Search

To enrich spatio-temporal information on the distribution of alien, cryptogenic, and neonative species in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, a collective effort by 173 marine scientists was made to provide unpublished records and make them open access to the scientific community. Through this effort, we collected and harmonized a dataset of 12,649 records. It includes 247 taxa, of which 217 are Animalia, 25 Plantae and 5 Chromista, from 23 countries surrounding the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Chordata was the most abundant taxonomic group, followed by Arthropoda, Mollusca, and Annelida. In terms of species records, Siganus luridus, Siganus rivulatus, Saurida lessepsianus, Pterois miles, Upeneus moluccensis, Charybdis (Archias) longicollis, and Caulerpa cylindracea were the most numerous. The temporal distribution of the records ranges from 1973 to 2022, with 44% of the records in 2020–2021. Lethrinus borbonicus is reported for the first time in the Mediterranean Sea, while Pomatoschistus quagga, Caulerpa cylindracea, Grateloupia turuturu, and Misophria pallida are first records for the Black Sea; Kapraunia schneideri is recorded for the second time in the Mediterranean and for the first time in Israel; Prionospio depauperata and Pseudonereis anomala are reported for the first time from the Sea of Marmara. Many first country records are also included, namely: Amathia verticillata (Montenegro), Ampithoe valida (Italy), Antithamnion amphigeneum (Greece), Clavelina oblonga (Tunisia and Slovenia), Dendostrea cf. folium (Syria), Epinephelus fasciatus (Tunisia), Ganonema farinosum (Montenegro), Macrorhynchia philippina (Tunisia), Marenzelleria neglecta (Romania), Paratapes textilis (Tunisia), and Botrylloides diegensis (Tunisia).

To enrich spatio-temporal information on the distribution of alien, cryptogenic, and neonative species in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, a collective effort by 173 marine scientists was made to provide unpublished records and make them open access to the scientific community. Through this effort, we collected and harmonized a dataset of 12,649 records. It includes 247 taxa, of which 217 are Animalia, 25 Plantae and 5 Chromista, from 23 countries surrounding the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. Chordata was the most abundant taxonomic group, followed by Arthropoda, Mollusca, and Annelida. In terms of species records, Siganus luridus, Siganus rivulatus, Saurida lessepsianus, Pterois miles, Upeneus moluccensis, Charybdis (Archias) longicollis, and Caulerpa cylindracea were the most numerous. The temporal distribution of the records ranges from 1973 to 2022, with 44% of the records in 2020–2021. Lethrinus borbonicus is reported for the first time in the Mediterranean Sea, while Pomatoschistus quagga, Caulerpa cylindracea, Grateloupia turuturu, and Misophria pallida are first records for the Black Sea; Kapraunia schneideri is recorded for the second time in the Mediterranean and for the first time in Israel; Prionospio depauperata and Pseudonereis anomala are reported for the first time from the Sea of Marmara. Many first country records are also included, namely: Amathia verticillata (Montenegro), Ampithoe valida (Italy), Antithamnion amphigeneum (Greece), Clavelina oblonga (Tunisia and Slovenia), Dendostrea cf. folium (Syria), Epinephelus fasciatus (Tunisia), Ganonema farinosum (Montenegro), Macrorhynchia philippina (Tunisia), Marenzelleria neglecta (Romania), Paratapes textilis (Tunisia), and Botrylloides diegensis (Tunisia).

This work presents refined, updated subregional and regional non-indigenous species (NIS) inventories for the Mediterranean Sea, validated by national and taxonomic experts, with species records observed until December 2020. These datasets will be used as the baselines for the implementation of the Integrated Monitoring and Assessment Programme for the Mediterranean (IMAP) and the Mediterranean Quality Status Report 2023. In total, 1006 non-indigenous species have been found in Mediterranean marine and brackish waters. The highest numbers of NIS were observed in Israel, Türkiye, Lebanon and Italy. Approximately 45 species were categorized as data deficient, either due to lack of consensus on their alien status or the validity of their identification. Polychaeta, Foraminifera and macroalgae were the groups with the highest numbers of controversial species. There was a general increase in the yearly rate of new NIS introductions after the late 1990s, which appears to be slowing down in the last decade, but this may be confounded by reporting lags and differential research efforts. Between 1970 and 2020 there has been a steep increase in the proportion of shared species present throughout all four Mediterranean subregions, which are predominantly transported via shipping and recreational boating. While Lessepsian species are gradually spreading westwards and northwards, there is still a considerable invasion debt accumulating in the eastern and central Mediterranean.

