•Machine learning was suitable to predict the occurrence of B. oleaee infestation.•Predicting B. oleae infestation is mandatory to adopt preventive IPM strategies.•Long-term data on infestation were ...related to geographic and bioclimatic indices.•Infestation of B. oleae gradually decreased with increasing distance from the sea.
Predicting the occurrence of B. oleae infestation is needed in sustainable olive tree growing, for the application of preventive control strategies. In this study, machine learning (ML) algorithms were tested to predict the occurrence of B. oleae infestation. Regional-based and long-term (2002–2019) dataset on infestation collected by trained technicians in the sampling network (Tuscany, central Italy) was related to geographic variables, bioclimatic indices and the frequency of infestation in the previous year. Five ML algorithms were compared. Data collected from 2002 to 2017 were divided with an 80/20 proportion in “training” and “test 20%”, considering the group “farm ID × year”. In addition, data collected in 2018 and 2019 (“test 18–19”) were also tested.
The algorithm C5.0 was selected as the most suitable algorithm (AUC = 0.9) and used to predict the occurrence of B. oleae infestation. The following results were obtained: (i) a negative effect on the probability of infestation of the distance from the sea of the olive groves and of the frequency of infestation of the previous year and (ii) a positive effect of doy (day of the year), cumulative degree days and mean air temperature of the previous winter.
The occurrence of infestation was predicted with an accuracy of 0.8 on “test 20%” and of 0.7 on “test 18–19”. The potential of this methodology to predict the occurrence of B. oleae infestation in a short-time step, e.g., one week, needs to be tested in a real application, running the model weekly.
Insect dynamics depend on temperature patterns, and therefore, global warming may lead to increasing frequencies and intensities of insect outbreaks. The aim of this work was to analyze the dynamics ...of the olive fruit fly,
Bactrocera oleae
(Rossi), in Tuscany (Italy). We profited from long-term records of insect infestation and weather data available from the regional database and agrometeorological network. We tested whether the analysis of 13 years of monitoring campaigns can be used as basis for prediction models of
B. oleae
infestation. We related the percentage of infestation observed in the first part of the host-pest interaction and throughout the whole year to agrometeorological indices formulated for different time periods. A two-step approach was adopted to inspect the effect of weather on infestation: generalized linear model with a binomial error distribution and principal component regression to reduce the number of the agrometeorological factors and remove their collinearity. We found a consistent relationship between the degree of infestation and the temperature-based indices calculated for the previous period. The relationship was stronger with the minimum temperature of winter season. Higher infestation was observed in years following warmer winters. The temperature of the previous winter and spring explained 66 % of variance of early-season infestation. The temperature of previous winter and spring, and current summer, explained 72 % of variance of total annual infestation. These results highlight the importance of multiannual monitoring activity to fully understand the dynamics of
B. oleae
populations at a regional scale.
The aim of the project was to develop and characterise powders containing a probiotic (Lactiplantibacillus plantarum Lpb. plantarum, Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus, or Lactobacillus acidophilus) to be ...administered to the lung for the containment of pathogen growth in patients with lung infections.
The optimised spray drying process for the powder manufacturing was able to preserve viability of the bacteria, which decreased of only one log unit and was maintained up to 30 days.
Probiotic powders showed a high respirability (42%-50% of particles had a size < 5 µm) suitable for lung deposition and were proven safe on A549 and Calu-3 cells up to a concentration of 10
colony-forming units/mL. The Lpb. plantarum adhesion to both cell lines tested was at least 10%. Surprisingly, Lpb. plantarum powder was bactericidal at a concentration of 10
colony-forming units/mL on P. aeruginosa, whereas the other two strains were bacteriostatic.
This work represents a promising starting point to consider a probiotic inhalation powder a value in keeping the growth of pathogenic microflora in check during the antibiotic inhalation therapy suspension in cystic fibrosis treatment regimen. This approach could also be advantageous for interfering competitively with pathogenic bacteria and promoting the restoration of the healthy microbiota.
The pupae of
Bactrocera oleae
(Diptera: Tephritidae) complete their development during autumn and winter in the soil, rather than in the drupe, resulting susceptible to edaphic predators. ...Environmentally friendly methods to control this olive pest involve the identification of its natural enemies. This study evaluated the role of
Ocypus olens
(Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) in the predation of
B. oleae
pupae, by means of molecular gut content analysis. Modified dry pitfall traps were used to collect live specimens from low-input olive orchards in Tuscany (Italy). Sampling was fine-tuned with a degree-day model estimating the presence of pest pupae in the soil. PCR analyses carried out on field-collected specimens demonstrated that
O. olens
is a predator of
B. oleae
, at least during autumn. These results are consistent with predictions of the degree-day model. Knowledge on species composition, traits and complementarity of the natural enemies of
B. oleae
pupae needs further investigation to advance conservation biological control strategies.
Switchbacks are sudden, large radial deflections of the solar wind magnetic field, widely revealed in interplanetary space by the Parker Solar Probe. The switchbacks’ formation mechanism and sources ...are still unresolved, although candidate mechanisms include Alfvénic turbulence, shear-driven Kelvin–Helmholtz instabilities, interchange reconnection, and geometrical effects related to the Parker spiral. This Letter presents observations from the Metis coronagraph on board a Solar Orbiter of a single large propagating S-shaped vortex, interpreted as the first evidence of a switchback in the solar corona. It originated above an active region with the related loop system bounded by open-field regions to the east and west. Observations, modeling, and theory provide strong arguments in favor of the interchange reconnection origin of switchbacks. Metis measurements suggest that the initiation of the switchback may also be an indicator of the origin of slow solar wind.
