2013

ISI Journal Papers

Andrikou C., Iovene E., Rizzo F., Oliveri P., Arnone M.I. (2013). Myogenesis in the sea urchin embryo: the molecular fingerprint of the myoblast precursors. EvoDevo, 4(1):33. DOI: 10.1186/2041-9139-4-33.

Annunziata R., Martinez P., Arnone M.I. (2013). Intact cluster and chordate-like expression of ParaHox genes in a sea star. BMC Biology, 11: 68. DOI: 10.1186/1741-7007-11-68.

Annunziata R., Perillo M., Andrikou C,. Cole A., Martinez P., Arnone M.I. (2013). Pattern and Process During Sea Urchin Gut Morphogenesis: the Regulatory Landscape. Genesis, 52(3): 251-268. DOI: 10.1002/dvg.22738.

Basu S., Müller F., Sanges R. (2013). Examples of sequence conservation analyses capture a subset of mouse long non-coding RNAs sharing homology with fish conserved genomic elements. BMC Bioinformatics, 14(Suppl 7): S14. DOI: 10.1186/1471-2105-14-S7-S14.

Chun J.T., Vasilev F., Santella L. (2013). Antibody Against The Actin-Binding Protein Depactin Attenuates Ca²⁺ Signaling In Starfish Eggs. Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 441(2): 301-307.

Costantini M., Alvarez-Valin F., Costantini S., Cammarano R., Bernardi G. (2013). Compositional patterns in the genomes of unicellular eukaryotes. BMC Genomics, 14: 755. DOI: 10.1186/1471-2164-14-755.

Costantini S., Sharma A., Raucci R., Costantini M., Autiero I., Colonna G. (2013). Genealogy of an ancient protein family: the Sirtuins, a family of disordered members. BMC Evolutionary Biology, 13: 60. DOI: 10.1186/1471-2148-13-60.

Ferriero R., Manco G., Lamantea E., Nusco E., Ferrante M.I., Sordino P., Stacpoole P.W., Lee B., Zeviani M., Brunetti-Pierri N. (2013). Phenylbutyrate therapy for pyruvate dehydrogenase complex deficiency and lactic acidosis. Science Translational Medicine, 5: 175ra31. DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.3004986.

Gallo A., Russo G.L., Tosti E. (2013). T-type Ca²⁺ current activity during oocyte growth and maturation in the ascidian Styela plicata. PLoS One, 8(1): 54e604. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0054604.

Gallo A., Tosti E. (2013). Adverse Effect of Antifouling Compounds on the Reproductive Mechanisms of the Ascidian Ciona intestinalis. Marine Drugs, 11: 3554-3568. DOI: 10.3390/md11093554.

Ikuta T., Chen Y.C., Annunziata R., Ting H.C., Tung C.H., Koyanagi R., Tagawa K., Humphreys T., Fujiyama A., Saiga H., Satoh N., Yu J.K., Arnone M.I., Su Y.H. (2013). Identification of an intact ParaHox cluster with temporal colinearity but residual spatial colinearity in the hemichordate Ptychodera flava. BMC Evolutionary Biology, 13(1): 129.

Locatello L., Fiorito G., Finos L., Rasotto M. B. (2013). Behavioural and immunological responses to an immune challenge in Octopus vulgaris. Physiology & Behavior, 122: 93-99. DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2013.08.029.

Mattiello T., d’Ischia M., Palumbo A. (2013). Nitric oxide in chromatic body patterning elements of Sepia officinalis. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 447: 128-131. DOI:10.1016/j.jembe.2013.02.019.

Pascual-Anaya J., D’Aniello S., Kuratani S., Garcia-Fernàndez J. (2013). Evolution of the Hox clusters in deuterostomes. BMC Developmental Biology, 13: 26. DOI:10.1186/1471-213X-13-26.

Peterson K.J., Su Y.H., Arnone M.I., Swalla B., King B. (2013). MicroRNAs Support the Monophyly of Enteropneust Hemichordates. Journal of experimental zoology. Part B, Molecular and developmental evolution, 320(6): 368-74. DOI: 10.1002/jez.b.22510.

Sanges R., Hadzhiev Y., Gueroult-Bellone M., Roure A., Ferg M., Meola N., Amore G., Basu S., Brown E.R., De Simone M., Petrera F., Licastro D., Strähle U., Banfi S., Lemaire P., Birney E., Müller F., Stupka E. (2013). Highly conserved elements discovered in vertebrates are present in non-syntenic loci of tunicates, act as enhancers and can be transcribed during development. Nucleic Acids Research, 41(6): 3600-3618. DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkt030.