We present the first record of the endemic Mediterranean anthozoan Spinimuricea klavereni (Carpine & Grasshoff 1975) (Cnidaria, Anthozoa, Plexauridae) for the Adriatic Sea (Boka Kotorska bay, Montenegro). A density of 0.72 colonies m-2 could be measured in the area, which was com-pared with the scant available data in the literature. Having in mind that this species is very rare and endemic for the Mediterranean, it is important to increase our knowledge on its distribution and biology in order to better assess its ecological role, the pending threats and the need for specific conservation measures., Prikazan je prvi nalaz endemičnog sredozemnog žarnjaka Spinimuricea klavereni (Carpine & Grasshoff 1975) (Cnidaria, Anthozoa, Plekauridae) za Jadransko more (Bokokotorski zaliv, Crna Gora). Dobijeni rezultati i izmjerena gustina od 0,72 kolonije m-2 su uspoređeni s oskudnim podacima dostupnim u literaturi. Imajući u vidu da je ova vrsta vrlo rijetka i endemska za Sredozemno more, važno je poboljšati znanje o njenoj distribuciji i biologiji kako bismo bolje procijenili njenu ekološku ulogu, prijetnje i potrebu za određenim mjerama zaštite.

Predmet istraživanja ove doktorske disertacije su tri morske alge: Halimeda tuna (J.Ellis & Solander) J.V. Lamouroux (Halimedaceae), Codium bursa (Olivi) C. Agardh(Codiaceae), Cystoseira barbata (Stackhouse) C. Agardh (Sargassaceae) i morskatrava Cymodocea nodosa (Urcia) Ascherson (Cymodoceaceae) iz Jadranskog mora.Nutritivna vrednost odabranih uzoraka je ispitivana korišćenjem zvaničnih AOAC(Association of Official Analytical Chemists) metoda. Najveću energetsku vrednost, unavedenim ispitivanjima, imala je zelena alga C. bursa (490,4 kcal).Metodom hladne maceracije u trajanju od 48 sati, dobijena su tri polarna ekstrakta:dihlormetan : metanolni (1:1) (DME), 70% metanolni i vodeni ekstrakt. Suvi ekstrakti su daljekorišćeni za biološka in vitro ispitivanja kao što su: antioksidativna, antimikrobna, anti α-glukozidazna i citotoksična aktivnost. DME ekstrakt H. tuna je pokazao najbolju citotoksičnuaktivnost prema ćelijama humanog karcinoma kolona, LS174 (IC50=17,92 ± 1,54 μg/ml).DME ekstrakt C. nodosa je pokazao snažnu citotoksičnu aktivnost prema ćelijama humanogadenokarcinoma, HeLa (IC50=13,28 ± 0,39 μg/ml) i prema ćelijama humane hroničnemijelogene leukemije, K562 (IC50=19,64 ± 1,55 μg/ml). Najbolju anti α-glukozidaznuaktivnost (IC50=9,98 ± 3,34 μg/ml) i najbolju antibakterijsku aktivnost (MIC 100 μg/ml)prema Staphylococcus aureus i Bacillus subtilis je ispoljio DME ekstrakt C. barbata.Razvojom odgovarajuće HPLC metode, kao i primenom odgovarajućih metodadetekcije identifikovana su tri jedinjenja (diosmetin-7-sulfat, kaftarinska i kutarinska kiselina)u DME ekstraktu morske trave C. nodosa.Sadržaj β-glukana, masnih kiselina, sterola i mikro- i makroelemenata je ispitivan usvim navedenim uzorcima. Najveći sadržaj β-glukana bio je u morskoj travi C. nodosa (13,04± 0,42 g/100 g). C. nodosa, morska trava, pokazala je najviši sadržaj polinezasićenih masnihkiselina (PUFA, 7,157 mg/g). Značajan sadržaj sterola (fukosterol, 21,76 ± 0,1 μg/g) i najboljiodnos polinezasićenih i, The research subject of doctoral dissertation were three seaweeds: Halimeda tuna (J.Ellis & Solander) J.V. Lamouroux (Halimedaceae), Codium bursa (Olivi) C. Agardh(Codiaceae), Cystoseira barbata (Stackhouse) C. Agardh (Sargassaceae) and the oneseagrass Cymodocea nodosa (Urcia) Acherson (Cymodoceaceae) from the Adriatic Sea.Nutritional value of selected samples were investigated by official AOAC(Association of