Activity report - Free University of Bozen · Bolzano

5. Management of microbial and insect communities
Technical background
The management of microbial and insect resources deals with the interaction of insects and microbes
with the biological, chemical, and physical aspects of their environment, allowing a deeper knowledge
of the presence of microbial and insect resources, with special reference to the alpine environment. The
main challenge at present is to understand, maintain and manage the insect and the microbial resources
to address particular technological issues in a more efficient and sustainable way. To do that, we firstly
need to address the questions of who is there, who is doing what with whom and how can we modify,
direct and drive these microbial and insect communities and consortia.
Aims
• Raising the awareness of the importance of insects and microbes in every-day life;
• Microbial studies:
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Understanding gene flow, microbial adaptation, nutrient cycling and plant growth promotion at high
altitude and in cold environments.
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Search for innovative techniques of bioremediation, by-product transformation, detoxification and
biogas production.
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Assessment of artworks and material biodeterioration and biorestoration.
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Assessment of environmental safety linked to the antibiotic resistance gene spread in pristine
mountain environments.
• Insect studies:
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Definition of human impact on natural ecosystems by studying insect conservation programmes in
alpine environments.
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Insect biodiversity conservation and selection of the most deserving populations (taxa) or conservation
targets.
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Development of innovative forest protection strategies against forest pest insects.
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Increasing fundamental documentation of patterns of insect species distribution on a geographical
scale.
Main reference people
Lorenzo Brusetti, Sergio Angeli
SEM of a beetle:
The head of the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum (Colepotera: Tenebrionidae), taken with a scanning electron microscope (SEM), the image has
been artificially coloured.
Activity Report of the Faculty of Science and Technology 23