The present study describes the effect of low frequency, low energy, pulsing electromagnetic fields (PEMFs) on A2A adenosine receptors in human neutrophils.
Saturation experiments performed using a ...high affinity adenosine antagonist 3H‐ZM 241385 revealed a single class of binding sites in control and in PEMF‐treated human neutrophils with similar affinity (KD=1.05±0.10 and 1.08±0.12 nM, respectively). Furthermore, after 1 h of exposure to PEMFs the receptor density was statistically increased (P<0.01) (Bmax =126±10 and 215±15 fmol mg−1 protein, respectively).
The effect of PEMFs was specific to the A2A adenosine receptors. This effect was also intensity, time and temperature dependent.
In the adenylyl cyclase assays the A2A receptor agonists, HE‐NECA and NECA, increased cyclic AMP accumulation in untreated human neutrophils with an EC50 value of 43 (40 – 47) and 255 (228 – 284) nM, respectively. The capability of HE‐NECA and NECA to stimulate cyclic AMP levels in human neutrophils was increased (P<0.01) after exposure to PEMFs with an EC50 value of 10(8 – 13) and 61(52 – 71) nM, respectively.
In the superoxide anion (O2−) production assays HE‐NECA and NECA inhibited the generation of O2− in untreated human neutrophils, with an EC50 value of 3.6(3.1 – 4.2) and of 23(20 – 27) nM, respectively. Moreover, in PEMF‐treated human neutrophils, the same compounds show an EC50 value of 1.6(1.2 – 2.1) and of 6.0(4.7 – 7.5) nM respectively.
These results indicate the presence of significant alterations in the expression and in the functionality of adenosine A2A receptors in human neutrophils treated with PEMFs.
British Journal of Pharmacology (2002) 136, 57–66; doi:10.1038/sj.bjp.0704695
The notion that prosaposin (Prosap) is likely involved in brain development and regeneration led us to explore its expression in stem/progenitor neural cells and its fate after cell differentiation. ...The expression of procathepsin–cathepsin D (proCath–Cath D), an endoprotease that plays an important role in the processing and sorting of Prosap, has been concomitantly examined. Our data evidenced that in embryonic human neural progenitor cells (eHNPCs) intact and high molecular weight intermediate forms of Prosap and intermediate forms of Cath D accumulated inside the cells, while the formation of saposins and mature Cath D was impaired. Furthermore, neither Prosap nor proCath D were secreted from eHNPCs. The block of the processing and secretion shared by Prosap and proCath D was overcome during the course of differentiation of eHNPCs into a mixed population of astrocytes and neuronal cells. Upon differentiation, large amounts of Prosap and proCath D were secreted from the cells, while saposins and mature Cath D were produced inside the cells. The dramatic accumulation of Prosap (an antiapoptotic factor) and reduction of mature Cath D (a proapoptotic factor) in the undifferentiated eHNPCs most likely play a role in the molecular mechanisms regulating the resistance to apoptotic signals of these cells and might represent a critically important issue in HNPCs biology.
The present study describes the effect of low frequency, low energy, pulsing electromagnetic fields (PEMFs) on A
2A
adenosine receptors in human neutrophils.
Saturation experiments performed using a ...high affinity adenosine antagonist
3
H‐ZM 241385 revealed a single class of binding sites in control and in PEMF‐treated human neutrophils with similar affinity (
K
D
=1.05±0.10 and 1.08±0.12 n
M
, respectively). Furthermore, after 1 h of exposure to PEMFs the receptor density was statistically increased (
P
<0.01) (B
max
=126±10 and 215±15 fmol mg
−1
protein, respectively).
The effect of PEMFs was specific to the A
2A
adenosine receptors. This effect was also intensity, time and temperature dependent.
In the adenylyl cyclase assays the A
2A
receptor agonists, HE‐NECA and NECA, increased cyclic AMP accumulation in untreated human neutrophils with an EC
50
value of 43 (40 – 47) and 255 (228 – 284) n
M
, respectively. The capability of HE‐NECA and NECA to stimulate cyclic AMP levels in human neutrophils was increased (
P
<0.01) after exposure to PEMFs with an EC
50
value of 10(8 – 13) and 61(52 – 71) n
M
, respectively.
In the superoxide anion (O
2
−
) production assays HE‐NECA and NECA inhibited the generation of O
2
−
in untreated human neutrophils, with an EC
50
value of 3.6(3.1 – 4.2) and of 23(20 – 27) n
M
, respectively. Moreover, in PEMF‐treated human neutrophils, the same compounds show an EC
50
value of 1.6(1.2 – 2.1) and of 6.0(4.7 – 7.5) n
M
respectively.
These results indicate the presence of significant alterations in the expression and in the functionality of adenosine A
2A
receptors in human neutrophils treated with PEMFs.
British Journal of Pharmacology
(2002)
136
, 57–66; doi:
10.1038/sj.bjp.0704695
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