5 research outputs found

    Floral biology and a pollinator effectiveness test of the diurnal floral visitors of Tabernaemontana undulata Vahl. (Apocynaceae) in the understory of Amazon Rainforest, Brazil

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    In this paper we examined the floral biology, per-visit effectiveness, frequency of visits and relative abundance of the diurnal floral visitor taxa of T. undulata (Apocynaceae) at two populations located in the primary forest and in a disturbed area connected to the continuous forest. Its hermaphrodite flowers show a long and narrow floral tube and introrse anthers form a cone around the apex of the style head where the pollen is deposited. The stigmatic head has three functional regions, in a complex pollination mechanism favoring cross-pollination. In the pollinator censuses conducted in the primary forest population we registered Eulaema bombiformis. In the disturbed area Euglossa sp. was responsible for visits on T. undulata fl owers. Eulaema bombiformis was not absent in the disturbed area, but preferred to forage on pollen and nectar-rich flowers of two neighboring flowering species. In the primary forest, T. undulata was the only fl owering treelet at the end of the dry season. Signifi cant differences were not observed regarding the frequency of visits and relative abundance among the diurnal flower visitors at both sites. In the per-visit effectiveness experiment among flower visitors, we observed one fruit produced aft er E. bombiformis' visits. Due to the complex breeding system of T. undulata in that it is characterized by very low fruit production even under natural conditions, an indirect measure of pollinator effectiveness is needed in at a future stage of this study in order to clarify the role of these bee species as pollinators of T. undulata

    Multiple early factors anticipate post-acute COVID-19 sequelae.

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    Post-acute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC) represent an emerging global crisis. However, quantifiable risk factors for PASC and their biological associations are poorly resolved. We executed a deep multi-omic, longitudinal investigation of 309 COVID-19 patients from initial diagnosis to convalescence (2-3 months later), integrated with clinical data and patient-reported symptoms. We resolved four PASC-anticipating risk factors at the time of initial COVID-19 diagnosis: type 2 diabetes, SARS-CoV-2 RNAemia, Epstein-Barr virus viremia, and specific auto-antibodies. In patients with gastrointestinal PASC, SARS-CoV-2-specific and CMV-specific CD8 <sup>+</sup> T cells exhibited unique dynamics during recovery from COVID-19. Analysis of symptom-associated immunological signatures revealed coordinated immunity polarization into four endotypes, exhibiting divergent acute severity and PASC. We find that immunological associations between PASC factors diminish over time, leading to distinct convalescent immune states. Detectability of most PASC factors at COVID-19 diagnosis emphasizes the importance of early disease measurements for understanding emergent chronic conditions and suggests PASC treatment strategies
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