Official Analytical Chemists) methods. The highest energy value had thegreen seaweed C. bursa (490,4 kcal).Using the cold maceration extraction, lasting 48 h, the three polar extracts wereobtained: dichlormetan: methanol (1:1) (DME), 70 % methanol and aquous extracts. The dryextracts were further used for biological in vitro investigations, such as: antioxidative,antimicrobial, anti α-glucosidase and cytotoxic activity.DME extract of H. tuna has shown the best cytotoxic activity against human coloncarcinoma cell line, LS174 (IC50=17,92 ± 1,54 μg/ml). DME extract of C. nodosa had strongcytotoxicity against human adenocarcinoma cell line, HeLa (IC50=13,28 ± 0,39 μg/ml) andhuman chronic myelogenous leukaemia cell line, K562 (IC50=19,64 ± 1,55 μg/ml). The bestanti α-glucosidase (IC50=9,98 ± 3,34 μg/ml) and best antibacterial activity (minimal inhibitoryconcentration of 100 μg/ml) for Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis wasdemonstrated in DME extract of seagrass C. nodosa.Developing the appropriate HPLC method, accompained with the appropriatedetection methods, the three compounds were identified (diosmetin-7-sulfate, caftaric andcoutaric acid) in the DME extract of seagrass C. nodosa.The content of β-glucan, fatty acids, sterols and micro- and macroelements wereinvestigated in all samples. The highest content of β-glucan was detected in C. nodosaseagrass (13,04 ± 0,42 g/100 g). C. nodosa had also the highest level of polyunsaturated fattyacids (PUFAs) (7,157 mg/g). Significant sterol content (fucosterol, 21,76 ± 0,1 μg/g) and thebest ratio of polyunsaturate

Purpose: Sea macroalgae are an important source of biologically highly valuable compounds. The main aim of this study was to investigate the in vitro anticancer properties and chemical composition of the dichloromethane-methanol extract and three fractions of the Fucus spiralis from coastline of Morocco. Methods: Fractions were made from dichloromethane: methanol (1:1) extract of Fucus spiralis: petroleum-ether, ethyl-acetate and n-butanol. Extract and fractions were screened for in vitro cytotoxicity by MTT assay against human cervical adenocarcinoma (HeLa), colorectal adenocarcinoma (LS-174T), lung carcinoma (A549), and normal human lung fibroblasts (MRC-5). Cell cycle distribution of the HeLa cells was evaluated using flow cytometry. Acridine orange (AO)-ethidium bromide (EB) staining was used to assess morphological changes of HeLa cells under fluorescence microscope. Anti-migration and anti-angiogenic properties were investigated using scratch and tube formation assays against human endothelium-derived permanent EA.hy926 cell line. Antidiabetic activity was tested using anti-α-glucosidase assay. Antimicrobial effect was tested using micro- dilution method. Results: Petroleum-ether fraction оf Fucus spiralis rich in fatty acids exerted the highest cytotoxicity against HeLa cells. Ethyl-acetate and petroleum-ether fractions induced the highest accumulation of the HeLa cells in sub-G1 and G2/M phases. Extract and fractions showed proapoptotic effect on HeLa cells under fluorescent microscope. They exhibited antimigratory and antiangiogenic effects in vitro. IC50 value for α-glucosidase inhibitory activity was much stronger than standard acarbose. n-Butanol fraction exerted the highest antibacterial and antifungal activity. Conclusions: The investigation of various biological activities of the extract and fractions obtained from Fucus spiralis may suggest a promising anticancer and pharmacological potential of this edible macroalga.

