Publications by authors named "Ilenia Urso"

Article Synopsis
  • A genomic database encompassing all eukaryotic species on Earth is crucial for scientific advancements, yet most species lack genomic data.
  • The Earth BioGenome Project (EBP) was initiated in 2018 by global scientists to compile high-quality reference genomes for approximately 1.5 million recognized eukaryotic species.
  • The European Reference Genome Atlas (ERGA) launched a Pilot Project to create a decentralized model for reference genome production by testing it on 98 species, providing valuable insights into scalability, equity, and inclusiveness for genomic projects.
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is an important grazer in the Southern Ocean and most abundant in the Antarctic Polar Front (APF) region. During recent decades, their distribution expanded southwards. However, it is unclear whether salps can maintain their populations in the high Antarctic regions throughout the year owing to a poor understanding of their physiological responses to changing environmental conditions.

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The krill species Euphausia superba plays a critical role in the food chain of the Antarctic ecosystem. Significant changes in climate conditions observed in the Antarctic Peninsula region in the last decades have already altered the distribution of krill and its reproductive dynamics. A deeper understanding of the adaptation capabilities of this species is urgently needed.

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Non-coding RNAs represent the largest part of transcribed mammalian genomes and prevalently exert regulatory functions. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) can modulate the activity of each other. Skeletal muscle is the most abundant tissue in mammals.

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Background: The blue shark (, Linnaeus 1758) is one of the most abundant epipelagic shark inhabiting all the oceans except the poles, including the Mediterranean Sea, but its genetic structure has not been confirmed at basin and interoceanic distances. Past tagging programs in the Atlantic Ocean failed to find evidence of migration of blue sharks between the Mediterranean and the adjacent Atlantic, despite the extreme vagility of the species. Although the high rate of by-catch in the Mediterranean basin, to date no genetic study on Mediterranean blue shark was carried out, which constitutes a significant knowledge gap, considering that this population is classified as "Critically Endangered", unlike its open-ocean counterpart.

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