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Executive summary Handbooks for monitoring species and habitats of Community interest (Council Directive 92/43/EEC) in Italy: animal species The Habitats Directive requires Member States to implement surveillance of the conservation status of habitats and species of Community Interest. The aim of this handbook is to outline the methodological instruments for implementing a monitoring program of the Italian animal species, as required by art. 17, with particular reference to data collection at site level. The European guidelines require the assessments to be carried out by compiling information on specific parameters at biogeographical scale. For each animal species, four parameters have to be considered and combined to obtain an overall assessment of conservation status for each biogeographical region at national level: "Range" (based on actual distribution), "Population", “Habitat for the species” and "Future Prospects". Monitoring programs need to collect data dealing with the first three parameters at a local level. In this handbook, a monitoring form is presented for each animal taxon (species, subspecies or species group) of Community interest occurring in Italian terrestrial and inland water environments. Altogether, the volume contains 151 forms, referring to 215 terrestrial and inland water animal taxa. Further species, which will be reported in the IV National Report under a common name due to difficulties in recognizing them in the field or their doubtful status, are mentioned and discussed as well. Monitoring methods have been defined with the support of five national Scientific Societies, and reviewed by personnel of the Italian Regions and Autonomous Provinces. The monitoring forms thus report the most effective available techniques and provide an operational guidance for data collection and monitoring scheduling with the aim of standardizing data collection efforts across Italy. A standardized basis of information is indeed important for assembling data at national level and producing comparable assessments on the conservation status and future prospects of each animal taxon.

The regulation of insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 3 (IGFBP3) gene expression is complex, because it can be induced by agents that both stimulate and inhibit the proliferation. The principal aim of this study was to investigate whether p73, a member of the p53 gene family, has a role in the regulation of the IGFBP3 expression and whether this regulation occurs in a context of cell survival or death. We demonstrate that IGFBP3 is a direct TAp73? (the p73 isoform that contains the trans-activation domain) target gene and activates the expression of IGFBP3 in actively proliferating cells. As IGFBP3 plays a key role in regulating the growth hormone/insulin-like growth factor type 1 (GH/IGF1) axis, whose alterations in gene expression appear to have a role in the growth failure of children born small for gestational age (SGA), we measured the mRNA expression levels of p73 and IGFBP3 in a group of SGA children. We found that mRNA expression levels of p73 and IGFBP3 are significantly lower in SGA children compared with controls and, in particular, p73 mRNA expression is significantly lower in SGA children with respect to height. Our results shed light on the intricate GH/IGF pathway, suggesting p73 as a good biomarker of the clinical risk for SGA children to remain short in adulthood.

The results of studies on the effect of beta-adrenergic blockade on respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) are discordant. In some studies in which an increased RSA was reported, central vagotonic activity has been proposed. The aim of this study was to verify whether chronic beta-adrenergic blockade is capable of increasing RSA, and therefore vagal outflow, and to analyze whether the mechanism of action is central or peripheral. Twenty normal subjects (mean age 28 +/- 2 years) were randomized to receive a hydrophilic (nadolol, N), a lipophilic (metoprolol, M) beta-blocker and placebo (PL). After 1 week of therapy a spectral analysis was made of the variability in heart rate and systolic blood pressure (SBP) while they controlled their breathing at 16 breaths/min for a period of 5 min. The high frequency component was calculated for the RR interval (HF-RR, RSA measure) and SBP (HF-SBP), and the squared coherence (K2) and phase functions (phi HF) were assessed between RR and SBP fluctuations in the respiratory band (RR-SBP); a negative phi HF means that RR changes follow SBP changes. The alpha HF (an index of the baroreflex gain) was also calculated. Both beta-blockers increased the mean RR interval (PL 808 +/- 21, N 1054 +/- 30, M 1031 +/- 27 ms; p0.0001), HF-RR (PL 6.3 +/- 0.3, N 7.1 +/- 0.3, M 7.2 +/- 0.3 ln-ms2; p = 0.002) and alpha HF (PL 13.6 +/- 1.5, N 21.9 +/- 2.8, M 24.5 +/- 3.6 ms/mmHg; p0.002), and both modified phi HF (PL -0.23 +/- 0.05, N -0.02 +/- 0.05, M -0.03 +/- 0.04 s; p0.0001). No difference was found between N and M. Chronic beta-adrenergic blockade enhanced RSA and baroreflex gain and reduced the phase between the RR interval and SBP oscillations. Since no difference was found between the hydrophilic and the lipophilic beta-blockers, these changes seem to be due to a peripheral effect.