Predmet istraživanja ove doktorske disertacije su tri morske alge: Halimeda tuna (J. Ellis & Solander) J.V. Lamouroux (Halimedaceae), Codium bursa (Olivi) C. Agardh (Codiaceae), Cystoseira barbata (Stackhouse) C. Agardh (Sargassaceae) i morska trava Cymodocea nodosa (Urcia) Ascherson (Cymodoceaceae) iz Jadranskog mora. Nutritivna vrednost odabranih uzoraka je ispitivana korišćenjem zvaničnih AOAC (Association of Official Analytical Chemists) metoda. Najveću energetsku vrednost, u navedenim ispitivanjima, imala je zelena alga C. bursa (490,4 kcal). Metodom hladne maceracije u trajanju od 48 sati, dobijena su tri polarna ekstrakta: dihlormetan : metanolni (1:1) (DME), 70% metanolni i vodeni ekstrakt. Suvi ekstrakti su dalje korišćeni za biološka in vitro ispitivanja kao što su: antioksidativna, antimikrobna, anti α- glukozidazna i citotoksična aktivnost. DME ekstrakt H. tuna je pokazao najbolju citotoksičnu aktivnost prema ćelijama humanog karcinoma kolona, LS174 (IC50=17,92 ± 1,54 μg/ml). DME ekstrakt C. nodosa je pokazao snažnu citotoksičnu aktivnost prema ćelijama humanog adenokarcinoma, HeLa (IC50=13,28 ± 0,39 μg/ml) i prema ćelijama humane hronične mijelogene leukemije, K562 (IC50=19,64 ± 1,55 μg/ml). Najbolju anti α-glukozidaznu aktivnost (IC50=9,98 ± 3,34 μg/ml) i najbolju antibakterijsku aktivnost (MIC 100 μg/ml) prema Staphylococcus aureus i Bacillus subtilis je ispoljio DME ekstrakt C. barbata. Razvojom odgovarajuće HPLC metode, kao i primenom odgovarajućih metoda detekcije identifikovana su tri jedinjenja (diosmetin-7-sulfat, kaftarinska i kutarinska kiselina) u DME ekstraktu morske trave C. nodosa. Sadržaj β-glukana, masnih kiselina, sterola i mikro- i makroelemenata je ispitivan u svim navedenim uzorcima. Najveći sadržaj β-glukana bio je u morskoj travi C. nodosa (13,04 ± 0,42 g/100 g). C. nodosa, morska trava, pokazala je najviši sadržaj polinezasićenih masnih kiselina (PUFA, 7,157 mg/g). Značajan sadržaj sterola (fukosterol, 21,76 ± 0,1 μg/g) i najbolji, The research subject of doctoral dissertation were three seaweeds: Halimeda tuna (J. Ellis & Solander) J.V. Lamouroux (Halimedaceae), Codium bursa (Olivi) C. Agardh (Codiaceae), Cystoseira barbata (Stackhouse) C. Agardh (Sargassaceae) and the one seagrass Cymodocea nodosa (Urcia) Acherson (Cymodoceaceae) from the Adriatic Sea. Nutritional value of selected samples were investigated by official AOAC (Association of Official Analytical Chemists) methods. The highest energy value had the green seaweed C. bursa (490,4 kcal). Using the cold maceration extraction, lasting 48 h, the three polar extracts were obtained: dichlormetan: methanol (1:1) (DME), 70 % methanol and aquous extracts. The dry extracts were further used for biological in vitro investigations, such as: antioxidative, antimicrobial, anti α-glucosidase and cytotoxic activity. DME extract of H. tuna has shown the best cytotoxic activity against human colon carcinoma cell line, LS174 (IC50=17,92 ± 1,54 μg/ml). DME extract of C. nodosa had strong cytotoxicity against human adenocarcinoma cell line, HeLa (IC50=13,28 ± 0,39 μg/ml) and human chronic myelogenous leukaemia cell line, K562 (IC50=19,64 ± 1,55 μg/ml). The best anti α-glucosidase (IC50=9,98 ± 3,34 μg/ml) and best antibacterial activity (minimal inhibitory concentration of 100 μg/ml) for Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus subtilis was demonstrated in DME extract of seagrass C. nodosa. Developing the appropriate HPLC method, accompained with the appropriate detection methods, the three compounds were identified (diosmetin-7-sulfate, caftaric and coutaric acid) in the DME extract of seagrass C. nodosa. The content of β-glucan, fatty acids, sterols and micro- and macroelements were investigated in all samples. The highest content of β-glucan was detected in C. nodosa seagrass (13,04 ± 0,42 g/100 g). C. nodosa had also the highest level of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) (7,157 mg/g). Significant sterol content (fucosterol, 21,76 ± 0,1 μg/g) and the bes