Tosti E., Boni R., Gallo A., Silvestre F. (2013). Ion currents modulating oocyte maturation in animals. Systems Biology in Reproductive Medicine, 59(2): 61-68. DOI: 10.3109/19396368.2012.758790.

Ullrich-Lüter E., D’Aniello S., Arnone M.I. (2013). C-opsin expressing photoreceptors in echinoderms. Integrative & Comparative Biology, 53: 27-38. DOI: 10.1093/icb/ict050.

Chapters

Amodio P. and Fiorito G. (2013). Observational and Other Types of Learning in Octopus' in Menzel R. and Benjamin P.R. (Eds.). Invertebrate Learning and Memory. London, UK. Elsevier: 293-302.

Chun J.T. and Santella L. (2013). Intracellular Calcium Waves' in Lennarz W.J. and Lane M.D. (Eds.) The Encyclopedia of Biological Chemistry. Waltham, USA. Academic Press: 648-647.

Santella L., and Chun J.T. (2013). Calcium signaling by cyclic ADP-ribose and NAADP' in Lennarz W.J. and Lane M.D. (Eds.) The Encyclopedia of Biological Chemistry. Waltham, USA. Academic Press: 331-336.

2012

ISI Journal Papers

Balato A., Lembo S., Mattii M., Schiattarella M., Marino R., De Paulis A., Balato A. (2012). IL-33 is secreted by psoriatic keratinocytes and induces pro-inflamation cytokines via keratinocyte and mast cell activation. Experimental dermatology, 21(11): 892-4. Erratum in: Experimental dermatology: 21(12):977. DOI: 10.1111/exd.12027.

Costantini M., Auletta F., Bernardi G. (2012). The distribution of "new" and "old" Alu sequences in the human genome: the solution of a "mystery". Molecular Biology and Evolution, 29(1): 421-427. DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msr242.

Ercolesi E., Tedeschi G., Fiore G., Negri A., Maffioli E., d’Ischia M., Palumbo A. (2012). Protein nitration as footprint of oxidative stress-related nitric oxide signaling pathways in developing Ciona intestinalis. Nitric Oxide, 27(1): 18-24. DOI: 10.1016/j.niox.2012.03.012.

Esposito R., D’Aniello S., Squarzoni P., Pezzotti M.R., Ristoratore F., Spagnuolo A. (2012). New Insights into the Evolution of Metazoan Tyrosinase Gene Family. PLoS ONE, 7: e35731. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0035731.

Fago A., Jensen F.B., Tota B., Feelisch M., Olson K.R., Helbo S., Lefevre S., Mancardi D., Palumbo A., Sandvik G.K., Skovgaard N. (2012). Integrating nitric oxide, nitrite and hydrogen sulfide signaling in the physiological adaptations to hypoxia: a comparative approach. Comparative biochemistry and physiology. Part A, Molecular & integrative physiology, 162(1): 1-6. DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2012.01.011.

Gallo A., Costantini M. (2012). Glycobiology in reproductive processes in marine animals: the state of art. Marine Drugs, 10(12): 2861-2892. DOI: 10.3390/md10122861.

Gennarino V.A., D'Angelo G., Dharmalingam G., Fernandez S., Russolillo G., Sanges R., Mutarelli M., Belcastro V., Ballabio A., Verde P., Sardiello M., Banfi S. (2012). Identification of microRNA-regulated gene networks by expression analysis of target genes. Genome research, 22(6): 1163-1172. DOI: 10.1101/gr.130435.111. 

Giacomelli S., Melillo D., Lambris J.D., Pinto M.R. (2012). Immune competence of the Ciona intestinalis pharynx: Complement system-mediated activity. Fish & Shellfish Immunology, 33: 946-952. DOI: 10.1016/j.fsi.2012.08.003.

Josef N., Amodio P., Fiorito G., Shashar N. (2012). Camouflaging in a complex environment-octopuses use specific features of their surroundings for background matching. PLoS ONE, 7(5): e37579. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0037579.

Junca A., Gonzalez Marti B., Tosti E., Cohen M., De la Fontaine D., Benkhalifa M., Ménézo Y. (2012). Sperm nucleus decondensation, hyaluronic acid (HA) binding and oocyte activation capacity: different markers of sperm immaturity? Case reports. Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics, 29(4): 353–355. DOI: 10.1007/s10815-012-9710-5.

