Publications by authors named "Giulia Secci-Petretto"

Freshwater ecosystems are among the most endangered ecosystems worldwide. While numerous taxa are on the verge of extinction as a result of global changes and direct or indirect anthropogenic activity, genomic and transcriptomic resources represent a key tool for comprehending species' adaptability and serve as the foundation for conservation initiatives. The Loire grayling, Thymallus ligericus, is a freshwater European salmonid endemic to the upper Loire River basin.

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Hybridization and introgression are very common among freshwater fishes due to the dynamic nature of hydrological landscapes. Cyclic patterns of allopatry and secondary contact provide numerous opportunities for interspecific gene flow, which can lead to discordant paths of evolution for mitochondrial and nuclear genomes. Here, we used double digest restriction-site associated DNA sequencing (ddRADseq) to obtain a genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) dataset comprehensive for allThymallus (Salmonidae)species to infer phylogenetic relationships and evaluate potential recent and historical gene flow among species.

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Article Synopsis
  • Researchers used a new method analyzing mitochondrial genomes to discover major changes in gene order among freshwater mussels (Unionoidea), highlighting a significant divergence around 201-226 million years ago during the Triassic-Jurassic mass extinction.
  • The study found that two main clades of mussels, Margaritiferidae and Unionidae, experienced synchronous changes in their mitochondria, with their distinct gene orders remaining stable for about 200 million years.
  • Additionally, there is evidence of ancient connections between freshwater ecosystems in East Asia and Europe, supported by several independent divergence events around the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary.
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The appearance of mammalian-specific skin features was a key evolutionary event contributing for the elaboration of physiological processes such as thermoregulation, adequate hydration, locomotion, and inflammation. Skin inflammatory and autoimmune processes engage a population of skin-infiltrating T cells expressing a specific C-C chemokine receptor (CCR10) which interacts with an epidermal CC chemokine, the skin-specific C-C motif chemokine ligand 27 (CCL27). CCL27 is selectively produced in the skin by keratinocytes, particularly upon inflammation, mediating the adhesion and homing of skin-infiltrating T cells.

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