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The European eel, a catadromous endangered species, displays plasticity in phenotypic traits and in trophic behaviour, features that can eventually affect growth. The aim of this study was to compare variation in carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) stable isotopes in muscle tissue of the adult eel life stages (i.e. yellow and silver eel), as function of growth. Eel samples were obtained from nine sites across the Mediterranean region, that included seven coastal lagoons of different size and ecological structure, and two freshwater habitats corresponding to one river and one lake. A large variability was found in both δ13C and δ15N values, suggesting that eels fed over a broad range of potential food sources. Eels from each location showed specific range values of δ13C, in most sites irrespective of stage, reflecting lagoon- or freshwater-specific carbon sources. A positive correlation was found between individual δ15N values and annual growth rates, suggesting that eels generally seem to feed on prey of higher δ15N values among the trophic resources available in each foraging habitat. This allows individuals to grow faster and to attain earlier the pre-spawning phase (i.e. the silver stage). A better understanding of eel trophic ecology across different life stages and different habitats is one of the prerequisites for the effective management of local stocks.

The majority of organic marine fish farms currently begin the production cycle with non-organic juveniles from conventional hatcheries, permitted by the European Regulation on organic fish origin (EC 710/2009) until the end of 2016. Wild juvenile gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata) from coastal lagoons and hatcheries were experimentally reared under organic conditions, in order (1) to investigate differences in fillet lipid content and fatty acids composition, and (2) to propose a possible future source of juveniles destined for organic aquaculture. Wild juveniles were readily distinguishable by their fatty acid signature, showing significantly higher ratio levels of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and n-3/n-6. Fillet lipid composition of organically fed wild S. aurata juveniles was preferable to that from domesticated juveniles. These results seem promising for organic aquaculture, where fish feed is more environmentally sustainable but is of lower nutritional quality

The melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R) gene codes for a G protein transmembrane receptor playing an important role in energy homeostasis control. In pig a single nucleotide polymorphism c.1426G>A has been identified and associated to average daily gain, feed intake and fatness traits but a lack of agreement on the effects of the gene on carcass traits in different breeds comes out from many studies. In the present study the c.1426G>A polymorphism is analysed in two Italian pig breeds, Large White and Duroc to study the association of the MC4R gene with some carcass traits. The results show that the c.1426G>A polymorphism affects daily gain, feed conversion ratio and ham weight in both breeds, lean cuts in the Italian Duroc and backfat thickness in the Italian Large White. The presence of MC4R mRNA transcript in different porcine tissues was analysed.

Copy number variants (CNVs) are a major source of genetic variability in mammalian genomes. CNVs are involved in many human disorders, including obesity. For several biological reasons pig could be a biomedical model for human obesity and associated diseases. Fat deposition is a key process with practical and economical implications in pig breeding. This trait determines carcass value and consumers’ acceptance of pork. In this study we applied a selective genotyping approach to identify CNVs associated with backfat thickness (BFT) in Italian Large White pigs. Pigs with extreme and divergent estimated breeding values (EBVs) for BFT were selected among a performance-tested population of ≈12,000 animals and genotyped with the Illumina PorcineSNP60k Beadchip. CNVs were called using pennCNV using strict criteria. Fifteen copy number variation regions (CNVRs) (in at least 4 pigs) were present only in the positive BFT-EBV group whereas 12 CNVRs were reported only in the negative BFT-EBV tail. Other CNVRs differed in frequency (P < 0.05) between the tails. Identified CNVRs include genes involved in fat metabolism, growth regulation, immune system, and neuronal regulation of eating behavior. These results provide additional insights into mechanisms affecting fat deposition in pigs