López-Doménech G., Serrat R., Mirra S., D’Aniello S., Somorjai I., Abad A., Vitureira N., García-Arumí E., Alonso M.T., Rodriguez-Prados M., Burgaya F., Andreu A.L., García-Sancho J., Trullas R., García-Fernàndez J., Soriano E. (2012). The Eutherian Armcx genes regulate mitochondrial trafficking in neurons and interacts with Miro and Trak2. Nature Communications, 3: 814. DOI: 10.1038/ncomms1829.

Marrone V., Piscopo M., Romano G., Ianora A., Palumbo A., Costantini M. (2012). Defensome against toxic diatom aldehydes in the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus. PLoS ONE, 7: e31750. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0031750.

Mattiello T., Costantini M., Di Matteo B., Livigni S., Andouche A., Bonnaud L., Palumbo A. (2012). The dynamic nitric oxide pattern in developing cuttlefish Sepia officinalis. Developmental Dynamics, 241(2): 390-402. DOI: 10.1002/dvdy.23722. 

Oliveira P., Sanges R., Huntsman D., Stupka E., Oliveira C. (2012). Characterization of the intronic portion of cadherin superfamily members, common cancer orchestrators. European Journal of Human Genetics, 20(8): 878-883. DOI: 10.1038/ejhg.2012.11. 

Pascual-Anaya J., Adachi N., Alvarez S., Kuratani N., D’Aniello S., Garcia-Fernàndez J. (2012). Broken colinearity of amphioxus Hox cluster. EvoDevo, 3: 28. DOI: 10.1186/2041-9139-3-28.

Pinheiro H., Carvalho J., Oliveira P., Ferreira D., Pinto M.T., Osório H., Licastro D., Bordeira-Carriço R., Jordan P., Lazarevic D., Sanges R., Stupka E., Huntsman D., Seruca R., Oliveira C. (2012). Transcription initiation arising from E-cadherin/CDH1 intron2: a novel protein isoform that increases gastric cancer cell invasion and angiogenesis. Human molecular genetics, 21(19): 4253-4269. DOI: 10.1093/hmg/dds248.

Porreca I., De Felice E., Fagman H., Di Lauro R., Sordino P., (2012). Zebrafish bcl2l is a survival factor in thyroid development. Developmental Biology, 366(2): 142-152. DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2012.04.013.

Santella L., Vasilev F., Chun J.T. (2012). Fertilization in echinoderms. Biochemical and biophysical research communications, 425(3): 588-594. DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2012.07.159.

Silvestre F., Fissore R.A., Tosti E., Boni R. (2012). Ca²⁺ rise at in vitro maturation in bovine cumulus-oocyte complexes. Molecular reproduction and development, 79(6): 369-379. DOI: 10.1002/mrd.22038.

Thessalou M., Aydogan Ö., Bekas P., Bilge G., Boyaci Y.Ö., Brunelli E., Circosta V., Crocetta F., Durucan F., Erdem M., Ergolavou A., Filiz H., Fois F., Gouva E., Kapiris K., Katsanevakis S., Kljajić Z., Konstantinidis E., Κonstantinou G., Koutsogiannopoulos D., Lamon S., Mačić V., Mazzette R., Meloni D., Mureddu A., Paschos I., Perdikaris C., Piras F., Poursanidis D., Ramos-Esplá A.A., Rosso A., Sordino P., Sperone E., Sterioti A., Taşkin E., Toscano F., Tripepi S., Tsiakkiros S., Zenetos A, (2012). New Mediterranean Biodiversity Records. Mediterranean Marine Science, 13(2): 312-327. DOI: 10.12681/mms.313.

Vasilev F., Chun J.T., Gragnaniello G., Garante E., Santella L. (2012). Effects of Ionomycin on egg activation and early development in starfish. PLoS One, 7(6): e39231. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0039231.

Other Publications

Dishaw L.J., Flores-Torres J.A., Mueller M.G., Karrer C.R., Skapura D.P., Zucchetti I., De Santis R., Pinto M.R., Litman G.W. (2012). A Basal chordate model for studies of gut microbial immune interactions. Frontiers in Immunology, 3: 96. DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2012.00096.

2011

Brown ER, Piscopo S (2011). Ion channels in key marine invertebrates; their diversity and potential for applications in biotechnology. Biotech. Adv., 29: 457-467

Canali E, Ponte G, Belcari P, Rocha F, Fiorito G, 2011. Evaluating age in Octopus vulgaris: estimation, validation and seasonal differences. Marine Ecology Progress Series, 441: 141-149.

