Boano; Marco Pavia; Irene Pellegrino; Marcello Grussu; Gary Voelker; Andrea Galimberti. 2020. "Completing the genetic puzzle of the reed warbler complex: insights from Italy." Bird Study 67, no. 4: 440-447.
Giacomo Assandri; Gaia Bazzi; Davide Maggioni; Andrea Galimberti; Bernd Kunz. Distribution, autecology, genetic characterization, and conservation of the Western Mediterranean endemic dragonfly Orthetrum nitidinerve (Selys, 1841): insights from Italy. International Journal of Odonatology 2020, 23, 405 -422.
AMA StyleGiacomo Assandri, Gaia Bazzi, Davide Maggioni, Andrea Galimberti, Bernd Kunz. Distribution, autecology, genetic characterization, and conservation of the Western Mediterranean endemic dragonfly Orthetrum nitidinerve (Selys, 1841): insights from Italy. International Journal of Odonatology. 2020; 23 (4):405-422.
Chicago/Turabian StyleGiacomo Assandri; Gaia Bazzi; Davide Maggioni; Andrea Galimberti; Bernd Kunz. 2020. "Distribution, autecology, genetic characterization, and conservation of the Western Mediterranean endemic dragonfly Orthetrum nitidinerve (Selys, 1841): insights from Italy." International Journal of Odonatology 23, no. 4: 405-422.
The Odonata are considered among the most endangered freshwater faunal taxa. Their DNA‐based monitoring relies on validated reference datasets that are often lacking or do not cover important biogeographical centres of diversification. This study presents the results of a DNA barcoding campaign on Odonata, based on the standard 658 bp 5’ end region of the mitochondrial COI gene, involving the collection of 812 specimens (409 of which barcoded) from peninsular Italy and its main islands (328 localities), belonging to all the 88 species (31 Zygoptera and 57 Anisoptera) known from the country. Additional BOLD and GenBank data from Holarctic samples expanded the dataset to 1294 DNA barcodes. A multi‐approach species delimitation analysis involving two distance (OT and ABGD) and four tree‐based (PTP, MPTP, GMYC, bGMYC) methods were used to explore these data. Of the 88 investigated morphospecies, 75 (85%) unequivocally corresponded to distinct Molecular Operational Units, whereas the remaining ones were classified as ‘warnings’ (i.e., showing a mismatch between morphospecies assignment and DNA‐based species delimitation). These results are in contrast with other DNA barcoding studies on Odonata showing up to 95% of identification success. The species causing warnings were grouped in three categories depending on if they showed low, high, or mixed genetic divergence patterns. The analysis of haplotype networks revealed unexpected intraspecific complexity at the Italian, Palearctic, and Holarctic scale, possibly indicating the occurrence of cryptic species. Overall, this study provides new insights into the taxonomy of odonates and a valuable basis for future DNA and eDNA‐based monitoring studies.
Andrea Galimberti; Giacomo Assandri; Davide Maggioni; Fausto Ramazzotti; Daniele Baroni; Gaia Bazzi; Ivan Chiandetti; Andrea Corso; Vincenzo Ferri; Mirko Galuppi; Luca Ilahiane; Gianandrea La Porta; Lorenzo Laddaga; Federico Landi; Fabio Mastropasqua; Samuele Ramellini; Roberto Santinelli; Giovanni Soldato; Salvatore Surdo; Maurizio Casiraghi. Italian odonates in the Pandora's box: A comprehensive DNA barcoding inventory shows taxonomic warnings at the Holarctic scale. Molecular Ecology Resources 2020, 21, 183 -200.
AMA StyleAndrea Galimberti, Giacomo Assandri, Davide Maggioni, Fausto Ramazzotti, Daniele Baroni, Gaia Bazzi, Ivan Chiandetti, Andrea Corso, Vincenzo Ferri, Mirko Galuppi, Luca Ilahiane, Gianandrea La Porta, Lorenzo Laddaga, Federico Landi, Fabio Mastropasqua, Samuele Ramellini, Roberto Santinelli, Giovanni Soldato, Salvatore Surdo, Maurizio Casiraghi. Italian odonates in the Pandora's box: A comprehensive DNA barcoding inventory shows taxonomic warnings at the Holarctic scale. Molecular Ecology Resources. 2020; 21 (1):183-200.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAndrea Galimberti; Giacomo Assandri; Davide Maggioni; Fausto Ramazzotti; Daniele Baroni; Gaia Bazzi; Ivan Chiandetti; Andrea Corso; Vincenzo Ferri; Mirko Galuppi; Luca Ilahiane; Gianandrea La Porta; Lorenzo Laddaga; Federico Landi; Fabio Mastropasqua; Samuele Ramellini; Roberto Santinelli; Giovanni Soldato; Salvatore Surdo; Maurizio Casiraghi. 2020. "Italian odonates in the Pandora's box: A comprehensive DNA barcoding inventory shows taxonomic warnings at the Holarctic scale." Molecular Ecology Resources 21, no. 1: 183-200.