To identify DNA markers associated with performance, carcass, and meat production traits including muscle postmortem cathepsin activity, several porcine genes encoding for lysosomal proteinases (cathepsin B, CTSB; cathepsin D, CTSD; cathepsin F, CTSF; cathepsin H, CTSH; cathepsin L, CTSL; and cathepsin Z, CTSZ) and for a cathepsin inhibitor (cystatin B) were investigated. Single nucleotide polymorphisms were identified in CTSD, CTSH, CTSL, and CTSZ genes with a combination of in silico expressed sequence tag database mining and single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis. Sequencing and PCR-RFLP protocols were used to validate the identified polymorphisms. Allele frequencies at these loci were investigated in Italian Large White, Landrace, Duroc, Pietrain, Belgian Landrace, Hampshire, and Meishan breeds. Genotyping CTSD and CTSH markers made it possible to genetically map these genes to SSC 2 and 7, respectively. Markers in CTSD, CTSH, CTSL, and CTSZ genes, together with mutations we previously reported in cystatin B, CTSB, and CTSF genes, were genotyped in an Italian Large White sib-tested population (272 or 482 animals). For these animals, meat quality traits (cathepsin B activity, pH measured at 2 h postmortem, pH measured at 24 h postmortem, glycogen, lactate, and glycolytic potential of semimembranosus muscle) and EBV for ADG, lean cuts (LC), backfat thickness (BFT), ham weight (HW), and feed:gain ratio (FGR) were determined. Analyzed markers did not show any association with muscle cathepsin B activity. Thus, it could be possible that different genes, other than these investigated candidates, affect this trait, which is correlated with the excessive softness defect of dry-cured hams. The results of association analysis confirmed the effects we already reported in another study for CTSF on ADG (P = 0.008), LC (P = 0.001), and BFT (P = 0.02). Moreover, CTSD was associated with ADG, LC (P < 0.0001), BFT, HW, and FGR (P < 0.001); CTSH was associated with FGR (P = 0.026); and CTSZ was associated with ADG (P = 0.006), LC (P = 0.01), HW (P = 0.024), and FGR (P = 0.029). The biochemical and physiological functions of the lysosomal proteinases, together with the results obtained in our investigation, suggest that the cathepsin gene family might play important roles affecting economic traits in pigs.

Excessive softness is a serious defect of dry cured hams which seems related to high activity of lysosomal cysteine proteinases, such as cathepsin B, in fresh pork muscles a few days after slaughtering. As it has been shown that cathepsin B activity has a moderate heritability in Italian Large White pigs we started a candidate gene approach to identify the gene(s) that affect(s) this parameter. Here, we studied two candidate genes: cathepsin B (CTSB) and cystatin B (CSTB). We amplified and sequenced porcine DNA fragments for these two genes that were used to identify polymorphisms by SSCP and polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis. Four and two alleles were detected at the CTSB and CSTB loci, respectively. Sequencing of the CSTB alleles showed a missense mutation that changes a codon for aspartic acid into a codon for asparagine in exon 3 of the gene. Allele frequencies for the two loci differed among the pig breeds studied (Large White, Landrace, Duroc, Belgian Landrace, Hampshire, Piétrain, Meishan, Cinta Senese, Casertana, Calabrese and Nero di Sicilia). Linkage, somatic cell hybrid panel and radiation hybrid panel analyses assigned CTSB to porcine chromosome (Sscr) 14 and CSTB to Sscr 13. The markers identified at the CTSB and CSTB loci were used in association studies with several traits of economic importance including parameters that may indicate the suitability of pig meat to produce dry-cured hams. Significant associations were observed between CTSB and back-fat thickness and between CSTB and average daily gain. In this study, cathepsin B activity was not associated with the polymorphisms identified at the CTSB and CSTB loci.

Small cell lung cancer is generally staged as a localized or diffuse disease due to its great invasiveness and quick spread. The authors investigated the advantages of a more accurate staging by TNM system applied to small cell lung cancer. Sixteen patients (12 males and 4 females, mean age 54 years, max 66, min 48) were submitted to a treatment protocol consisting of 6 cycles of chemotherapy over an 18-month period. All patients underwent CT before and after the third and sixth cycles. Disease evolution was evaluated by means of the TNM system; relative to the N parameter, the American Thoracic Society criteria were followed. After completion of the third chemotherapy cycle, CT demonstrated reduction in T in 7/16 cases, while in the extant patients T was unchanged. N decreased too in 7 patients and remained unchanged in the others. CT examinations at the end of the whole treatment protocol demonstrated no changes in T. As for N, CT showed evolution from N0 to N2 in one case and from N3 to N0 in another one, while no changes were observed in the extant patients. The M parameter was constantly negative in all cases. Our results demonstrate that this approach to small cell lung cancer permits a more accurate characterization of the disease, thus making it easier to monitor the positive/negative response to treatment and allowing the latter to be personalized.