Crocetta F. (2011). Marine alien Mollusca in the Gulf of Trieste and neighbouring areas: a critical review and state of knowledge (updated in 2011). Acta Adriatica, 52: 247-260  

Crocetta F., Mifsud S., Paolini P., Piscopo J., Schembri P.J. (2011). New records of the genus Pachygrapsus (Crustacea: Decapoda) from the central Mediterranean Sea with a review of its Mediterranean zoogeography. Medit. Mar. Sci., 12: 75-93 

D'Aniello E., Pezzotti M.R., Locascio A., Branno M. (2011). Onecut is a direct neural-specific transcriptional activator of Rx in Ciona intestinalis. Developmental Biology, 355: 358-371

De Gregoris T.B.; Rupp O., Klages S., Knaust F., Bekel T., Kube M. Burgess J.G.; Arnone M.I., Goesmann A., Reinhardt R., Clare A.S. (2011). Deep sequencing of naupliar-, cyprid- and adult-specific normalised Expressed Sequence Tag (EST) libraries of the acorn barnacle Balanus amphitrite. Biofouling, 27: 367-374

Dishaw L.J.; Giacomelli S.; Melillo D.; Zucchetti I.; Haire R.N., Natale L., Russo N.A., De Santis R., Litman G.W., Pinto M.R. (2011). A role for variable region-containing chitin-binding proteins (VCBPs) in host gut-bacteria interactions. PNAS, 108: 16747-16752

Esposito C.L.. Passaro D., Longobardo I., Condorelli G., Marotta P., Affuso A., de Franciscis V., Cerchia L. (2011). A Neutralizing RNA Aptamer against EGFR Causes Selective Apoptotic Cell Death. PLOS ONE, 6: e24071  

Fagman H., Amendola E., Parrillo L., Zoppoli P., Marotta P., Scarfo M., De Luca P., de Carvalho D.P., Ceccarelli M., De Felice M., Di Lauro R. (2011) Gene expression profiling at early organogenesis reveals both common and diverse mechanisms in foregut patterning. Dev. Biol., 359: 163-17

Fortunato A., Tosti E. (2011). The impact of in vitro fertilization on health of the children: an update. Eur. J. Obst. Gyn Repr. Biol, 154: 125-129

Fortunato A.E., Langellotto F., Sordino P. (2011). Identification and expression of soul/p22HBP genes in zebrafish, Gene Expression Patterns, 11: 360-369

Gallo A., Silvestre F., Cuomo A., Papoff F., Tosti E. (2011). The impact of metals on the reproductive mechanisms of the ascidian Ciona intestinalis. Mar Ecol.-Evol Perspect., 32: 222-231

Margheri L, Ponte G, Mazzolai B, Laschi C and Fiorito G, 2011. Non-invasive study of Octopus vulgaris arm morphology using ultrasound. Journal of Experimental Biology, 214: 3727-3731.

Natale A., Sims C., Chiusano M.L., Amoroso A., D'Aniello E., Fucci L., Krumlauf R., Branno M., Locascio A. (2011). Evolution of anterior Hox regulatory elements among chordates. BMC Evol. Biol., 11: 330  DOI: 10.1186/1471-2148-11-330 

Romano G., Costantini M., Buttino I., Ianora A., Palumbo A. (2011). Nitric Oxide Mediates the Stress Response Induced by Diatom Aldehydes in the Sea Urchin Paracentrotus lividus. PLOS ONE, 6: e25980

Santella L., Chun J.T. (2011). Actin, more than just a housekeeping protein at the scene of fertilization. SCIENCE CHINA-LIFE SCIENCES, 54: 733-743

Shomrat T, Graindorge N, Bellanger C, Fiorito G, Loewenstein Y, and Hochner B, 2011. Alternative Sites of Synaptic Plasticity in Two Homologous ‘"Fan-out Fan-in"’ Learning and Memory Networks. Current Biology, 21: 1-10. 

Silberschmidt, D., Rodriguez-Mallon, A., Mithboakar, P., Cali, G., Amendola, E., Sanges, R., Zannini, M., Scarfo, M., De Luca, P., Nitsch, L., Di Lauro, R., De Felice, M (2011). In vivo role of different domains and of phosphorylation in the transcription factor Nkx2-1. BMC Dev. Biol., 11:9  DOI: 10.1186/1471-213X-11-9

Silvestre, F., Gallo, A., Cuomo, A., Covino, T., Tosti, E (2011). Role of cyclic AMP in the maturation of Ciona intestinalis oocytes. Zygote, 19: 365-371

Squarzoni, P., Parveen, F., Zanetti, L., Ristoratore, F., Spagnuolo, A (2011). FGF/MAPK/Ets signaling renders pigment cell precursors competent to respond to Wnt signal by directly controlling Ci-Tcf transcription. Development, 138: 1421-1432