Three seaweeds (Halimeda tuna, Codium bursa and Cystoseira barbata) and one seagrass (Cymodocea nodosa) were collected from the Coast of Montenegro, Gulf of Boka Kotorska and their chemical analysis was performed. In seagrass C. nodosa, three phenolic compounds were identified (diosmetin 7-sulfate, caftaric and coutaric acid). The content of β-glucan, fatty acids, sterols and micro- and macro-elements were investigated among all samples. The highest content of β-glucan was detected in C. nodosa seagrass (13.04±0.42 g/100 g). The highest polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) level was reported in C. barbata, the brown alga (7.157 mg/g), which also had the significant sterol content (fucosterol, 21.76±0.1 μg/g). Green algae, C. bursa and H. tuna, showed the highest level of sterols (β-sitosterol, 95.21±0.16 μg/g and 73.90±0.08 μg/g, respectively). H. tuna had the highest content of calcium (Ca) in amount of 55125 μg/g. In C. bursa, C. barbata and C. nodosa, the Na/K ratio was low (0.43, 0.46 and 0.69, respectively).

The recently discovered chitin-based scaffolds derived from poriferans have the necessary prosperities for potential use in tissue engineering. Among the various demosponges of the Verongida order, Aplysina aerophoba is an attractive target for more in-depth investigations, as it is a renewable source of unique 3D microporous chitinous scaffolds. We found these chitinous scaffolds were cytocompatible and supported attachment, growth and proliferation of human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs) in vitro. Cultivation of hMSCs on the scaffolds for 7days resulted in a two-fold increase in their metabolic activity, indicating increased cell numbers. Cells cultured onto chitin scaffolds in differentiation media were able to differentiate into the chondrogenic, adipogenic and osteogenic lineages, respectively. These results indicate A. aerophoba is a novel source of chitin scaffolds to futher hMSCs-based tissue engineering strategies.

The first recorded population of Pinctada radiata in the Adriatic Sea was observed on the pier in Porto Montenegro marina (Tivat, Montenegro), in August 2016. Numerous individuals inhabited pier walls at a depth of 5 m. The shell height (SH) values for the 15 randomly collected individuals of P. radiata ranged between 32.2 mm and 52.1 mm with an average SH value of 38.3 mm (standard deviation ±6.1). Further surveys in Montenegro will provide information on the establishment of the observed population and what is its impact on local biodiversity., Prvi nalazi populacije Pinctada radiata u Jadranskom moru se odnose na dokove marine Porto Montenegro (Tivat, Crna Gora), u kolovozu 2016. godine. Na zidovima dokova zabilježene su brojne jedinke na dubini od 5m. Visina ljušture (SH) za 15 slučajno odabranih jedinki P. radiata je kolebala od 32.2 mm do 52.1 mm sa srednjom vrijednošću od 38.3 mm (stand. dev. ±6.1). Daljna istraživanja u Crnoj Gori će omogućiti informacije o uspješnosti uspostavljanja ove populacije i njenom uticaju na lokalnu bioraznolikost.