Floral deception has been observed in several genera in angiosperms, but is most common in the Orchidaceae. Pollination mechanisms in food deceptive plants are often difficult to assess, as visitation frequency by insects requires numerous hours of field observations to ascertain. Here, for the first time, we describe in detail and validate a simple and effective method that extends previous approaches to increase the effectiveness of pollination studies of food deceptive orchids. We used an orchid of southwest Australia, Diuris brumalis (Orchidaceae), that visually mimics model plants belonging to the genus Daviesia (Faboideae). Arrays of orchid flowers were placed and moved systematically in proximity to model plants, resulting in rapid attraction of the pollinators of D. brumalis. We compared pollinaria removal (as an indicator of pollination success) in naturally growing orchids with pollinaria removal in arrays of orchid flowers in the same sites. We showed that the proposed method greatly enhances pollinator attractiveness in food deceptive systems with very low pollination rates, and we compared its efficiency with other similar methods. The approach can be used for observing pollinator behavioural patterns and confirming effective pollinators for food deceptive species with low insect visitation rates.
Daniela Scaccabarozzi; Andrea Galimberti; Kingsley W. Dixon; Salvatore Cozzolino. Rotating Arrays of Orchid Flowers: A Simple and Effective Method for Studying Pollination in Food Deceptive Plants. Diversity 2020, 12, 286 .
AMA StyleDaniela Scaccabarozzi, Andrea Galimberti, Kingsley W. Dixon, Salvatore Cozzolino. Rotating Arrays of Orchid Flowers: A Simple and Effective Method for Studying Pollination in Food Deceptive Plants. Diversity. 2020; 12 (8):286.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDaniela Scaccabarozzi; Andrea Galimberti; Kingsley W. Dixon; Salvatore Cozzolino. 2020. "Rotating Arrays of Orchid Flowers: A Simple and Effective Method for Studying Pollination in Food Deceptive Plants." Diversity 12, no. 8: 286.
Traceability, quality and safety of edible insects are important both for the producers and the consumers. Today, alongside the burst of edible insects in western countries, we are facing a gap of knowledge of insect microbiota associated with the microbial ecosystems of insect-based products. In this context, High-Throughput DNA Sequencing (HTS) techniques can give insight into the carryover of insect microbiota into final food products. In this study, we investigated the microbiota composition of insect-based commercial food products, applying HTS techniques coupled with bioinformatic analysis. The work aimed to analyse the microbiota variability of different categories of some insect-based commercial food products made of A. domesticus (house cricket), T. molitor (mealworm beetle), and A. diaperinus (lesser mealworm or litter beetle), including commercial raw materials and processed food items, purchased via e-commerce from different companies. Our data revealed that samples cluster per insect species based on microbiota profile and preliminary results suggested that a small number of prevalent bacteria formed a “core microbiota” characterizing the products depending on the insect. This microbial signature can be recognized despite the different food processing levels, rearing conditions and selling companies. Furthermore, differences between raw and processed food made of the same insect or similar product produced by different companies was found. These results support the application of HTS analysis for studying the composition of insect-based commercial food products in a wider perspective, for food traceability and food quality control.
Jessica Frigerio; Giulia Agostinetto; Andrea Galimberti; Fabrizio De Mattia; Massimo Labra; Antonia Bruno. Tasting the differences: Microbiota analysis of different insect-based novel food. Food Research International 2020, 137, 109426 .
AMA StyleJessica Frigerio, Giulia Agostinetto, Andrea Galimberti, Fabrizio De Mattia, Massimo Labra, Antonia Bruno. Tasting the differences: Microbiota analysis of different insect-based novel food. Food Research International. 2020; 137 ():109426.
Chicago/Turabian StyleJessica Frigerio; Giulia Agostinetto; Andrea Galimberti; Fabrizio De Mattia; Massimo Labra; Antonia Bruno. 2020. "Tasting the differences: Microbiota analysis of different insect-based novel food." Food Research International 137, no. : 109426.
