Agriculture, Environment and Forestry

The well-being of future generations and the entire ecological transition process depend on increasingly sustainable agriculture and land and forest management, the availability of natural resources (water, raw materials, fertile soil), the resilience of production to the impacts of biotic and abiotic stress, and the ecosystem services derived from agroforestry production. All these are essential prerequisites for contributing to the path to carbon neutrality with climate change mitigation and adaptation measures, and for ensuring ecosystem protection and food security by producing even under challenging conditions. This area includes research related to the study and development of strategies, tools, and technologies for the sustainable intensification of production; the optimization of the use of natural resources in various agricultural and forestry ecosystems, including through sustainable and innovative management models; the multifunctionality of agricultural, livestock, and forestry production, including from the perspective of the bioeconomy, bioenergy, and biomethane; the promotion of ecosystem services provided by agriculture and forests, beyond the production of food and raw materials and the defense of the territory.

The AS aims to provide the knowledge, technology, innovation, and digitalization tools needed to achieve the green revolution and ecological transition and reprogram post-pandemic agri-food supply chains. Research activities conducted in this area develop biological knowledge related to: the structure, function, evolution, and development of macromolecules, cells, tissues, organs, and model organisms, extremophiles, and plants of agricultural interest, including those with high added value for the Italian system; and the study of biochemical, genetic, physiological, and epigenetic processes in organisms and microorganisms of agricultural, forestry, food, environmental, and industrial interest. Biotechnological, bioinformatic, and omics tools are also developed and used for the characterization, conservation, and valorization of natural resources and biodiversity, and agri-food and forestry bioresources. Classical, omic, and biotechnological approaches (including current New Breeding Technologies) are also used for the genetic improvement of bioresources and the production of biomolecules, including those of agro-industrial interest. The fundamental knowledge acquired and the models developed, in addition to their cultural and cognitive value, are useful for improving the quantity, quality, safety, and sustainability of agri-food production, for developing strategies for adapting to climate change, for the development and technology transfer of pharmaceutical/agro-industrial and synthetic biology processes and products, and for applying knowledge from the bio-agri-food sector to safeguard well-being and health.

Biology, Biotechnology and Bioresources

Food and Food Production

AS research aims to highlight the health-promoting role of diet, alongside its nutritional role, considering the lengthening average lifespan and the need to strengthen immune defenses against pathogens and slow the onset of diet-related chronic-degenerative diseases. AS also pursues the goal of expanding knowledge of the mechanisms through which a balanced diet like the Mediterranean diet positively influences individual health and wellness. The economic and strategic importance of research in this area is evidenced by the increased demand for functional foods, capable of interacting with and improving the body’s physiological functions, as well as by the growing consumer focus on the authenticity, traceability, safety, nutritional quality, and sustainability of food products. AS therefore encompasses CNR research activities aimed at improving product quality and shelf life, the development of nutraceuticals, functional foods, and novel foods, human nutrition, and food and feed safety throughout the production chain. This area also includes: research on the intestinal microbiota, which mediates the effects of diet on health; experiments with innovative microbiological methods and processing technologies aimed at improving the quality and shelf life of food products; the development and application of new chemical and biomolecular methods (biosensors, new markers) for the determination of undesirable components and for traceability; in vitro, in vivo, and population studies on the relationship between diet and human/animal health; the detailed analysis of chemical-nutritional and organoleptic parameters (consumer science and instrumental analysis) associated with food; 3) nutrigenomics and nutrition aimed at enhancing the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet and the introduction of new foods into the diet.