We investigated the effects of subdiastolic variations of the pressure inside the thigh cuffs on cardiovascular oscillations and arterial baroreflex sensitivity in humans.During 10 min of controlled breathing at low (0.1 Hz) and high (0.25 Hz) frequencies, 30 healthy subjects underwent variations of the pressure inside the thigh cuffs (from 0 to 40 mmHg) at 0.25 and 0.1 Hz respectively; the periods of controlled breathing without cuff pressure modulation were used as a control. The frequency responses of cardiovascular signals were assessed using spectral analysis, and baroreflex sensitivity by the sequence method.Cuff pressure modulation at 0.25 Hz did not affect the RR interval, arterial pressure, or baroreflex sensitivity; at 0.1 Hz it did not change the RR interval and arterial pressure, but engaged (0.76 +/- 0.2 of coherence) and increased the low frequency oscillations of the RR interval (from 5.6 +/- 1 to 6.1 +/- 0.9 ln ms2, p0.05) and improved baroreflex sensitivity by 25% (from 14.2 +/- 9 to 17.7 +/- 10 ms/mmHg, p0.01).Subdiastolic thigh cuff pressure modulation at 0.1 Hz improved the low frequency oscillations of heart rate and baroreflex sensitivity. This approach represents a new and simple non-pharmacological strategy for acutely improving baroreflex sensitivity in humans.

Additional data on the distribution of the genus Salamandrina in the Apulia region (southern Italy) are provided. Based on fieldwork carried out from May to August 2011 in two new localities, Volturara Appula (Foggia province) and Spinazzola (Barletta province), the presence of Salamandrina species was recorded. Results from the genetic analyses of the 12S rRNA gene fragment from six individuals demonstrated that S. perspicillata occurs in Volturara Appula while S. terdigitata in the Spinazzola locality. The latter species is reported for the first time for the Apulia region. These new distribution data represent considerable range extensions for the Salamandrina species, indicating that more surveys are needed to complement the existing knowledge on their distribution as well as of the herpetofauna from the Apulia region. The conservation implications of our findings are also discussed., Acta Herpetologica, Vol 6 No 2 (2011)

Traditionally, analyses of relationships between amphibians and habitat focused on breeding environments (i.e., pond features) more than on the features of the surrounding environment. Nevertheless, for most amphibians the terrestrial phase is longer than the aquatic phase, and consequently landscape features (i.e., habitat mosaics) may have an important role for modelling amphibian distribution. There were different aims in this analysis. Firstly, we compared the effectiveness of the information provided by land cover/use (LC/LU) classes and habitat classes defined according to a new habitat taxonomy named General Habitat Category (GHC), which is based on the concept of biological forms of dominant vegetation and class naturalness. The GHC map used was obtained from a pre-existing validated LC/LU map, by integrating spectral and spatial measurements from very high resolution Earth observation data according to ecological expert rules involving concepts related to spatial and temporal relationships among LC/LU and habitat classes. Then, we investigated the importance for amphibians of the landscape surrounding ponds within the Italian Alta Murgia National Park. The work assessed whether LC/LU classes in pond surrounds are important for the presence/absence of amphibians in this area, and identified which classes are more important for amphibians. The results obtained can provide useful indications to management strategies aiming at the conservation of amphibians within the study area. An information-theoretic approach was adopted to assess whether GHC maps allow to improve the performance of species distribution models. We used the Akaike's Information Criterion (AICc) to compare the effectiveness of GHC categories versus LC/LU categories in explaining the presence/absence of pool frogs. AICc weights suggest that GHC categories can better explain the distribution of frogs, compared to LC/LU classes.

Nel presente lavoro abbiamo esaminato la distribuzione e la densità per quadrante degli Anfibi della Campania. Gli Anfibi più comuni nella regione sono Pelophylax sp., Bufo bufo, Rana italica e Lissotriton italicus, rinvenuti in più del 30% dei quadrati UTM 10x10 km investigati. L’Anfibio più raro è Lissotriton vulgaris che è confinato all’area nordoccidentale della regione. Degna di nota è la presenza, anche in sintopia, di Salamandrina perspicillata e Salamandrina terdigitata, al momento unico caso finora noto in Italia.

