Papers by Antonio Saracino
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research), Dec 31, 2012
<p>Xylem is a multifunctional tissue that allows water transport, mechanica... more <p>Xylem is a multifunctional tissue that allows water transport, mechanical support, and storage of nutrients. These functions are provided by different cells, with different anatomy among species but also within individual trees. For the latter, it is well established that such anatomical disposition does not remain fixed but it is subject to a suite of adaptations induced by physiological constraints driven by both ontogenetic development and environmental characteristics.</p><p>For these reasons, in this study, we assessed 1) the spatial distribution of xylem conduits and their aggregation inside <em>Fagus sylvatica</em> L. tree-rings, and 2) the systematic variation of tip-to-base conduit widening and conduit packing occurring during tree growth.</p><p>In order to achieve these goals, we quantified the axial and radial xylem conduit patterns through measurement of conduit anatomical characteristics inside every tree-ring along complete radial series taken at different stem heights in eight <em>Fagus sylvatica</em> L. trees, sampled from two different sites in the Italian Apennines.</p><p>Our results showed a significant effect of the distance from the tree base and a weak effect of cambial age on the nearest neighbour distance among xylem conduits, suggesting that conduits were closer to each other near the apex, and became progressively more distant toward the base. However, point pattern profiles clearly highlighted a lack of aggregation between conduits along the stems.</p><p>In addition, the axial scaling of conduits (β) follows a power trajectory according to the theoretical prediction, while the xylem conduits packing exponent (α) was lower than the predicted Sperry’s packing rule. Furthermore, no consistent trend was found for the scaling exponent (β) during tree ontogeny, confirming that tip-to-base conduit widening is an adaptation, favored by natural selection to minimize the increase in hydraulic resistance when the individual stem grows longer and conductive path length increases.</p>
Frontiers in forests and global change, May 10, 2023
Wildfire promotes the invasion of Robinia pseudoacacia in the unmanaged Mediterranean Castanea sa... more Wildfire promotes the invasion of Robinia pseudoacacia in the unmanaged Mediterranean Castanea sativa coppice forests.
Ecology and Evolution, 2023
This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which... more This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Global Change Biology
Despite growing interest in predicting plant phenological shifts, advanced spring phenology by gl... more Despite growing interest in predicting plant phenological shifts, advanced spring phenology by global climate change remains debated. Evidence documenting either small or large advancement of spring phenology to rising temperature over the spatiotemporal scales implies a potential existence of a thermal threshold in the responses of forests to global warming. We collected a unique data set of xylem cell-wall
Plant and Soil, Jan 12, 2021
Data about woody debris (WD) decomposition are very scarce for the Mediterranean basin. The speci... more Data about woody debris (WD) decomposition are very scarce for the Mediterranean basin. The specific aim of this work is to explore the relationships between WD traits with the decay rate. We carried out a three-year litterbag decomposition experiment using ten WD types incubated in two plant communities (i.e. shrubland and woodland) and in laboratory conditions. WD was characterized for 31 chemical and anatomical traits, including macro- and micronutrients, lignin, and cellulose as well as organic chemistry by Solid-state Cross-Polarization Magic Angle Spinning Carbon-13 Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (13C CPMAS NMR) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy/ Attenuated Total Reflection (FT-IR/ATR spectroscopy). WD decay rate was negatively associated with di-O-alkyl, lignin/N and C/N ratios, but positively with N concentration. Less consistent but positive correlations were recored for K, Mn, and Na concentration. The alkyl C and carboxylic C regions, associated with aliphatic and amide compounds, was positively correlated with WD decomposition. Conversely, di-O-alkyl C and O-alkyl C fractions, largely associated with cellulose and hemicellulose, were negatively correlated with WD decay rate. Finally, the positive correlation between Na concentration and WD mass loss in field conditions suggest a role of this neglected micronutrient for wood decomposition. WD specific density and anatomical features, have a minor capability to explain decomposition rate. Our findings demonstrate a major role of WD chemical traits in explaining the variability of decomposition in Mediterranean ecosystems.
