Osteochondral grafting has demonstrated positive outcomes for treating articular cartilage defects by replacing the damaged region with a cylindrical graft consisting of bone with a layer of cartilage. However, factors that cause graft subsidence are not well understood. The aim of this study was to develop finite element (FE) models of osteochondral grafts within a tibiofemoral joint, suitable for an investigation of paramete...

In the present study, heterotrophic nickel‐resistant bacteria were isolated and characterized from three different serpentine outcrops in central Italy populated by the nickel‐hyperaccumulating plant Alyssum bertolonii . Bacteria were isolated from the rhizosphere of the plant and from soil portions at various distances from the plant. The proportion of nickel‐resistant cfu was higher in proximity to the plant than in free soi...

Eight populations of Silene paradoxa L. (Caryophyllaceae) growing in copper mine deposits, in serpentine outcrops or in uncontaminated soil in central Italy were studied. Genetic diversity was estimated using five polymorphic chloroplast microsatellite loci (cpSSR), identifying 27 different chloroplast haplotypes. The effective number of alleles, the haplotypic diversity and a stepwise mutational model‐based parameter ( D SH 2...

Metal‐contaminated sites can occur naturally in serpentine outcrops or as consequence of anthropogenic activities, such as mining deposits, aerial fallout from smelters and industrial processes. Serpentine outcrops are characterized by high levels of nickel, cobalt and chromium and present a typical vegetation which includes endemisms and plants which also live in uncontaminated soils. These latter metal‐tolerant populations p...