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Caprimulgus europaeus In recent years Update on the distribution of breeding Nightjar in Sicily. there have been numerous observations of Nightjar in areas where it had never previously been observed. In some cases the reason may be a deeper exploration, but in other cases the possible explanation is the expansion of the species. However, it is quite interesting the change in the habitat by this species. The present paper provides an update of its status based on data collected in the fifteen years following the publication of the last Sicilian Atlas of breeding birds.

Since the last century agriculture is strongly promoting the simplification of the landscape. The LIFE Desert Adapt project is been developed across 1000 hectares in Italy, Spain, Portu-gal and has the objective of implementing integrative agroforestry-based land use planning and management, and one of the indicators to evaluate the project effectiveness is birds richness and abundance. Here we present the results of the first assessment and explore the relationships with the main vegetation cover types. We established 68 sampling points where we recorded bird abundance and richness. In total we registered 57 bird species, sampling points surrounded by woodlands presented 50 species, while shrublands presented 45 and herbaceous cover presented 32 species. The agroforestry practices that will take place inside the LIFE project are expected to increase the vegetation complexity inside the farms and consequently enhance bird diversity and abundance, as well as will provide useful information to compare the influence of different management decisions for bird communities. However, the species of birds threatened at the Mediterranean level are those linked to open agricultural systems (such as the alaudidae) and to areas with sparse tree cover (e.g. laniidae). The project will then evaluate the effects of agroforestry practices on bird communities in qualitative terms to also determine which of these do not have a negative effect on avifaunistic communities.

Nel progetto la costruzione di modelli di sviluppo aziendale che adottano tecniche e misure di adattamento capaci di preparare le aree più a rischio.

Aims: The present study aims to provide a comprehensive analytical and biological validation of an ultra-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) method for analysis of salivary cortisol and its inactive metabolite cortisone. Variation in cortisol awakening response (CAR) over one week were investigated. Methods: Saliva samples were collected from 19 healthy volunteers. To determine CAR, participants collected saliva samples at three time points: immediately after awakening, 15 and 30 minutes thereafter. The same procedure was repeated each morning over one week period. In addition, all participants filled in diaries containing information about duration of sleep, time of awakening, smoking, and coffee and alcohol intake. Upon collection, the saliva samples were stored at -20°C until analysis. Prior to analysis, the saliva samples were thawed and spiked with internal standard and extracted using solid phase extraction columns (Oasis Prime-HLB). The identification and quantification of cortisol and cortisone were performed using the developed UPLC-MS/MS method, on a Waters Aquity TQ-XS system. Results: The obtained limits of quantification (LoQ) were 1ng/ml for cortisol and 500pg/ml for cortisone. Intra-assay accuracy values of calibration points were between 83-111%. The mean levels of cortisol and cortisone in the total sample were 3.55 ± 1.99 ng/ml and 10.51 ± 3.46 ng/ml, respectively. In the first 30 minutes after awakening, there was a 70% increase in the average cortisol levels (CAR) and a 49% increase in the levels of cortisone. A high intra-individual variability of CAR was observed over the week (CV ranged between 17.9-68.9%), whereas the inter-individual variability of the average CAR equaled 28.2%. Furthermore, the changes in CAR were related to variables from participants’ diaries. Conclusion: The UPLC-MS/MS method has shown to be a sensitive and specific technique for determination of salivary cortisol and cortisone. However, in the clinical context, CAR data should be interpreted with precaution due to high inter- and intra-individual variability.

