Preliminary Studies on Fungal Contamination of Two Rupestrian Churches from Matera (Southern Italy)

Stefania Mirela Mang, Laura Scrano and Ippolito Camele
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Stefania Mirela Mang: School of Agricultural, Forestry, Food and Environmental Sciences (SAFE), University of Basilicata, Viale dell’Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Laura Scrano: Department of European and Mediterranean Cultures (DICEM), University of Basilicata, Via Lanera, 75100 Matera, Italy
Ippolito Camele: School of Agricultural, Forestry, Food and Environmental Sciences (SAFE), University of Basilicata, Viale dell’Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 17, 1-13

Abstract: The Sassi, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and its rupestrian churches, are richly decorated and visited by thousands of visitors every year. It is important to preserve this heritage which shows signs of deterioration due to abiotic and/or biotic factors. Aiming to carry out in the future an environmental-friendly restoration, a screening of the fungi present on walls and frescoes of two rupestrian churches “ Santa Lucia alle Malve ” and “ La Madonna dei derelitti ” located, respectively, in the “Sasso Caveoso” and in the “Sasso Barisano” was performed. Isolation and characterization of fungal species from investigated sites was carried out. Total genomic DNA (gDNA) was extracted from pure fungal cultures and subsequently utilized in PCRs using primers that amplify a portion of the ribosomal DNA (ITS5/ITS4) or the β-tubulin gene (Bt2a/Bt2b). The amplicons were directly sequenced. Obtained nucleotide sequences were compared to those present in the GenBank (NCBI) showing a very high similarity (99–100%) with the following species: Parengyodontium album , Alternaria alternata , Cladosporium cladosporioides , Lecanicillium psalliotae , Meyerozyma guilliermondii and Botryotrichum atrogriseum . All sequences from this study were deposited in the EMBL database. Detailed knowledge about fungi isolated from stone is indispensable not only to counter/reduce the structural and aesthetic damage but also to protect the health of both guardians and visitors who may develop different pathologies due to the spores diffused in the environment.

Keywords: ancient frescoes; fungi; molecular identification; rupestrian churches; Sassi of Matera (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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