Functional diversity and metabolic response in benthic communities along an ocean acidification gradient.

Altered ocean chemistry caused by ocean acidification (OA) is expected to have negative repercussions at different levels of the ecological hierarchy, starting from the individual and scaling up to the community and ultimately to the ecosystem level. Understanding the effects of OA on benthic organisms is of primary importance given their relevant ecological role in maintaining marine ecosystem functioning. The use of functional traits represents an effective technique to investigate how species adapt to altered environmental conditions and can be used to predict changes in the resilience of communities faced with stresses associated with climate change. Artificial supports were deployed for 1-y along a natural pH gradient in the shallow hydrothermal systems of the Bottaro crater near Panarea (Aeolian Archipelago, southern Tyrrhenian Sea), to explore changes in functional traits and metabolic rates of benthic communities and the repercussions in terms of functional diversity. Changes in community composition due to OA were accompanied by modifications in functional diversity. Altered conditions led to higher oxygen consumption in the acidified site and the selection of species with the functional traits needed to withstand OA. Calcification rate and reproduction were found to be the traits most affected by pH variations. A reduction in a community's functional evenness could potentially reduce its resilience to further environmental or anthropogenic stressors. These findings highlight the ability of the ecosystem to respond to climate change and provide insights into the modifications that can be expected given the predicted future pCO2 scenarios. Understanding the impact of climate change on functional diversity and thus on community functioning and stability is crucial if we are to predict changes in ecosystem vulnerability, especially in a context where OA occurs in combination with other environmental changes and anthropogenic stressors.

The stakeholder's perception of socio-economic impacts generated by COVID-19 pandemic within the Italian aquaculture systems.

From the beginning of March 2020 and for the following two and half months, many European countries comprising Italy have been forced into an unprecedented lockdown, allowing only the opening of essential economic activities needed to address the problems created by the pandemic (e.g. sanitary, food provision). Like many sectors of the Italian economy, aquaculture has also slowed down due to the ongoing emergency and the consequent closure of business. In our study we provided a 'snapshot' of the socio-economic effects of the lockdown on the aquaculture sector in Italy, immediately following the adoption of the COVID-19 restrictions as they were perceived by the workers. Although it was surveyed for a short-time period, differences in perception have been detected both in relation to the type of aquaculture as well as to the geographic locations where farms were placed, partially reflecting the economic gaps already existing within the northern and the southern part of the country before the lockdown.

The aquaculture supply chain in the time of covid-19 pandemic: Vulnerability, resilience, solutions and priorities at the global scale.

The COVID-19 global pandemic has had severe, unpredictable and synchronous impacts on all levels of perishable food supply chains (PFSC), across multiple sectors and spatial scales. Aquaculture plays a vital and rapidly expanding role in food security, in some cases overtaking wild caught fisheries in the production of high-quality animal protein in this PFSC. We performed a rapid global assessment to evaluate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and related emerging control measures on the aquaculture supply chain. Socio-economic effects of the pandemic were analysed by surveying the perceptions of stakeholders, who were asked to describe potential supply-side disruption, vulnerabilities and resilience patterns along the production pipeline with four main supply chain components: a) hatchery, b) production/processing, c) distribution/logistics and d) market. We also assessed different farming strategies, comparing land- vs. sea-based systems; extensive vs. intensive methods; and with and without integrated multi-trophic aquaculture, IMTA. In addition to evaluating levels and sources of economic distress, interviewees were asked to identify mitigation solutions adopted at local / internal (i.e., farm-site) scales, and to express their preference on national / external scale mitigation measures among a set of a priori options. Survey responses identified the potential causes of disruption, ripple effects, sources of food insecurity, and socio-economic conflicts. They also pointed to various levels of mitigation strategies. The collated evidence represents a first baseline useful to address future disaster-driven responses, to reinforce the resilience of the sector and to facilitate the design reconstruction plans and mitigation measures, such as financial aid strategies.

Evaluation of CZ-resin vials for packaging protein-based parenteral formulations.

Due to the fact that some proteins have a tendency to bind to glass surfaces, plastic CZ-resin vials were evaluated as an alternative material to glass vials for packaging protein-based parenteral formulations. Physico-chemical tests including protein binding, extractable evaluation, oxygen permeation, light transmission and moisture loss were performed. Data show that two proteins (A and B) were found to bind to USP type I glass but not to CZ-resin. The CZ-resin vials passed all USP test specifications for extractables (organic extractable, non-volatile residue and residue on ignition). The oxygen permeation rate (79.06 cm(3)mm/m(2)24 h atm) was consistent with that reported by the vendor (67 cm(3)mm/m(2)24 h atm). The value obtained for light transmission, which was also found to be consistent with that reported by the vendor, shows that these vials offer no protection from light. The average moisture loss from 2 cm(3) vials filled with water was gravimetrically determined to be 0.04 mg/day/vial when the vials were stored at 40 degrees C/75% relative humidity (RH). Assuming a 1cm(3) product fill, this corresponds to approximately a 3% loss over a 2-year period. However, moisture loss was found to be negligible at the typical storage condition of 5 degrees C for protein formulations. The physico-chemical tests indicate that CZ-resin vial is a suitable candidate for packaging parenteral formulations since it shows low moisture loss at typical storage condition of 5 degrees C, and does not leach out extractables. However, it should not be used for light-sensitive and oxygen-sensitive parenteral formulations. For proteins A and B, the CZ-resin vial is a viable alternate to the use of glass vials since it offered significantly less protein binding. Protein binding in general, should be evaluated on a case by case basis, since it may vary for different proteins and under different formulation conditions.

Iontophoretic transport of a homologous series of ionized and nonionized model compounds: influence of hydrophobicity and mechanistic interpretation.

An in vitro study was carried out to elucidate the mechanisms controlling iontophoretic transport. The investigation focused on three areas, including the nature of the permeant (state of ionization and hydrophobicity), skin structures (hair follicle distribution and stratum corneum), and various parameters influencing iontophoresis (current, permeant concentration, and competitive ion effects). The data indicate that iontophoretic-facilitated transport is essentially pore mediated and that the transport of ionized and nonionized molecules may be enhanced through the pore-type pathway. The data presented show that iontophoresis has a detrimental effect on the lipoidal transport pathway and that the transport of more hydrophobic nonionized molecules is decreased compared with passive diffusion. The iontophoretic enhancement values decreased linearly with increasing alkyl chain length of n-alkanols. The iontophoretic permeability coefficients of ionized n-alkanoic acids was shown to decrease with increasing permeant hydrophobicity.