Tosti, E., Gallo, A., Silvestre, F (2011). Ion Currents Involved in Oocyte Maturation, Fertilization and Early Developmental Stages of the Ascidian Ciona intestinalis. Molec. Reprod. Develop., 78: 854-860 

Tricarico E, Borrelli L, Gherardi F, Fiorito G, 2011. I Know My Neighbour: Individual Recognition in Octopus vulgaris. Plos One, 6(4): e18710

Ullrich-Luter, EM., Dupont, S., Arboleda, E., Hausen, H., Arnone, MI (2011). Unique system of photoreceptors in sea urchin tube feet. PNAS, 108: 8367-8372

Zenetos, A., Katsanevakis, S., Poursanidis, D., Crocetta, F., Damalas, D., Apostolopoulos, G., Gravili, C., Vardala-Theodorou, E., Malaquias, M (2011). Marine alien species in Greek Seas: Additions and amendments by 2010. Medit Marine Sci., 12: 95-120

Chapters

Procaccini G., Affinito O., Toscano F., Sordino P. (2011) A New Animal Model for Merging Ecology and Evolution Evolutionary Biology In: Concepts, Biodiversity, Macroevolution and Genome Evolution, Pontarotti P. (Ed), Springer Berlin Heidelberg, p. 91-106

22 October-2 November 2018
Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn Naples, Italy

For many zooplanktonic species, the taxonomic status is still unresolved because the descriptions are insufficient for the complexity of morphological characters. Moreover, many cryptic or sibling species have been recently detected with molecular analyses. Only the integration of morphological and molecular approaches, coupled with phylogenetic analyses, will allow us to resolve the taxonomic problems that still hinder our clear comprehension of species distribution and evolution.

The Marine Organism Taxonomy Service at the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn of Naples has launched a series of Advanced Zooplankton Courses (AZC) to provide an advanced training on integrative morphological and molecular taxonomy of marine zooplankton.

AZC1 will be focused on copepods and will improve and update the expertise in species identification of selected families: Aetideidae, Paracalanidae, Spinocalanidae, Corycaeidae, Oithonidae, and Oncaeidae, which are diverse, common and abundant in epipelagic and/or mesopelagic oceanic waters.

The course will also provide an opportunity to interact and discuss with specialized experts on new challenges of marine copepods taxonomy in the molecular era.

AZC1 is open to 20 participants with documented experience in copepod identification.

Registration fee: 600 €

EMBRC supports AZC1 with funds to cover the fee for three participants.

First Announcement

For more information

INBALANCE - INvertebrate-BActeriaL Associations as hotspots of benthic Nitrogen Cycling in Estuarine ecosystems

While traditionally, bacteria have been considered driving much of the Earth’s nitrogen (N) cycle, recent research shows that ecological interactions between meio-, macrofauna and bacteria are important in regulating N cycling in soft sediments. Thus, the INBALANCE Project aims to unveil the quantitative importance of ecological interactions between microorganisms and their benthic invertebrate hosts in regulating N cycling in shallow estuarine sediments. In particular, this project will investigate the identity and activity of bacteria associated with benthic invertebrate hosts, the most abundant functional group of meio- and macrofauna in estuarine systems, across the full range of possible interactions, from strict symbioses to casual associations.

Partners

Klaipeda University, Lithuania; Stockholm University, Sweden; Cawthron Institute, New Zealand; Università degli Studi di Parma, Italy; Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Italy.

Project Lifetime

2018 – 2021

SZN Role

Partner

SZN Principal Investigator

Ulisse Cardini

Project Coordinator

Mindaugas Zilius (Klaipeda University, Lithuania)

Funding Body

Research Council of Lithuania (LMT) under the European Social Funds (ESF) programme

An holistic understanding of seagrass functioning and resilience to local-scale disturbances: from molecular to biogeographical scales

Summary

The physiological and ecological performance of ‘ecosystem engineers’ (e.g. seagrasses, kelps, corals) change from local to biogeographical scales, in response to contemporary and past processes. Understanding the resilience of ‘ecosystem engineers’ is particularly essential, because the type and number of human-induced disturbances has dramatically increased and global climate change is concurrently imposing high stress levels. The elements that contribute to the resilience of ‘ecosystem engineers’ are majorly unknown, and, therefore, represent a major challenge for modern ecology. The purpose of this proposal is to empirically assess whether genetic diversity, physiological versatility and ecological stability and resilience of an ‘ecosystem engineer’ (here, the seagrass Cymodocea nodosa) are connected from local to biogeographical scales. The implications of this proposal are relevant from a conservation perspective; if this study demonstrates that the resilience of species changes across the species’ distribution range, then conservation policies should be adapted to different regions according to the species capacity to overcome disturbances.