The Holocene, 2015
In this paper, we present a detailed record of the plant remains recovered on the palaeo-seafloor... more In this paper, we present a detailed record of the plant remains recovered on the palaeo-seafloors of Neapolis harbour, spanning ≈700 years, between the 2nd century BC and the 5th century AD, thus intersecting the entire Roman Imperial Age. The site preserved many cultivated or cultivable plant remains, especially from food related trees. This particular feature provided the opportunity to reconstruct the puzzling history of planting them and the Roman economy, especially with respect to food production, the market and to dietary habits. The evidence suggests that Prunus persica, Castanea sativa, Juglans regia and Pinus pinea were locally grown all along the investigated period, testifying for a well advanced arboriculture. A broad presence of P. pinea cones could be related to their large use as stoppers for amphorae which probably was among the driving force for planting it actually influencing its original range. The seafarers had extensive access to dry fruit such as walnut, haz...
Microorganisms
Ectomycorrhizas (ECM) are a common symbiotic association between fungi and various plant species ... more Ectomycorrhizas (ECM) are a common symbiotic association between fungi and various plant species in forest ecosystems, affecting community assemblages at the landscape level. ECMs benefit host plants by increasing the surface area for nutrient uptake, defending against pathogens, and decomposing organic matter in the soil. ECM-symbiotic seedlings are also known to perform better in conspecific soils than other species unable to carry the symbiosis, in a process referred to as plant-soil feedback (PSF). In this study, we tested the effects of different leaf litter amendments on ECM and non-ECM seedlings of Quercus ilex inoculated with Pisolithus arrhizus and how they altered the litter-induced PSF. Our experiment showed that the ECM symbiont induced a shift from negative PSF to positive PSF in Q. ilex seedlings by analysing plant and root growth parameters. However, non-ECM seedlings performed better than ECM seedlings in a no-litter condition, indicating an autotoxic effect when lit...
40 The interaction between xylem phenology and climate assesses forest growth and productivity 41... more 40 The interaction between xylem phenology and climate assesses forest growth and productivity 41 and carbon storage across biomes under changing environmental conditions. We tested the 42 hypothesis that patterns of wood formation are maintained unaltered despite the temperature 43 changes across cold ecosystems. Wood microcores were collected weekly or biweekly 44 throughout the growing season for periods varying between 1-13 years during 1998-2014 and 45 cut in transverse sections for assessing the onset and ending of the phases of xylem 46 differentiation. The dataset represented 1321 trees belonging to 10 conifer species from 39 47 sites in the Northern hemisphere and covering an interval of mean annual temperature 48 exceeding 14 K. The phenological events and mean annual temperature of the sites were 49 related linearly, with spring and autumnal events being separated by constant intervals across 50 the range of temperature analysed. At increasing temperature, first enlarging...
River Research and Applications, 2018
This study examined the hydrodynamic behaviour of European black poplar (Populus nigra L.) under ... more This study examined the hydrodynamic behaviour of European black poplar (Populus nigra L.) under coppice management in riparian areas with a multidisciplinary approach. An innovative procedure on the basis of the combination of plant allometric relations and hydrodynamic models was applied to assess drag forces and plant hydrodynamic bending as function of the basal diameter and module of elasticity, with a probabilistic approach. Cuttings of European black poplar from 2 close riverine environments of Southern Italy have been planted and subjected to the same coppice management strategy. The 2 different 3-year-old shoot poplar ensembles exhibited statistically similar morphological traits but stems with different module of elasticity. Drag forces were simulated with a model on the basis of the vegetative Cauchy number. Plant deformation under the hydrodynamic load was modelled as a basemounted cantilever beam. The differences in the observed elasticity were verified to be also significant from a hydrodynamic perspective. Diagrams were drawn to describe plant bending, drag forces, and basal momentum as function of basal diameter, accounting for the uncertainty in the module of elasticity. These results can be exploited for identifying objective hydrodynamic criteria to be adopted for coppice management of riparian woody vegetation in human controlled river ecosystems.
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Papers by Antonio Saracino