Papers by Giorgio Bavestrello
Periodico di …, 2004
ABSTRACT. The negative effects of quartz on biological systems are well known, from a clinical ... more ABSTRACT. The negative effects of quartz on biological systems are well known, from a clinical point of view, since the XVIII century, anyway the influence of quartz on the marine benthic organisms and communities is underestimated. Interactions between organisms and minerals ( ...
Istituto Lombardo - Accademia di Scienze e Lettere - Rendiconti di Scienze, Apr 17, 2020
Adunanza del 25 maggio 2017) SUNTO.-Le interazioni biotiche dirette e indirette che guidano la st... more Adunanza del 25 maggio 2017) SUNTO.-Le interazioni biotiche dirette e indirette che guidano la struttura della comunità possono essere positive, aumentando la fitness di entrambi i partner o negative, aumentando l'idoneità di uno solo dei partner. L'interazione tra i partner può produrre un'integrazione tra loro, dando così origine a un'associazione definita come simbiosi, con parassitismo e mutualismo ai due estremi di un continuum simbiotico. In passato, le interazioni competitive sono state considerate più diffuse all'interno delle comunità e responsabili della loro struttura. Al contrario, le interazioni cooperative sono state principalmente avvicinate con un approccio descrittivo spesso considerate al livello di curiosità biologiche. Sia il parassitismo che il mutualismo possono evolversi da un'interazione commensale a seconda del contesto ecologico e avere un ruolo diverso nel promuovere l'evoluzione. A sua volta, il commensalismo può evolversi dall'epibiosi, un fenomeno diffuso nell'ambiente bentonico marino in cui l'elevata competizione promuove la sovra-crescita degli organismi. Pertanto l'epibiosi è il punto di partenza per l'evoluzione di diversi tipi di interazioni che portano a un ulteriore aumento della biodiversità. *** ABSTRACT.-Direct and indirect biotic interactions driving community structure, can be positive, increasing the fitness of both partners, or negative, increasing the fitness of only one of the participant to the interaction. Moreover, both partners may produce an integration among them, thus giving rise to an association defined as symbiosis, with parasitism and mutualism as the two extremes of a symbiotic continuum. In the past, negative interactions have been considered more widespread within communities and responsible for most of their structures. By contrast, cooperative interactions have
Diversity
Among Mediterranean habitat-forming alcyonaceans, the sea fan Eunicella verrucosa is known to for... more Among Mediterranean habitat-forming alcyonaceans, the sea fan Eunicella verrucosa is known to form dense forests at circalittoral depths, providing seascape complexity and sustaining a rich associated fauna. Its occurrence in the Tavolara–Punta Coda Cavallo Marine Protected Area (NE Sardinia) has never been deeply investigated despite this area being well known from a biocoenotic point of view. This study provides new information on the size of the colonies settled between 35 and 59 m depth on granitic outcrops and represents a contribution to highlighting the hotspot of megabenthic diversity enclosed in the protected area. The presence of 100 colonies was assessed by photographic samplings performed between 2015 and 2020, in a small area characterized by peculiar ecological conditions. The morphometric descriptions and age estimation showed a persistently isolated population probably derived from a stochastic event of settling of larvae presumably coming from the Tuscany Archipelag...
In Antarctic ecosystem siliceous sponges play a pivotal role at different levels. They are one of... more In Antarctic ecosystem siliceous sponges play a pivotal role at different levels. They are one of the main components of the benthic biota showing species diversity and biomass levels comparable with those of tropical habitats.