SZN role

Participant Institution involved in the genetic characterization of Cymodocea nodosa populations, and in the assessment of gene expression in controlled conditions.

Principal Investigator

Gabriele Procaccini

Project coordinator

Fernando Tuya Cortés (Universidad De Las Palmas De Gran Canaria)

Project lifetime

2016-2018

Funding Institution

Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad - Spain

Partners

Universidad De Las Palmas De Gran Canaria, Spain; Universidad De Las Islas Baleares, Spain; Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Italy

ABBaCo - Restauro Ambientale e Balneabilità del SIN Bagnoli-Coroglio

Approccio ecosistemico alla pesca ed acquacoltura sostenibile

COCONET - Towards COast to COast NETworks of marine protected areas (from the shore to the high and deep sea), coupled with sea-based wind energy potential

DiaEdit

EMBRIC - European Marine Biological Research Infrastructure Cluster

HEATGRASS - Tolerance to HEAT stress induced by climate change in the seaGRASS Posidonia oceanica

RECCAM - Seagrass Meadows resilience to global warming: an analysis based on responses at ecophysiological, population and ecosystem levels

Restauro Ambientale e Balneabilità del SIN Bagnoli-Coroglio

Summary

Dismissed industrial activities are responsible for persistent environmental degradation, mainly due to long-term accumulation of xenobitic contaminants in the environment. Such a chronic form of pollution represents a major threat for human health, biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Necessary environmental remediation practices should however be coupled to restoration plans aiming at revert the degradation trend and give back healthy areas able to provide valuable ecosystem goods and services. Albeit fully integrated into the EU Restoration Agenda, marine environmental restoration is a new challenging issue in ecology, with Italy coordinating MERCES, the first European project in this field. The environmental restoration of Bagnoli-Coroglio Bay is a unique challenge at European level. ABBACO will develop new approaches for the removal and remediation of contaminated sediments and restoration of marine habitats. Actions include: i) identifying the environmental benchmark of the area; ii) assessing its present health status, iii) studying the effects of contaminated sediments on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning (MSFD), iv) assessing the combined effects of multiple stress at a hierarchical level; (v) experimenting innovative methods of transplantation and restoration of key species and habitats, and new biotechnological instruments for the remediation of sediments (bioremediation, bioaugmentation) in degraded habitats. ABBACO will provide novel expertise and stimulate new initiatives within the Blue Economy Agenda. The project results will be achieved by the actions of 6 intermingled work packages (WPs): WP1 Historic overview of the environmental status; WP2 Assessment of contamination and multiple environmental impact; WP3 Effects on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning; WP4 Holistic approach to the study of multiple stress and risk reduction; WP5 Pilot studies of restoration and rehabilitation; WP6 Evaluating the effects of restoration and rehabilitation procedures; WP0 Project management

What we do

We are coordinator of the project and play a key role in each of the 6 project’s WPs.

Partners

1) Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Napoli; 2) Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS); 3) Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV); 4-5) Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR-ISAC, CNR IAMC); 6) Agenzia Nazionale per le Nuove Tecnologie, l'Energia e lo Sviluppo Economico Sostenibile (ENEA); 7) Università Politecnica delle Marche; 8-9) Università degli Studi di Napoli Federico II (DiB, DICEA); 10) Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”; 11) Università degli Studi di Napoli “Parthenope; 12) Consorzio Nazionale Interuniversitario per le Scienze del Mare (CoNISMa)

Research Area

Multidisciplinary Science

Project Lifetime

8th March 2017 to 7th March 2020

SZN Role

Coordinator

Principal Investigators

Luigi Musco, Vincenzo Saggiomo

Co-Principal Investigator

Lucia Rizzo

SZN people involved

Researchers: Bertocci I (WP4 co-leader), Bottaro M, Cardini U, Carotenuto Y, Castellano I, Costantini M, Crocetta F, D'Ambra I, Ferrante M, Hochscheid S, Locascio A, Marin Guirao L, Munari M, Pepi M, Rastelli E, Ristoratore F, Sansone C, Stefanni S, Zupo V
Experienced Researchers: Brunet C, Buia MC, Casotti R, Gambi MC, Iudicone D, Mazzocchi MG, Montresor M, Procaccini G (WP5 leader), Romano G, Sordino P, Spagnuolo A, Tosti E (WP4 co-leader)
Senior Researchers: Palumbo A, Ribera D’Alcalà M, Santella L, Zingone A (WP3 co-leader)
Associate Researchers: Badalamenti F, Vicinanza D, Vega Fernàndez T (WP1 leader)
Technologists: Conversano F, Margiotta F (WP3 co-leader), Patti FP, Sarno D, Terlizzi F, Toscano A, Saggiomo M
Experienced Technologists: Cirino P
Technicians: Cannavacciuolo M, Di Capua I, Lanzotti G, Passarelli A, Zazo G
Post doc: Gallo A, Guglielmo S, Morroni L (many others to be involved soon)
PhD Students: Dell’Anno F