Because of the high risk of going unnoticed, cryptic species represent a major challenge to biodiversity assessments, and this is particularly true for taxa that include many such species, for example, bats. Long‐eared bats from the genus Plecotus comprise numerous cryptic species occurring in the Mediterranean Region and present complex phylogenetic relationships and often unclear distributions, particularly at the edge of their known ranges and on islands. Here, we combine Species Distribution Models (SDMs), field surveys and molecular analyses to shed light on the presence of a cryptic long‐eared bat species from North Africa, Plecotus gaisleri, on the islands of the Sicily Channel, providing strong evidence that this species also occurs in Europe, at least on the islands of the Western Mediterranean Sea that act as a crossroad between the Old Continent and Africa. Species Distribution Models built using African records of P. gaisleri and projected to the Sicily Channel Islands showed that all these islands are potentially suitable for the species. Molecular identification of Plecotus captured on Pantelleria, and recent data from Malta and Gozo, confirmed the species' presence on two of the islands in question. Besides confirming that P. gaisleri occurs on Pantelleria, haplotype network reconstructions highlighted moderate structuring between insular and continental populations of this species. Our results remark the role of Italy as a bat diversity hotspot in the Mediterranean and also highlight the need to include P. gaisleri in European faunal checklists and conservation directives, confirming the usefulness of combining different approaches to explore the presence of cryptic species outside their known ranges—a fundamental step to informing conservation.
Leonardo Ancillotto; Luciano Bosso; Sonia Smeraldo; Emiliano Mori; Giuseppe Mazza; Matthias Herkt; Andrea Galimberti; Fausto Ramazzotti; Danilo Russo. An African bat in Europe, Plecotus gaisleri : Biogeographic and ecological insights from molecular taxonomy and Species Distribution Models. Ecology and Evolution 2020, 10, 5785 -5800.
AMA StyleLeonardo Ancillotto, Luciano Bosso, Sonia Smeraldo, Emiliano Mori, Giuseppe Mazza, Matthias Herkt, Andrea Galimberti, Fausto Ramazzotti, Danilo Russo. An African bat in Europe, Plecotus gaisleri : Biogeographic and ecological insights from molecular taxonomy and Species Distribution Models. Ecology and Evolution. 2020; 10 (12):5785-5800.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLeonardo Ancillotto; Luciano Bosso; Sonia Smeraldo; Emiliano Mori; Giuseppe Mazza; Matthias Herkt; Andrea Galimberti; Fausto Ramazzotti; Danilo Russo. 2020. "An African bat in Europe, Plecotus gaisleri : Biogeographic and ecological insights from molecular taxonomy and Species Distribution Models." Ecology and Evolution 10, no. 12: 5785-5800.
The Odonata are considered among the most endangered freshwater faunal taxa. Their DNA-based monitoring relies on validated reference datasets that are often lacking or do not cover important biogeographical centres of diversification. This study presents the results of a DNA barcoding campaign on Odonata, based on the standard 658 bp 5’ end region of the mitochondrial COI gene, involving the collection of 812 specimens (409 of which barcoded) from peninsular Italy and its main islands (328 localities), belonging to all the 88 species (31 Zygoptera and 57 Anisoptera) known from the country. Additional BOLD and GenBank data from Holarctic samples expanded the dataset to 1294 DNA barcodes. A multi-approach species delimitation analysis involving two distance (OT and ABGD) and four tree-based (PTP, MPTP, GMYC, bGMYC) methods were used to explore these data. Of the 88 investigated morphospecies, 75 (85%) unequivocally corresponded to distinct Molecular Operational Units, whereas the remaining ones were classified as ‘warnings’ (i.e., showing a mismatch between morphospecies assignment and DNA-based species delimitation). These results are in contrast with other DNA barcoding studies on Odonata showing up to 95% of identification success. The species causing warnings were grouped in three categories depending on if they showed low, high, or mixed genetic divergence patterns. The analysis of haplotype networks revealed unexpected intraspecific complexity at the Italian, Palearctic, and Holarctic scale, possibly indicating the occurrence of cryptic species. Overall, this study provides new insights into the taxonomy of odonates and a valuable basis for future DNA and eDNA-based monitoring studies.
Andrea Galimberti; Giacomo Assandri; Davide Maggioni; Fausto Ramazzotti; Daniele Baroni; Gaia Bazzi; Ivan Chiandetti; Andrea Corso; Vincenzo Ferri; Mirko Galuppi; Luca Ilahiane; Gianandrea La Porta; Lorenzo Laddaga; Federico Landi; Fabio Mastropasqua; Samuele Ramellini; Roberto Santinelli; Giovanni Soldato; Salvatore Surdo; Maurizio Casiraghi. Italian Odonates in the Pandora’s Box: A Comprehensive DNA Barcoding Inventory Shows Taxonomic Warnings at the Holarctic Scale. 2020, 1 .