Nel presente contributo sono riportati i risultati di un censimento degli anfibi presenti in due ravvicinate aree della foresta amazzonica, situate a circa 15 km da Iquitos (Perù) e caratterizzate da un differente impatto antropico. La ricerca in campo è stata condotta tra settembre e dicembre del 2010. Nelle due aree di studio sono state complessivamente censite 23 specie di anfibi tutte appartenenti all’ordine degli Anuri. Di queste, 21 sono state censite nell’area a minor impatto antropico (area A), 6 nell’area a maggior impatto (area B); 4 in entrambe le aree. La famiglia più rappresentata è stata quella degli Ilidi (12 specie) mentre Ranitomeya reticulata (Dendrobatidae) è stata la specie più comune. Dal rinvenimento di alcune specie considerate caratteristiche di aree intatte, come Hypsiboas microderma e Osteocephalus planiceps, è possibile concludere che l’area A presenta ancora una forte naturalità nonostante la grande vicinanza a zone a forte pressione antropica.

Anguis fragilis (Squamata: Anguidae). Sono stati studiati vari individui di tre popolazioni italiane di Anguis fragilis mediante metodi di colorazione standard dei cromosomi. Tutti gli individui studiati mostrano un cariotipo di 2n=44 elementi (20 macro- e 24 microcromosomi). Tre coppie di macrocromosomi (1, 4 e 5) sono metacentrici, la decima coppia è formata da cromosomi subtelocentrici, mentre tutti i rimanenti macrocromosomi sono telocentrici. I risultati ottenuti indicano che le popolazioni italiane di orbettino sono cariologicamente uniformi, ma differiscono dalle popolazioni centro-europee, che hanno cariotipi in cui gli elementi della decima coppia sono telocentrici.

Abbiamo esaminato cinque articolazioni craniche (quadrato-articolare, quadrato-pterigoide, epipterigoide-pterigoide, basisfenoide-pterigoide e fronto-parietale) in Tarentola mauritanica e Podarcis siculus mediante il metodo della doppia colorazione Alcian blu – Alizarina rossa e attraverso sezioni istologiche. In entrambe le specie quadrato-articolare, epipterigoide-pterigoide e basisfenoide-pterigoide sono risultate tipiche articolazioni sinoviali mentre frontoparietale e quadrato-pterigoide sono risultate sindesmosi. Inoltre, la sutura frontoparietale è lineare in T. mauritanica ma altamente interdigitata in P. siculus. Un’attenta integrazione fra l’anatomia macroscopica e l’analisi istologica è indispensabile per interpretare correttamente la struttura e la funzione delle articolazioni craniali nei differenti taxa di Vertebrati.

The present immunohistochemical study reports the distribution of the glia in the brain of the skink Chalcides chalcides by revelation of the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), specific marker of the glial cells. In adult skink, GFAP immunopositive structures are abundant and mainly represented by fibers of different length and size. Their number is lower in the telencephalon and increases in other regions such as in the cerebellum, in the diencephalon and in the medulla oblungata. Radial glia is the more abundant glial type. It is much expressed in the cerebellum and around the third ventricle, whereas the astrocytes appear few and limited in particular in the cerebellum and in the medulla oblongata. In embryos, the formation of all these structures, very defined and recognizable, is observed only in the embryonic stages E39 and E40, i.e. those next to birth, but some GFAP immunopositive fibers are already evidenced at E32 in the diencephalon and the medulla oblongata.This study shows that the occurrence and the distribution of the glia in C. chalcides is similar to that reported in other Squamata.

Glucocorticoid administration is not recommended in patients with heart failure because of its related sodium and fluid retention. However, previous experimental and clinical studies have demonstrated that glucocorticoids can also induce a diuretic effect and improve renal function in patients with acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) with refractory diuretic resistance. We report the case of a 65-year-old man with a known diagnosis of aortic stenosis, systolic ventricular dysfunction, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease who was admitted for ADHF. After 3 days, during which resistance to conventional therapy was observed, intravenous methylprednisolone (60 mg/d) was added to ongoing medical treatment. Three days after the onset of glucocorticoid therapy, daily urine volume progressively increased (up to 5.8 L/d). Concurrently, signs and symptoms of congestion improved, the weight and brain natriuretic peptide plasma levels decreased (−7 kg and −46%, respectively) and glomerular filtration rate increased (+26%). Bioimpedance vector analysis showed a net reduction of fluid content (from 88.4% to 73.6% of hydration at discharge). In conclusion, this case report suggests that in a patient with ADHF and congestion resistant to diuretic therapy, glucocorticoid administration is safe and associated with improvement in congestion, neurohormonal status, and renal function. These data support the possible usefulness of glucocorticoids in this setting.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0308224.]., (Copyright: © 2024 Arora et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)