Two professors from the Department of Life Sciences at the University of Trieste, geneticist Alberto Pallavicini and marine zoologist Piero Giulio Giulianini, spent a truly unique Christmas and New Year’s Eve at the Mario Zucchelli Antarctic Station.

Of course, this wasn’t an unconventional holiday in the snow but a mission the two UniTS professors are conducting as part of the DIMANT project, funded by the National Antarctic Research Program (PNRA). The project aims to study the immune mechanisms of marine species in the Ross Sea.

Pallavicini and Giulianini arrived at the Italian scientific base on December 20, after an extended stopover in New Zealand due to adverse weather conditions that prevented a safe landing on the Antarctic continent. The planned activities for the mission follow a rigorous schedule, and even on New Year’s Day, the two researchers conducted a sea excursion to collect samples for analysis.

The DIMANT project focuses on understanding how sponges, anemones, bivalve mollusks, and fish—organisms that play a fundamental role in the Antarctic ecosystem—respond to increasing environmental threats.

The research team is isolating and analyzing immunocytes—cells responsible for immune responses—to understand their reactivity to subzero temperatures and emerging pathogens. The growing human presence in Antarctica, driven by activities such as tourism, scientific research, and fishing, is intensifying the risk of introducing new pathogens and exacerbating the effects of rising global temperatures. This scenario presents a completely new challenge for the local marine fauna, which must rapidly adapt to an increasingly changing environment.

The biological samples collected will later undergo advanced cytological and genetic analyses to identify the molecules and receptors involved in immune defenses. The findings could provide valuable tools for monitoring and predicting the impact of climate change and emerging diseases on the Antarctic marine ecosystem.

Alberto Pallavicini and Piero Giulianini have another four weeks of work ahead of them, surrounded by ice, penguins, and polar birds, before concluding their mission.

Italian missions in Antarctica are conducted within the framework of the National Antarctic Research Program (PNRA), funded by the Ministry of Universities and Research (MUR) and coordinated by the National Research Council (CNR) for the scientific aspect, ENEA for logistics, and the National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics (OGS) for managing the icebreaker ship Laura Bassi.

The mission tied to the DIMANT project is part of the 40th Italian expedition to Antarctica, which currently involves approximately 240 researchers and technicians working on various interdisciplinary projects. The research spans fields such as marine biology, climatology, and studies on glacial systems and global climate change. Activities are conducted not only at the Mario Zucchelli Station, currently hosting the two University of Trieste professors, but also at the Concordia Station and aboard the Laura Bassi.