Primary venous insufficiency is a pathologic condition characterized by reflux in the deep venous system not secondary to phlebothrombosis. The authors compare the diagnostic capabilities of duplex and Doppler US in the evaluation of this condition. At present, Doppler US has a more widespread use than the duplex method. Both lower limbs were examined in 46 patients known to be affected with mono/bilateral primary venous insufficiency thanks to previous retrograde phlebography. Ten patients with different phlebopathies and 10 healthy volunteers were also studied as a control group, duplex US had 92% sensitivity and 90% specificity, while Doppler had 86% and 75%, respectively. Duplex US appeared to be more accurate than Doppler in locating and quantifying the reflux. Finally, the authors draw attention to the segmentary reflux phenomenon they observed in asymptomatic patients and suggest the possibility of recognizing the preclinic stage of this condition by duplex US, which is a non-invasive and relatively inexpensive method. The latter could become, thanks to its intrinsic characteristics, the method of choice for monitoring.

The authors evaluated the long-term results of sclerosing therapy as an alternative to surgery by means of high-resolution US and Doppler dynamic fluximetry (duplex system). Seventy patients (53 females and 17 males) were examined, all of whom fulfilled the clinical criteria of recovery and efficacy of sclerosing therapy. Average follow up was 20 months (range: 6-26). The results, compared with duplex findings before sclerosing therapy, demonstrated: a) persistence of reflux and absence of US signs of sclerosis (9/70 patients); b) evident sclerosis with persistent residual lumen and reflux of variable entity at the thigh (33/70) cases; c) incomplete sclerosis sparing the crosse, with physiological flow and disappearance of reflux (8/70 patients); d) nearly complete sclerosis with vasal lumen obliteration (20/70 cases). No changes were observed in the deep venous system after sclerosing therapy. The authors stress the advantages of the duplex system they employed as an instrumental support to clinics for a complete monitoring of sclerosing therapy.

The authors analyze the results obtained by means of Doppler US, duplex examination and venography in the preoperative evaluation of venous vascular anatomy and flow dynamics in the popliteal fossa for short saphenous vein surgery. As a whole, 50 legs were examined in 34 patients who subsequently underwent surgery. The confluence of the short saphenous vein in the deep system proved to be very variable. Doppler results were compared with contrastographic ones: Doppler US had 10% accuracy in locating the confluence of the short saphenous vein and the figure rose to 62% with a +/- 2 cm tolerance. Duplex US had 30% and 98%, respectively. The latter always correctly demonstrated the reflux, while Doppler US in 5 cases (10%) ascribed gastrocnemius vein incompetence (4 cases) and Giacomini vein incompetence (1 case) to the short saphenous vein. The above findings demonstrate the total reliability of duplex US versus Doppler US and venography in recognizing the anatomic confluence and in allowing the fluximetric evaluation in a noninvasive, riskless and inexpensive way.

Die Autoren erortern die Bedeutung der „innominate grooves“ des Kolons, nachdem sie deren anatomisches Substrat durch mikroradiographische Untersuchungen definiert haben. Bei der kritischen ikonographischen und methodologischen Bewertung der Doppelkontrasttechnik werden diese „innominate grooves“ als wichtiges Zeichen der heutigen rontgenologischen Semiotik gesucht, da sie elementare Mukosastrukturen sind, die durch pathologische Prozesse zuerst verandert werden. The authors discuss the meaning of the “innominate grooves” of the colon after having determined their anatomic substratum with a microradiographic study. In the iconographic and methodological critical evaluation of the double contrast technique the “innominate grooves” must be considered as an important sign of to-day's radiologic semeiotics and as elementary mucous structures which are first affected by pathologic situations.

A case of oro-pharyngeal oesophagus papillomatosis is described. It was associated with an adeno-carcinoma of the stomach. A brief, critical review of the literature with consideration of the aetiology and pathology is given.

The authors discuss the meaning of the "innominate grooves" of the colon after having determined their anatomic substratum with a microradiographic study. In the iconographic and methodological critical evaluation of the double contrast technique the "innominate grooves" must be considered as an important sign of today's radiologic semeiotics and as elementary mucous structures which are first affected by pathologic situations.