AMA StyleAndrea Galimberti, Giacomo Assandri, Davide Maggioni, Fausto Ramazzotti, Daniele Baroni, Gaia Bazzi, Ivan Chiandetti, Andrea Corso, Vincenzo Ferri, Mirko Galuppi, Luca Ilahiane, Gianandrea La Porta, Lorenzo Laddaga, Federico Landi, Fabio Mastropasqua, Samuele Ramellini, Roberto Santinelli, Giovanni Soldato, Salvatore Surdo, Maurizio Casiraghi. Italian Odonates in the Pandora’s Box: A Comprehensive DNA Barcoding Inventory Shows Taxonomic Warnings at the Holarctic Scale. . 2020; ():1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAndrea Galimberti; Giacomo Assandri; Davide Maggioni; Fausto Ramazzotti; Daniele Baroni; Gaia Bazzi; Ivan Chiandetti; Andrea Corso; Vincenzo Ferri; Mirko Galuppi; Luca Ilahiane; Gianandrea La Porta; Lorenzo Laddaga; Federico Landi; Fabio Mastropasqua; Samuele Ramellini; Roberto Santinelli; Giovanni Soldato; Salvatore Surdo; Maurizio Casiraghi. 2020. "Italian Odonates in the Pandora’s Box: A Comprehensive DNA Barcoding Inventory Shows Taxonomic Warnings at the Holarctic Scale." , no. : 1.
DNA barcoding is well-known to support morphological species identification and it can be helpful for unveiling unexpected populations divergence patterns, especially in the context of the impacts on species posed by global change. In this note, we provided the first Italian record of the alpine mining bee Andrena allosa Warncke, 1975, confirmed with DNA barcoding. In addition, genetic identification of a specimen of Andrena praecox (Scopoli 1753) from western Italy pointed to an unexpected intraspecific genetic structuring at COI DNA barcoding region, with sequences from the Italian and the western sector of its global distribution differing 2.22% (p-dist) from populations of the eastern sector. Given the relevance of these records and of the genetic identity of bee populations from Italy, we argue that implementing molecular surveys in bee monitoring would surely contribute to the conservation of these important pollinators.
Maurizio Cornalba; Paolo Biella; Andrea Galimberti. DNA barcoding unveils the first record of Andrena allosa for Italy and unexpected genetic diversity in Andrena praecox (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae). Fragmenta Entomologica 2020, 52, 71 -75.
AMA StyleMaurizio Cornalba, Paolo Biella, Andrea Galimberti. DNA barcoding unveils the first record of Andrena allosa for Italy and unexpected genetic diversity in Andrena praecox (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae). Fragmenta Entomologica. 2020; 52 (1):71-75.
Chicago/Turabian StyleMaurizio Cornalba; Paolo Biella; Andrea Galimberti. 2020. "DNA barcoding unveils the first record of Andrena allosa for Italy and unexpected genetic diversity in Andrena praecox (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae)." Fragmenta Entomologica 52, no. 1: 71-75.
Climate change and human activities are impacting species distribution, and thus, tracking species movements is a key aspect for their conservation and for understanding their biology. Among the bumblebees that are changing distribution, one of the most striking cases of a fast and natural range expansion is the eastern Mediterranean Bombus haematurus. Here we report the first Italian records of this species, with observations from the N-E Italy at a distance of 332 Km from the edge of the historical distribution. These are the westernmost known occurrences of this species and they are not far from a large series of records in several Central European countries of recent colonization. Here, we also obtained and made publicly available the reference COI barcode sequence of Bombus haematurus and shown that is significantly different from other similar species at this genetic marker. Coupling morphology, field-data and genetic identity should greatly improve the efficiency of tracking species movements and therefore also their knowledge in both recently colonized and historical areas.
Paolo Biella; Andrea Galimberti. The spread of Bombus haematurus in Italy and its first DNA barcode reference sequence. Fragmenta Entomologica 2020, 52, 67 -70.
AMA StylePaolo Biella, Andrea Galimberti. The spread of Bombus haematurus in Italy and its first DNA barcode reference sequence. Fragmenta Entomologica. 2020; 52 (1):67-70.
Chicago/Turabian StylePaolo Biella; Andrea Galimberti. 2020. "The spread of Bombus haematurus in Italy and its first DNA barcode reference sequence." Fragmenta Entomologica 52, no. 1: 67-70.
