Author: Mirela Uzelac

A sunny, spring Wednesday, May 22 was a perfect day for fieldwork at Butoniga Reservoir Lake. With the help of colleagues from Croatian Waters Enterprise, whom we also thank for the boat transport, Ph.D. Danijela Poljuha, Ph.D. Barbara Sladonja and Mirela Uzelac Božac mag. oecol., took six water samples from different parts of the lake.

The collected samples will be analyzed at ETH Zurich, under the guidance of Ph.D. Kristy Deiner to learn more about the environmental DNA of the lake and its surroundings. Environmental DNA (environmental DNA or eDNA) refers to genetic material obtained directly from environmental samples, such as soil, water or air, without the presence of original biological material, i.e. organisms or parts of organisms from which it originates. Higher organisms most often release DNA into the environment in the form of discarded cells and tissues such as hair and skin, through secretions such as urine and feces, or through the decomposition of dead organisms. The released DNA persists for some time in the environment where it can be collected and analyzed.

We sampled the water in the places where the streams flow into the lake in order to get the best, most representative sample of the lake itself and its tributaries. eDNA has proven to be a valuable tool in monitoring biodiversity and species distribution, detecting changes in community composition over time, detecting invasive species and pathogens, conserving endangered species, and assessing environmental pollution.

In addition to Lake Butoniga, eDNA from another 800 different lakes around the world will be analyzed through the project, and we expect the first results from Zurich during the fall.

Happy and joyful holidays, with lots of health, love and happiness, the NATURALLY team wishes you from the bottom of our hearts!

See you in the even more beautiful year of 2024!

Last week, November 24-25, 2023, we participated in the 2nd Croatian Microscopy Symposium in Split, where we presented the results of the NATURALLY project. In the poster presentation entitled “Exploring Plant Morphology as a Contribution to the Assessment of the Phytochemical Potential of Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle”, Dr. Danijela Poljuha presented the results of the morphological analysis of extrafloral nectaries on Tree of heaven leaves. At the symposium, the latest printed issue of the Croatian scientific journal Periodicum biologorum Vol 125, No 1–2, 2023 was presented, in which our work “Morphology of extrafloral nectaries of Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle (Simaroubaceae)” was published. The entire paper is available at https://hrcak.srce.hr/ojs/index.php/periodicum_biologorum/article/view/24852

Also, Mirela Uzelac Božac, mag. oecol. in the poster presentation “In vitro genotoxic activity of leaf over flower extracts of alien invasive species Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle” presented the results of genotoxicity analysis performed with the comet test for leaf and flower extracts of pajasen. The genotoxic effect (percentage of DNA damage) that these extracts have on human liver endothelial cells was tested. The results showed that leaf extract concentrations of 1 and 0.5 mg/ml have a genotoxic effect on cells. Treatment with flower extracts showed a genotoxic effect on cells only at the highest tested concentration of 1.0 mg/ml.

We are honored that the Adris Foundation chose our project among 50 funded projects in this year for a public presentation as part of the Award Ceremony of the 17th competition cycle of the Adris Foundation in Zagreb. The presentation of the project “Big trees are our treasure: let’s protect them!” was held by Mirela Uzelac Božac, M.Sc. oecol. from the Institute of Agriculture and Tourism. Collaborators on the project are Ph.D. Barbara Sladonja and Ph.D. Danijela Poljuha from the Institute, colleagues from the company Arboring and the Faculty of Forestry and Wood Technology in Zagreb.
Monumental trees are the oldest and largest living organisms in the world, a source of food and habitat for numerous animals, and climate stabilizers. They are part of human identity and cultural heritage and have an aesthetic, symbolic, religious and historical character. Due to increasingly frequent droughts, storms and fires and due to negative human influence such as logging and environmental pollution, such trees are endangered.

Therefore, in order to preserve at least part of the monumental trees, the age of the selected trees in the Istrian County will be determined, the state of health will be assessed and the necessary rehabilitation will be carried out. In order to raise public awareness of this important topic, educational tables will be placed next to each tree, and information folders and leaflets will be created. This project represents a significant step towards preserving the environment and promoting environmental awareness within the local community.

In the international scientific journal Plants (IF 4.5) dedicated to plant research, our scientists published a paper entitled “Invasive Alien Species as a Potential Source of Phytopharmaceuticals: Phenolic Composition and Antimicrobial and Cytotoxic Activity of Robinia pseudoacacia L. Leaf and Flower Extracts”. The paper is a part of the NATURALLY project (HRZZ-IP-2020-02-6899), which studies the phytopharmaceutical potential of extracts of four foreign invasive plant species.

In this paper, an international team of researchers present for the first time the profile of phenolic compounds of Black locust populations, an invasive species from the area of the Istrian peninsula. The paper also presents the first data on the antimicrobial and cytotoxic activity of black locust leaf and flower extracts from this area tested on in vitro cell cultures. This is one of the first steps towards the final goal – the proposal of a model for exploiting invasive species for beneficial purposes, and thus contributing to the sustainable management of invasive species, which is one of the global priorities caused by climate change.

Uzelac, M., Sladonja, B., Šola, I., Dudaš, S., Bilić, J., Famuyide, I.M., McGaw, L.J., Eloff, J.N., Mikulic-Petkovsek, M., Poljuha, D. Invasive Alien Species as a Potential Source of Phytopharmaceuticals: Phenolic Composition and Antimicrobial and Cytotoxic Activity of Robinia pseudoacacia L. Leaf and Flower Extracts. Plants 2023, 12, 2715. 

The paper is available at the following link: https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/14/2715.

Happy and joyful holidays, with lots of health, love and happiness, the NATURALLY team wishes you from the bottom of our hearts!

See you in the even more beautiful year 2023

Our young scientists Mirela Uzelac and Danijela Damijanić participated in the event Znanost u prolazu. The event, organized by the NGO Penkala, which aims to promote women scientists, took place on Saturday 15 October 2022 at the Korzo in Rijeka.

The topic of the presentation was the presentation of activities on the Naturally project, education of citizens about invasive species, citizen science campaigns.

In this way, citizens could learn to recognize the invasive plant species Tree of heaven, Black locust, Jerusalem artichoke and Canadian goldenrod. It was discussed whether these species only cause damage or whether they can also be useful in the form of medicines, decorations, bioherbicides.

We are glad that we can share our knowledge and have fun doing it. We can’t wait for the next opportunity!

In the laboratory of the Biotechnical Faculty at the University of Ljubljana, our colleague, Ph.D. Maja Mikulič Petkovšek and PhD student Mirela Uzelac created new extracts and fractions of invasive plant species: Black locust, Tree of heaven, Jerusalem artichoke and Canadian goldenrod.

The obtained extracts and fractions were analyzed by LC-MS methods in order to find out exactly which compounds the extracts of each species consist of.

After the analysis, the obtained data were integrated and analyzed, followed by statistical processing. There were a lot of peaks, which means that our invasives are rich in secondary metabolites!