The linear striated vascular pattern in the kidney is discussed in the light of nine new examples. Based on the histomicroangiographic findings in 2 cases, the pathogenic mechanism underlying this phenomenon is discussed, and the pattern is considered a sure sign of venous tumor infiltration.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and haplotypes in porcine calpastatin (CAST) gene on performance and carcass traits in Italian Large White (ILW) pigs. Seven SNPs located from promoter to exon 17 of CAST gene were genotyped by the Illumina GoldenGate genotyping assay in 280 ILW pigs and seven haplotypes were inferred from four informative SNPs. Association analyses were performed for SNPs and haplotypes with performance and carcass estimated breeding values in the ILW population. Significant association (P

PLIN2 (perilipin 2) is a cytosolic protein that promotes the formation and stabilization of the intracellular lipid droplets, organelles involved in the storage of lipid depots. Porcine PLIN2 gene represents a biological and positional candidate for fat deposition, a polygenic trait that affects carcass and meat quality. The aim of the present study was to screen PLIN2 gene for polymorphisms, to evaluate the association with carcass quality traits, and to investigate the gene expression in skeletal muscle. Six new single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) were detected by sequencing 32 samples from five pig breeds (Italian Large White, Italian Duroc, Italian Landrace, Belgian Landrace, Pietrain). Two SNP localized in introns, two in the 3′-untranslated region (UTR), and two missense SNP were found in exons. A 3′-UTR mutation (GU461317:g.98G>A), genotyped in 290 Italian Duroc pigs by High Resolution Melting, resulted significantly associated (P < 0.01) with average daily gain, feed conversion ratio, lean cuts and hams weight estimated breeding values. PLIN2 gene expression analysis in skeletal muscle of Italian Large White and Italian Duroc pigs divergent for backfat thickness and visible intermuscular fat showed a trend of higher expression level in pigs with higher intermuscular fat. These results suggest that PLIN2 can be a marker for carcass quality in pigs. Further investigation at both gene and protein level could elucidate its role on fat deposition.

The adiponectin (adiponectin, C1Q and collagen domain containing) encoded by ADIPOQ is an adipokine that modulates several biological processes such as lipogenesis, gluconeogenesis, fatty acid oxidation, glucose uptake and insulin sensitivity. An objective of this study was to identify SNPs in the ADIPOQ gene both in cosmopolitan and local pig breeds reared in Italy and in Meishan samples. Resequencing of ADIPOQ gene regions in 16 pigs of 12 breeds revealed only two SNPs ( EU489740 : g.1611G > A synonymous and EU489740 : g.1735G > A missense mutations) already reported. The g.1735G > A polymorphism was genotyped by PCR-RFLP in 510 pigs from 11 breeds reared in Italy (Italian Large White, Italian Duroc, Italian Landrace, Belgian Landrace, Hampshire, Pietrain, Calabrese, Casertana, Cinta Senese, Mora Romagnola and Nero Siciliano) and from Chinese Meishan breed. The Italian local breeds were homozygous for the g.1735G allele while the Meishan samples resulted homozygous for the g.1735A allele. The polymorphism segregates in the cosmopolitan breeds, except for Hampshire, and the rarer g.1735A allele showed the highest frequency in Italian Duroc (0.12). Association analysis of g.1735G > A polymorphism with estimated breeding values (EBVs) for average daily gain (ADG), feed:gain ratio (FGR), weight of neck and loin (lean cuts, LC), weight of ham (H) and backfat thickness (BFT) were performed in Italian Duroc heavy pigs. The GA vs GG pigs showed higher least square means for ADG ( P = 0.003) and LC ( P = 0.036) EBVs and lower value for FGR EBV ( P = 0.033).

Association mapping of the central part of porcine chromosome 2 harboring QTLs for carcass and meat quality traits was performed with 17 gene-tagged SNPs located between 44.0 and 77.5 Mb on a physical map (Sscrofa102) in Italian Large White pigs. For the analyzed animals records of estimated breeding values for average daily gain, back fat thickness, lean cuts, ham weight, feed conversion ratio, pH(1), pH(u), CIE L*, CIE a*, CIE b* and drip loss were available. A significant QTL for fat deposition (adjusted P = 0.0081) and pH(1) (adjusted P = 0.0972) to MYOD1 at position 44.4 Mb and a QTL for growth and meatiness (adjusted P = 0.0238-0.0601) to UBL5 at position 68.9 Mb were mapped. These results from association mapping are much more accurate than those from linkage mapping and facilitate further search for position candidate genes and causative mutations needed for application of markers through marker assisted selection.