Publications by authors named "S Carfagna"

Phosphorus (P) is a fundamental element for life, playing an integral role in cellular metabolism including energy transfer, nucleic acid synthesis, and membrane structure. This nutrient is critical to the physiological ecology in all photosynthetic organisms including eukaryotic microalgae and cyanobacteria. The review, here presented, delves into the intricate mechanisms governing phosphorus acquisition from the environment, its utilization in plant metabolism, and regulation in these photosynthetic microorganisms.

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Mediterranean coastal cliffs are reservoirs of plant biodiversity, hosting vulnerable plant species particularly exposed to the risk of local extinction due to extreme abiotic conditions and climate changes. Therefore, studies aiming to understand the tolerance of cliff plant species to abiotic stresses are important to predict their long-time persistence or to highlight inherent threats. We used an integrative approach including anatomical, physiological and phenotypic analyses on (a) seeds, (b) cotyledons of seedlings; and (c) young plants to assess whether the cliff species Brassica incana, can tolerate exposure to different seawater (SW: 25%, 50% and 100%) concentrations during the early stages of its life cycle.

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The genus L., belonging to the Lamiaceae family, contains more than 900 species distributed in various parts of the world. It is a genus containing aromatic plants used both in the culinary field and above all in the cosmetic area to produce several perfumes.

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Heavy-metal pollution represents a problem which has been widely discussed in recent years. The biological effects of heavy metals have been studied in both animals and plants, ranging from oxidative stress to genotoxicity. Plants, above all metal-tolerant species, have evolved a wide spectrum of strategies to counteract exposure to toxic metal concentrations.

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Article Synopsis
  • Contamination of microalgae cultures can significantly harm their production efficiency and the quality of derived products.
  • The study identifies for the first time the fungus Penicillium citrinum in cultures of the microalga Galdieria sulphuraria and explores how these two organisms benefit from each other when grown together.
  • Experiments show that both G. sulphuraria and P. citrinum exhibit increased growth and metabolite diversity in co-culture compared to growing separately, suggesting a mutually beneficial relationship with enhanced biological and metabolic activity.
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