È stata censita la diversità delle specie ornitiche presente in alcune tipologie forestali della Regione Siciliana e la relazione tra le ornitocenosi, le scelte gestionali ed i diversi fattori abiotici e biotici. L’analisi della species richness (= numero delle specie) dimostra che essa è correlata con il bioclima, il diametro massimo degli individui arborei, il valore trofico di tutti gli strati di vegetazione ed il valore trofico dello strato arboreo. I boschi meso-supramediterranei sono più ricchi di specie rispetto ai boschi termomesomediterranei. L’importanza del diametro massimo degli individui arborei, che esprime indirettamente anche il tipo di gestione di un bosco, viene spiegata dalla dipendenza di alcune specie corticicole da piante di grosse dimensioni e di alcune specie legate a chiome di alberi alti in genere corrispondenti a piante di grosse dimensioni. Il valore trofico dei boschi è stato censito attraverso un apposito rilievo delle specie floristiche con valore nutritivo presente nello strato erbaceo, arbustivo e arboreo. L’assenza di specie con valore trofico riduce molto le specie di uccelli presenti ma, nello stesso tempo, l’abbondanza di specie floristiche con valore trofico non produce una abbondanza di specie ornitiche. Quando invece della species richness si correla l’indice di diversità di Shannon con i fattori suddetti, il risultato è simile: viene influenzato dal bioclima, dal diametro massimo e dalla presenza di piante con valore trofico. Infine, è da sottolineare che né la species richness né l’indice di Shannon risulta essere influenzata dal diametro del legno morto in piedi o dal volume del legno morto a terra. Le indicazioni che risultano dai risultati dell’analisi sono: 1) per aumentare la diversità ornitica bisogna lasciare nuclei di piante adulte e di una certa dimensione, anche nei cedui; 2) alla luce dei risultati sulla presenza di specie con valore trofico vanno riviste le norme che prevedono le specie (qualità e quantità) da rilasciare nei cedui; 3) per i rimboschimenti vanno escluse le ripuliture del sottobosco e le spalcature che devono essere limitate alla fascia perimetrale per la prevenzione degli incendi. We collected data on bird diversity in the main Sicilian forest types and related them to silvicultural management and a number of abiotic and biotic factors. The results show that bird species richness is influenced by bioclimate, maximum tree diameter, nutritive value of all vegetation layers. Forests in meso-/supramediterranean bioclimate are richer in species than forests in thermo-/mesomediterranean bioclimate. The importance of maximum tree diameter, which indirectly reflects also the silvicultural management of a forest, is due to the dependency of some corticicolous species on large trees, and of some other bird species on crowns of high trees which have usually large diameters. The nutritive value of a forest was quantified by data sampling: for the herbaceous, shrub and tree layers we recorded all species with nutritive value. The absence of plant species with nutritive value strongly reduces the number of bird species present in a forest; it is, however, noteworthy that an abundance of plant species with nutritive value does not automatically lead to abundant bird species. In addition, it has to be underlined that neither species richness nor Shannon’s diversity index are influenced by the diameter of standing dead wood or by the volume of fallen dead wood. The guidelines which result from our analysis for the silvicultural management of Sicilian forests are: 1) in order to increase bird diversity do not cut large adult trees, also in coppices; 2) leave plants with high nutritive value in coppices; 3) in reforestations do not cut the underbrush and do not prune the lower branches of trees, these actions have to be taken only in the forest edge for wildfire prevention.

Un’abbondante popolazione del Ciprinodontide autoctono Aphanius fasciatus è stata rinvenuta nel Fiume ImeraMeridionale ed in alcuni suoi affluenti. É così confermata la persistenza della specie nel sito, nonostante le pesanti alterazioni ambientali che hanno interessato il fiume e che avevano fatto ritenere A. fasciatus localmente estinto. Trattandosi di una delle poche popolazioni di Aphanius fasciatus sopravvissute nei corsi d’acqua siciliani e alla luce della notevole diversità genetica e morfologica riscontrata tra le differenti popolazioni siciliane di questo Ciprinodontide, la sopravvivenza di questa popolazione assume un’importante valenza conservazionistica.

National audience

The benefits of successful kidney transplants for patients with end stage renal disease associated with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus are well known, and the potential advantages of earlier transplantation have been emphasized in other reports. Cadaver transplants, which are not always available for these patients, have not provided a high degree of success in many centers. This has discouraged the use of transplants unless well matched related donors are available. Most patients do not have well matched family members who are able to donate. We have attempted to increase the availability of related transplants for diabetic patients by using a new protocol in which related donors who are poorly matched by mixed lymphocyte culture (MLC) testing (stimulation index (SI) greater than or equal to 7) can often serve as the source of the transplant. This protocol of pretransplant donor-specific transfusions (DSTs) has been applied to 20 diabetic patients. Sixteen transplants have been performed after serial immunological studies following the DSTs detected no specific evidence of recipient sensitization to the respective transfusion donors. Only one of the transplants has been rejected, and this occurred in a patient who intentionally terminated immunosuppressive therapy. Graft survival for the group of 16 patients is 93 and 84% at 1 and 3 years, respectively. The quality of renal function for most of the patients is very good, with a mean serum creatinine of 1.9 and 1.5 ml/dl for those transplants at risk for 12 and 24 months. This new method has given encouraging results for poorly matched related transplants in diabetic patients and makes earlier transplantation possible by providing an alternative to cadaver transplants.