Funding Institution

MIUR - Fondo Integrativo Speciale per la Ricerca (determina CIPE - GU n.56 8.3.2017)
Contribution to SZN: €2,000,000 (MIUR contribution) plus €1,700,000 (SZN co-financing contribution)

Newsletter N. 2

Newsletter N. 1

Newsletter N. 0

Animal evolution from a cell type perspective: multidisciplinary training in single-cell genomics, evo-devo and in science outreach

Summary

The aim of EvoCELL is to lay the foundation for a new branch of evo-devo focussing on cell types. We will study fundamental questions in animal evolution and development - eg. how new cell types arise in evolution, how many are in common between different animal groups and how many unique cell types have evolved in different animal lineages- using a new technology, single cell sequencing, which we will for the first time employ outside of lab models to sample the great diversity of animal phyla. EvoCELL will train a new generation of multidisciplinary scientists skilled in exploring the vast breadth of animal differentiation. We will jointly sample data from all major animal lineages, richly represented in the biodiversity of European waters, and develop new tools for comparative analyses, through which we will together pioneer three branches of cell evo-devo: evolution of stem cells; emergence of animal life cycles, and the stunning diversity of neural cell types. Through their excellent interdisciplinary and intersectoral training, from single-cell biology and palaeontology to bioinformatics and public outreach, our graduates will be in prime positions to assume leadership roles in academia, industry, and science outreach.

What we do

We are one of ten partners and are contributing to the diversity and evolution of neuronal cell types.

Partners

European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Heidelberg - DE; Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Napoli – IT; Uppsala University, Uppsala – SE; University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg – DE; University of Exeter, Exeter - UK; University College London, London – UK; Sars International Center for Marine Molecular Biology, Bergen – NO; Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Villefranches sur mer, Lion - FR; Non-academic partners: Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin – DE; Genomix4Life, Salerno - IT

Research Area

Organismal Biology

Project Lifetime

January 2018 to December 2022

SZN Role

Partner

Principal Investigator

Maria I. Arnone

People involved

2 ESRs to be hired

Funding Institution

European Commission, Horizon 2020 Call for Proposal: H2020-MSCA-ITN-2017. Grant Agrement no. 766053.

Contribution to SZN

€344081,76 (EU contribution)

Dedicated website

https://www.evocell-itn.eu/

Media - Pictures

Meet the team

Maria I. Arnone, Researcher
Periklis Paganos, PhD student

Summary

ASSEMBLE Plus is a consortium of marine biological research stations in 16 countries, operating under the umbrella of the European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC-ERIC). The consortium provides scientists from academia, industry and government with transnational access to its marine biological research facilities, its historical data, and to advanced training opportunities, ASSEMBLE Plus aims to stimulate fundamental and applied research excellence in marine biology and ecology in Europe.

What we do

The 39 partner stations in the consortium provide access to a wide range of marine ecosystems, including the Red Sea, the Caribbean and Svalbard. We aim at attracting not only marine biological projects but also ones from non-marine sciences and from the private sector. We further aim to improve service provision by developing novel technologies and data solutions. Access to our stations is Trans-National, meaning that you can access ASSEMBLE Plus stations in any partner country other than the country in which you are employed.
If you wish to make use of this access program, you need to submit a short research proposal, and if this is selected, you will be able to carry out your proposed research at a marine partner station of your choice. The expenses of your stay as well as your travel costs will be covered, within certain limits, by ASSEMBLE Plus. If you are employed outside the EU, you can make use of the access program as well, but some restrictions apply.
For more information on ASSEMBLE Plus, including information on calls for proposals, rules, application- and access procedures, and submission deadlines, see http://www.assembleplus.eu. For any specific questions, contact Access Officer Florence Guillot; Email: access (at) embrc.eu

Partners

ASSEMBLE Plus Access Providers in the European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC-ERIC) are:
• EMBRC-Belgium (VLIZ, UGENT),
• EMBRC-France (Sorbonne Universités, CNRS),
• EMBRC-Greece (HCMR),
• EMBRC-Israel (HUJI),
• EMBRC-Italy (SZN, CNR),
• EMBRC-Norway (UiB),
• EMBRC-Portugal (CCMAR, IMAR, CIIMAR),
• EMBRC-Spain (UPV/EHU, UVIGO),
• EMBRC-UK (SAMS, USTAN, MBA, NERC-BAS, MSS),

ASSEMBLE Plus Access Providers not currently member of EMBRC-ERIC:
• Finland (UH),
• Germany (AWI, MPIMM),
• Ireland (NUIG),
• The Netherlands (NIOZ),
• Poland (IOPAN, UG-Gdansk),
• Slovenia (NIB),
• Sweden (UGOT – SLC).

