FilAgro – Innovative and sustainable strategies for the agri-food chain

The FILAGRO project aims to provide solutions to several issues that are emerging in the field of modern agriculture. They concern: production sustainability, biodiversity and environment preservation; improvement in food quality, safety and healthy and nutritional aspects; technology development in favor of industry; new knowledge dissemination. These issues are highlighted as of high importance in the EXPO 2015 and Horizon 2020 programs as well as in the 2013-2015 plan of the Agriculture Directorate of the Lombardy Region.

ARGENTO

ARGENTO project aims at introducing in Italy the new multipurpose oil crop, camelina (Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz), as a valuable source of healthy oil (rich in omega-3) and proteins for animal feeding. Therefore, during this project it will be evaluate the effects of the agronomic management in response to different environments on the final seed quality of newly released camelina lines aiming at optimizing camelina seed qualitative traits for poultry feeding (i.e., quails). In parallel to the optimization of the agronomic management a deep study of the biosynthetic pathway of the glucosinolates (GLSs, antinutritional compound)  and also a reduction in GLS content will be carried out by genome editing technologies that enable precise manipulation at a desired location within the genome.

PRIN AGRITECH (SPOKE 1) - Plant, animal and microbial genetic resources and adaptation to climatic changes

Plant, animal and microbial genetic resources and adaptation to climatic changes

The resilience of agricultural and forest ecosystems under stressful conditions generated by climate change requires the enhancement and exploitation of genetic resources through state-of-the-art conservation strategies, combined with in-depth genome characterization and high-throughput phenotyping.

Activities include large-scale sequencing of accessions/breeds/strains, extensive marker-based genome descriptions, elucidation of the (pan)genome, deep phenotyping, and multi-omics characterization.

The resulting information, processed through advanced methods for the analysis, interpretation, archiving, and management of complex data, will highlight superior alleles/haplotypes, identify beneficial interactions across a variety of conditions, and define conservation units.

CAMFEED - Improving meat and eggs quality using low-glucosinolate Camelina sativa meal as poultry feed

The aim of CAMFEED project is to use up to 20% of low-glucosinolate (GSL) seedcake, of the sustainable crop camelina (Camelina sativa), in the diet of broilers and laying hens in order to obtain meat and eggs with a higher content of α-linolenic acid (18:3n-3, ALA) and antioxidant compounds without affecting the eggs and meat production and the animal health and welfare.

PRIN 2022 ELITECH - Cannabis sativa (L.) as a bio-factory for secondary metabolites through innovative elicitation techniques

Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) is a crop of major industrial, food, and medical interest due to its rich content of bioactive secondary metabolites, such as cannabinoids, terpenes, and phenolic compounds.

The project aims to increase the content and quality of these compounds through innovative elicitation strategies, based on the use of molecules capable of triggering plant defence responses that lead to the synthesis of bioactive compounds. In particular, elicitors of plant, bacterial, and synthetic origin will be tested during female flower development, including specific synthetic derivatives of coronalon.

The project also involves the use of chitosan nanoparticles as advanced elicitor delivery systems. In parallel, in vitro cultures of adventitious roots and hairy roots will be developed and used to test the new elicitors. Inflorescences and in vitro tissues will be characterized at biochemical, metabolic, and transcriptomic levels to elucidate the mechanisms underlying the increase in secondary metabolites. The results will contribute to the development of sustainable strategies to enhance the functional value of hemp and will pave the way for future applications of genome editing technologies.

NUTRAGE - Nutrition, Diet & Active Aging

With a multidisciplinary approach, Nutrage aims to promote solutions and strategies for active and healthy aging, which have significant implications for the future, well-being, and social cohesion of the country. Evidence suggests that nutrition plays a key role in promoting the prevention and delaying the onset of major aging-related diseases. Therefore, the project intends to develop new foods with high nutritional value, new dietary regimens, and specific personalized nutrition programs, and to promote new pathways to support the health, well-being, and safety of the most vulnerable populations. The specific objectives of the project are:

• Development of agri-food (bio)technologies
• Development of new foods with high health value
• Green technologies for the extraction and stabilization of biocompounds
• Identification of early biomarkers
• Innovative strategy for active and healthy aging
• Integrated analysis of the physiopathological bases of aging
• Food culture and education