The official involvement of Italy in Antarctic research dates back to 1985, when Mario Zucchelli Station (the former Terra Nova Bay Station) was established in Terra Nova Bay. Italy joined the Antarctic Treaty in 1987. This article is an overview of the wide-ranging research in marine biology performed in the last three decades by the author's team in the Ross Sea. Fundamental questions have been addressed, related to cold adaptations--with special attention to the molecular bases--evolved by marine organisms along with progressive cooling in this geographic area, also analysed in comparison with other important areas, such as the Peninsula, the Weddell Sea, the sub-Antarctic and the Arctic. The basic stepping stone of this research was the integration of ecophysiology with molecular aspects, in the general framework of biodiversity, adaptation and evolution. Investigations have addressed a number of Ross Sea taxa, comprising fish, birds, urchins, whales, seals and bacteria. Its significance has special meaning in view of the control that Antarctica exerts on the world climate and ocean circulation, which has awakened great interest in the evolutionary biology of the organisms that live there.

The Ross Sea and its rich life: research on molecular adaptive evolution of stenothermal and eurythermal Antarctic organisms and the Italian contribution

Di Prisco G;Verde C
2015

Abstract

The official involvement of Italy in Antarctic research dates back to 1985, when Mario Zucchelli Station (the former Terra Nova Bay Station) was established in Terra Nova Bay. Italy joined the Antarctic Treaty in 1987. This article is an overview of the wide-ranging research in marine biology performed in the last three decades by the author's team in the Ross Sea. Fundamental questions have been addressed, related to cold adaptations--with special attention to the molecular bases--evolved by marine organisms along with progressive cooling in this geographic area, also analysed in comparison with other important areas, such as the Peninsula, the Weddell Sea, the sub-Antarctic and the Arctic. The basic stepping stone of this research was the integration of ecophysiology with molecular aspects, in the general framework of biodiversity, adaptation and evolution. Investigations have addressed a number of Ross Sea taxa, comprising fish, birds, urchins, whales, seals and bacteria. Its significance has special meaning in view of the control that Antarctica exerts on the world climate and ocean circulation, which has awakened great interest in the evolutionary biology of the organisms that live there.
2015
Istituto di Bioscienze e Biorisorse
Climate change
Enzyme
Hemoprotein
Metallothionein
Molecular adaptive evolution
Ross Sea
File in questo prodotto:
Non ci sono file associati a questo prodotto.

I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14243/292156
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus ND
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? ND
social impact