Environmental micro-niche filtering shapes bacterial pioneer communities during primary colonization of a Himalayas' glacier forefield.

The pedogenesis from the mineral substrate released upon glacier melting has been explained with the succession of consortia of pioneer microorganisms, whose structure and functionality are determined by the environmental conditions developing in the moraine. However, the microbiome variability that can be expected in the environmentally heterogeneous niches occurring in a moraine at a given successional stage is poorly investigated. In a 50 m area in the forefield of the Lobuche glacier (Himalayas, 5050 m above sea level), we studied six sites of primary colonization presenting different topographical features (orientation, elevation and slope) and harbouring greyish/dark biological soil crusts (BSCs).

Degradation of bioplastics in organic waste by mesophilic anaerobic digestion, composting and soil incubation.

The aim of the study was to assess the effects of high concentrations (10 % w/w, data projected for 2030) of commercial bioplastics, i.e. starch based shopping bags (SBSB) and polylactic acid (PLA) tableware, in the organic fraction of municipal solid wastes (MSW) on compost quality obtained by pilot-scale dry mesophilic anaerobic digestion and subsequent composting of the digestate.

Look before washing and cleaning: A caveat to pathologists and anthropologists.

Partially or totally skeletonized bodies are undoubtedly the most challenging scenario to deal with for forensic pathologists and anthropologists. Indeed, in such cases, being able to figure out the cause and manner of death is often tricky. Human remains require to be washed and cleaned before a thorough assessment of any signs of trauma.

Micromorphological and ultramicroscopic aspects of buried remains: Time-dependent markers of decomposition and permanence in soil in experimental burial.

A buried body not only determines an environmental response at the deposition site but it is also affected by the soil. The experiment was performed using eleven swine carcasses buried in an open site (Northern Italy). Changes occurring in bone tissue at different post-burial intervals were evaluated observing thin sections of bones through micromorphological and ultramicroscopic (SEM-EDS) techniques.