Rivista di biologia, 2000
Frontiers in Marine Science, 2021
Chilean Patagonia hosts one of the extensive fjord systems in the world, spanning more than 1,600... more Chilean Patagonia hosts one of the extensive fjord systems in the world, spanning more than 1,600 km between 41 and 55°S, and with a complex geomorphology and hydrography that supports rich and unique assemblages of marine fauna. The biodiversity of benthic organisms is possibly further enhanced by the geographic position of the region that extends far south into subantarctic waters. However, we currently lack an exhaustive picture of the zonation and ecological functioning of the benthic communities within Chilean fjords. The present study provides a detailed examination of the hard substrata megabenthic communities inhabiting the Puyuhuapi and Jacaf fjord system, in the Aysén Region of Chile. Fifty-nine stations scattered along these fjords were explored through SCUBA diving surveys, at depths between 5 and 30 m, and 16 stations were characterized in terms of benthic cover and diversity using replicated underwater photography. Ten hard bottom megabenthic communities were identifie...
IWC Journal of Cetacean Research and Management, 2020
In the Mediterranean, at the end of the 19thcentury, dolphins were identified as pest species for... more In the Mediterranean, at the end of the 19thcentury, dolphins were identified as pest species for their disruptive actions during some fishing phases. Numerous fishermen organizations asked for permission to hunt dolphins, and the killing of a dolphin was often institutionally favoured by several national laws. We provide a picture of the systematic culling campaigns for dolphins in Italy up to the absolute prohibition of capture, analysing the governmental measures implemented against dolphins, the official number of individuals killed and their value (in Italian liras) in 11 Italian Maritime Compartments from 1927 to 1937. Officially, over 6,700 dolphins were killed in 10 years along the Italian coast and rewards distributed for about 360,160 Italian liras, which, at the current exchange rate, correspond to 355,000 euros, for a contribute of about 52 euros for each dolphin. Considering that the meat was consumed both at the family level or sold, mainly as salted and dried meat, th...
Marine Drugs, 2020
The development of novel and effective methods for the isolation of chitin, which remains one of ... more The development of novel and effective methods for the isolation of chitin, which remains one of the fundamental aminopolysaccharides within skeletal structures of diverse marine invertebrates, is still relevant. In contrast to numerous studies on chitin extraction from crustaceans, mollusks and sponges, there are only a few reports concerning its isolation from corals, and especially black corals (Antipatharia). In this work, we report the stepwise isolation and identification of chitin from Cirrhipathes sp. (Antipatharia, Antipathidae) for the first time. The proposed method, aiming at the extraction of the chitinous scaffold from the skeleton of black coral species, combined a well-known chemical treatment with in situ electrolysis, using a concentrated Na2SO4 aqueous solution as the electrolyte. This novel method allows the isolation of α-chitin in the form of a microporous membrane-like material. Moreover, the extracted chitinous scaffold, with a well-preserved, unique pore dis...
Polar Biology, 2002
The taxonomy of the genus Eudendrium was critically reviewed by Picard (in 1951), who introduced ... more The taxonomy of the genus Eudendrium was critically reviewed by Picard (in 1951), who introduced the type and disposition of the nematocysts as the most important character for species identification. Until now, all descriptions of Antarctic Eudendrium lacked an analysis of the cnidome, and the poor state of preservation of the specimens deposited in the museums often makes the description of this character impossible. Moreover, the gonophores were only known for a few species. This lack of data makes the taxonomic position of the greater part of Antarctic Eudendrium uncertain. In this paper, we report on three Antarctic species of the genus Eudendrium: Eudendrium scotti sp. nov. and E. generale von Lendenfeld, recorded from the material collected during the XV Italian Antarctic Expedition (1999-2000) at Terra Nova Bay, Ross Sea, and E. jaederholmi sp. nov., derived during the examination of material deposited at the Swedish Museum, classified as E. rameum by Ja¨derholm in 1905.
Journal of Experimental Biology, 2019
Tissue repair is an adaptive and widespread metazoan response. It is characterised by different c... more Tissue repair is an adaptive and widespread metazoan response. It is characterised by different cellular mechanisms and complex signalling networks that involve numerous growth factors and cytokines. In higher animals, transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) signalling plays a fundamental role in wound healing. In order to evaluate the involvement of TGF superfamily members in lower invertebrate tissue regeneration, sequences for putative TGF ligands and receptors were isolated from the transcriptome of the marine sponge Chondrosia reniformis. We identified seven transcripts that coded for TGF superfamily ligands and three for TGF superfamily receptors. Phylogenetically, C. reniformis TGF ligands were not grouped into any TGF superfamily clades and thus presumably evolved independently, whereas the TGF receptors clustered in the Type I receptor group. We performed gene expression profiling of these transcripts in sponge regenerating tissue explants. Data showed that three ligands (TGF1...
