Project description:Artificial light at night (ALAN) disrupts natural light-dark cycles, posing ecological challenges for wildli in urban areas. Here we investigated the efcts of ALAN on gene expression in the brain, liver, skin, and gonads of green anole lizards (Anolis carolinensis) whose urban populations are increasingly exposed to light pollution. To identify genetic pathways impacted by ALAN exposure we analysed expression of genes associated with circadian and metabolic regulation at midday, midnight and at midnight with artificial light. Difrential expression analysis revealed that clock-related genes (PER1, NR1D1, CRY2) were significantly altered in the brain, liver, and skin following ALAN treatment and genes involved in glucagon regulation (GCG) and lipid metabolism (NOCT) were difrentially expressed in the liver, indicating metabolic disruptions. Skin exhibited unique responses to ALAN suggesting that repair responses may be altered as genes related to cellular processes, such as wound healing, were upregulated under normal light and dark conditions. Our findings also show that ALAN disrupts core circadian genes, impacting physiological processes including hormone regulation, glucose homeostasis, and potentially reproductive cycles. This study provides the first transcriptomic evidence of the efcts of light pollution on green anoles, highlighting the need to preserve natural light cycles in urban habitats. An interactive online database developed for this study allows further exploration of gene expression changes, to promote research on artificial light-polluted environments.
Project description:Recent and ongoing studies evidence that certain LED lights, suitable for illuminating the urban fabric, avoiding primary colours such as blue, green, and red, may halt the biological colonization on stone monuments, mainly caused by algae and cyanobacteria forming subaerial biofilms (SABs). However, the light-triggered mechanisms that cause changes in the growth of the phototrophic species is so far unknown. An environmental proteomic approach could shed light on this aspect, providing information on the changes on SAB’s metabolism under the stress inflicted by different ornamental lighting. Here, laboratory-made SABs mainly composed of Chlorophyta, and at lesser extent Streptophyta and Cyanophyta, were subjected to three lighting conditions for monuments: cool white, warm white and, amber+green (with biostatic effect and under trial) A control without light (i.e., darkness) was also included for comparison. Cool white and warm white illumination severely affected SAB’s proteome reducing their total peptide identifications being the extent of this reduction dependent on the organisms’ genera. The photo-damaging effect of amber+green on the biofilm metabolism was clarified, revealing its negative impact on the photosystems I and II and antenna pigments production, and its triggering effect on the protein metabolism (synthesis, folding, and degradation). This research provides for the first-time a thorough description of the proteomic changes induced by lighting on SABs colonising illuminated monuments in urban areas. The insights gained will help to better design the lighting of monuments, with the inclusion of ornamental lighting as one of the elements to be taken into account in the preventive conservation of the built heritage.
2025-05-13 | PXD050424 | Pride
Project description:Soil bacteria in urban green spaces