Metabarcoding studies using environmental DNA (eDNA) and high‐throughput sequencing (HTS) are rapidly becoming an important tool for assessing and monitoring marine biodiversity, detecting invasive species, and supporting basic ecological research. Several barcode loci targeting teleost fish and elasmobranchs have previously been developed, but to date primer sets focusing on other marine megafauna, such as marine mammals, have received less attention. Similarly, there have been few attempts to identify potentially “universal” barcode loci which may be informative across multiple marine vertebrate orders. Here we describe the design and validation of two new sets of primers targeting hypervariable regions of the vertebrate mitochondrial 12S and 16S rRNA genes, which have conserved priming sites across virtually all cetaceans, pinnipeds, elasmobranchs, boney fish, sea turtles, and birds, and amplify fragments with consistently high levels of taxonomically diagnostic sequence variation. “In silico” validation using the OBITOOLS software showed our new barcode loci outperformed most existing vertebrate barcode loci for taxon detection and resolution. We also evaluated sequence diversity and taxonomic resolution of the new barcode loci in 680 complete marine mammal mitochondrial genomes demonstrating that they are effective at resolving amplicons for most taxa to the species level. Finally, we evaluated the performance of the primer sets with eDNA samples from aquarium communities with known species composition. These new primers will potentially allow surveys of complete marine vertebrate communities in single HTS metabarcoding assessments, simplifying workflows, reducing costs, and increasing accessibility to a wider range of investigators.
Elena Valsecchi; Jonas Bylemans; Simon J. Goodman; Roberto Lombardi; Ian Carr; Laura Castellano; Andrea Galimberti; Paolo Galli. Novel universal primers for metabarcoding environmental DNA surveys of marine mammals and other marine vertebrates. Environmental DNA 2020, 2, 460 -476.
AMA StyleElena Valsecchi, Jonas Bylemans, Simon J. Goodman, Roberto Lombardi, Ian Carr, Laura Castellano, Andrea Galimberti, Paolo Galli. Novel universal primers for metabarcoding environmental DNA surveys of marine mammals and other marine vertebrates. Environmental DNA. 2020; 2 (4):460-476.
Chicago/Turabian StyleElena Valsecchi; Jonas Bylemans; Simon J. Goodman; Roberto Lombardi; Ian Carr; Laura Castellano; Andrea Galimberti; Paolo Galli. 2020. "Novel universal primers for metabarcoding environmental DNA surveys of marine mammals and other marine vertebrates." Environmental DNA 2, no. 4: 460-476.
The need to develop experimental tools for a responsible research and innovation (RRI) framework is relevant for managing research agendas and policy making that seriously take into account the complex conditions of innovation development (linked to multidisciplinarity and interaction processes) between the researchers and their fieldwork activities. The adoption of an RRI framework is even more important for multidisciplinary and complex issues, such as the agri-food system. In this context, the SASS (Sustainable Agri-food Systems for Sustainable Development (SASS) project represents a good example for verifying the application of the RRI strategy in a varied research group committed to the development of sustainable agri-food systems in Sub-Saharan Africa. The project, which involves more than 50 researchers from different fields of knowledge and theoretical backgrounds, showed the importance of the processes of reflection, re-driving, and convergence in the definition of research objectives and strategies. This process started by experimenting with new dedicated RRI tools in order to allow interactions between the researchers, including exchanging their experience in data collection and theoretical reflection development. With respect to this analysis, it was interesting to analyze how the RRI tools and strategies have been activated between researchers and different stakeholders, generating reflections capable of re-adapting the results towards shared and accessible innovation for the extended society. Following the discussion based on the description of the SASS-RRI agenda tools and following an internal verification given from an RRI-based web survey, this contribution provides new insights, in terms of tools and strategies, to promote and refine RRI approaches. This work underlines how RRI methods have promoted internal and external interactions to connect the research objectives towards a model of open innovation.
Luca Tricarico; Andrea Galimberti; Ausilia Campanaro; Chiara Magoni; Massimo Labra. Experimenting with RRI tools to Drive Sustainable Agri-Food Research: The SASS Case Study from Sub-Saharan Africa. Sustainability 2020, 12, 827 .
AMA StyleLuca Tricarico, Andrea Galimberti, Ausilia Campanaro, Chiara Magoni, Massimo Labra. Experimenting with RRI tools to Drive Sustainable Agri-Food Research: The SASS Case Study from Sub-Saharan Africa. Sustainability. 2020; 12 (3):827.
Chicago/Turabian StyleLuca Tricarico; Andrea Galimberti; Ausilia Campanaro; Chiara Magoni; Massimo Labra. 2020. "Experimenting with RRI tools to Drive Sustainable Agri-Food Research: The SASS Case Study from Sub-Saharan Africa." Sustainability 12, no. 3: 827.