Detailed information on the Access Providers is available on the ASSEMBLE Plus website at http://www.assembleplus.eu/

This distributed partnership provides access to diverse marine ecosystems and their biodiversity of the European coastal seas, the Red Sea (HUJI), the Caribbean (NIOZ), the Arctic (IOPAN) and the Antarctic (NERC-BAS).

Research Area

Research Infrastructure

Project Lifetime

48 months as of 1 October 2017

SZN Role

The SZN lead the Work Package “NA1 Improving Transnational Access (TA) provision”, coordinating the input from UPMC, UGOT, UPV/EHU, CCMAR, VLIZ, MSS.
The main objectives are:
• Establish a policy for regulating, granting and supporting TA;
• Set up single-access point for TA to the offered infrastructure;
• Test TA-pipelines through ASSEMBLE Plus and cognates in joint calls;
• Share best practices among platforms and services;
• Improve the efficiency of TA service provision.

SZN is involved as partner in three Joint Research Activities (JRAs).
JRA1 Genomics observatories
JRA3 Functional genomics
JRA4 Development of instrumentation

TA: In Italy, the SZN coordinates the transnational access to SZN in Naples and Ischia and to its Third Parties ISMAR-CNR in Venice http://www.ismar.cnr.it and IAMC-CNR in Messina http://www.iamc.cnr.it/index.php/contattaci/). All give access to Mediterranean pelagic and benthic hard- and soft bottom ecosystems.

SZN includes the main building in the Villa Comunale in Naples, the benthic ecology laboratory at Ischia Porto and the turtle research centre at Portici. Visitors have access to service platforms and research laboratories. SZN does not operate a guesthouse given ample supply of hotels and B&Bs nearby. SZN has extensive experience with collecting and maintaining model species and performing multi- disciplinary research on these organisms http://www.szn.it/index.php/en/research

Principal Investigator

Wiebe H.C.F. Kooistra

Funding Institution

Université Sorbonne coordinates the project.

Contribution to SZN

€ 1.017.745,25 of which € 289.702,00 to the Third Parties

Dedicated website

http://www.assembleplus.eu/

Coordinated Research Infrastructures Building Enduring Life-science Services

Summary

CORBEL is an initiative of thirteen new biological and medical research infrastructures (BMS RIs), which together will create a platform for harmonised user access to biological and medical technologies, biological samples and data services required by cutting-edge biomedical research. CORBEL will boost the efficiency, productivity and impact of European biomedical research. Individually, the services offered by the BMS RIs are critical to their own user communities. Collectively, through CORBEL, they will be transformative across the range of life-science disciplines: from generation of knowledge at the bench to patient treatment at the bedside.

What we do

The SZN participate to the WP4 (Community Driven Cross-Infrastructure joint research – Bioscience): Use case 4 (Marine Metazoan Developmental Models for BioMedical research - from predictive integrated databases to functional testing), coordinated by CNRS-Villefrances-sur-Mer (Evelyn Houliston). Within this WP the SZN hired for 18 mo the bioinformatician postdoc Elijah K. Lowe to work at enabling genomics and databases for Paracentrotus lividus.

Partners

Altogether, the CORBEL consortium comprises 37 individual partner institutions from 13 ESFRI Biological and Medical Sciences Research Infrastructures (BMS RI). Partners within WP4 are: EMBL-HD, EMBL-EBI, UMCU, ICFO, CRG, BRFAA, HMGU, CIRMMP, CSIC, CNRS, SZN, USTAN, FVB, MDC, VU/VUmc, DKFZ.

Research Area

Research Infrastructure

Project Lifetime

September 2015 to August 2019

SZN Role

Partner

Principal Investigator

Maria I. Arnone

People involved

Elijah K. Lowe - Salvatore D’Aniello - Anna Palumbo - Filomena Ristoratore

Funding Institution

European Commission Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. Grant agreement No 654248.

Contribution to SZN

€90.700,00. (EU contribution)

Dedicated website

http://www.corbel-project.eu/home.html

Media - Pictures

Corbel Twitter

Corbel You tube channel