In recent years an increased attention has been paid to the risks that can emerge within the equestrian environment. In fact, the activities that are carried out every day, whether of working or sport nature, can cause serious traumatic events. The main problems are related to the following risks: biological, physical contact, chemical, electrical, mechanical and can be contained through proper training and information of workers. The likelihood of accidents can be reduced also applying appropriate behavioural requirements and certain quality and construction parameters used in structures. Inside the equestrian facilities all the main safety systems should be well indicated, also through appropriate signs.

The distribution of chemicals on protected crops is often a critical moment for the operators who are forced to make frequent treatments in an enclosed environment and in the presence of high pesticide concentrations. The introduction of organic farming techniques improves these aspects but generally requires a substantial commitment of manpower and forces the operator to stay for a long time in environments characterized by temperature and humidity that cause discomfort and fatigue. Increasing the level of mechanization improves the effectiveness of the treatments and it

Recent technical progress in the area of molecular biology and genomics have made possible the molecular dissection of major loci (Quantitative Trait Loci: QTLs) responsible for the genetic control of quantitative traits. Until now, most plant QTLs have been cloned through a positional cloning approach after their identification in experimental crosses. In some cases it has been possible to establish an association between sequence variation at a candidate gene and a phenotype by the analysis of existing genetic accessions. Several refinements of these strategies are made possible by deploying appropriate genetic materials and the latest developments in genomics platforms (e.g. transcriptomics) which allow us to identify eQTLs (expression QTLs), i.e. functional polymorphisms influencing the level of expression of a particular gene. A strategy based on reverse genetics could also be deployed to clone QTLs. We foresee that while QTL analysis and cloning addressing naturally occurring genetic variation will shed light on mechanisms of plant adaptation, more emphasis on approaches relying on candidate gene identification and reverse genetics will accelerate the pace of discovery of the genes underlining QTLs. Although QTL cloning is still in its infancy, further refinement of genomics tools and platforms will make QTL cloning a more routine procedure.

mental crosses. In some cases, an association between sequence variation at a candidate gene and a phenotype has been established by analysing