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 2003
The micro-erosion patterns of some sponge species belonging to the boring genera Cliona and Aka h... more The micro-erosion patterns of some sponge species belonging to the boring genera Cliona and Aka have been compared. The scanning electron microscope analysis of the excavations of species of the two genera sharing the same substratum clearly indicates that the scars produced on the walls of the boring chambers are different. The pits of Cliona are regular, almost circular and smooth; those of Aka are more irregular and show a multi-layered concentric pattern. These differences constitute a successful means of distinguishing the bio-erosion agents both in recent and in fossil substrata.
Advances in marine biology, 2018
Marine bioconstructions are biodiversity-rich, three-dimensional biogenic structures, regulating ... more Marine bioconstructions are biodiversity-rich, three-dimensional biogenic structures, regulating key ecological functions of benthic ecosystems worldwide. Tropical coral reefs are outstanding for their beauty, diversity and complexity, but analogous types of bioconstructions are also present in temperate seas. The main bioconstructions in the Mediterranean Sea are represented by coralligenous formations, vermetid reefs, deep-sea cold-water corals, Lithophyllum byssoides trottoirs, coral banks formed by the shallow-water corals Cladocora caespitosa or Astroides calycularis, and sabellariid or serpulid worm reefs. Bioconstructions change the morphological and chemicophysical features of primary substrates and create new habitats for a large variety of organisms, playing pivotal roles in ecosystem functioning. In spite of their importance, Mediterranean bioconstructions have not received the same attention that tropical coral reefs have, and the knowledge of their biology, ecology and ...
Marine pollution bulletin, 2018
The availability of marine habitats maps remains limited due to difficulty and cost of working at... more The availability of marine habitats maps remains limited due to difficulty and cost of working at sea. Reduced light penetration in the water hampers the use of optical imagery, and acoustic methods require extensive sea-truth activities. Predictive spatial modelling may offer an alternative to produce benthic habitat maps based on complete acoustic coverage of the seafloor together with a comparatively low number of sea truths. This approach was applied to the coralligenous reefs of the Marine Protected Area of Tavolara - Punta Coda Cavallo (NE Sardinia, Italy). Fuzzy clustering, applied to a set of observations made by scuba diving and used as sea truth, allowed recognising five coralligenous habitats, all but one existing within EUNIS (European Nature Information System) types. Variable importance plots showed that the distribution of habitats was driven by distance from coast, depth, and lithotype, and allowed mapping their distribution over the MPA. Congruence between observed ...
Marine Animal Forests, 2017
Hydroids, one of the dominant components of the zoobenthic communities, share comparable growth p... more Hydroids, one of the dominant components of the zoobenthic communities, share comparable growth patterns with higher plants because of their modular body organization, high potential of asexual reproduction, and phenotypic plasticity. These features, together with the ability to enter dormancy to overcome unfavorable conditions, make hydroids successful organisms adaptable to a wide range of environmental scenarios. Depending on their wide range of shapes and sizes, hydroids form three-dimensional forests at different dimensional scales, establishing both trophic and non-trophic relationships with several other organisms, from virus to vertebrates.
Http Dx Doi Org 10 1080 11250009909356270, Jan 28, 2009
Heat stress-activated, calcium-dependent nitric oxide synthase in sponges. Giovine M, Pozzolini M, Favre A, Bavestrello G, Cerrano C, Ottaviani F, Chiarantini L, Cerasi A, Cangiotti M, Zocchi E, Scarfì S, Sarà M, Benatti U. Nitric Oxide. 2001;5(5):427-31. PMID:11587557[PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
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Papers by Giorgio Bavestrello