Avenues towards reconciling wild and managed bee proponents.

Bees are crucial for food security and biodiversity. However, managed bees are increasingly considered drivers of wild bee declines, leading to stakeholder conflicts and restrictive policies. We propose avenues to reconcile wild and managed bee proponents and point out knowledge gaps that hinder the development of evidence-based policies.

Synthesis, Morphology, and Particle Size Control of Acidic Aqueous Polyurethane Dispersions.

A range of charge-stabilized aqueous polyurethane (PU) dispersions comprising hard segments formed from hydrogenated methylene diphenyl diisocyanate (HMDI) with dimethylolpropionic acid (DMPA) and ethylenediamine, and soft segments of poly(tetramethylene oxide) of different molecular weights are synthesized. Characterization of the dispersions by mass spectrometry, gel permeation chromatography, small-angle X-ray scattering, atomic force microscopy, and infrared spectroscopy shows that they are composed of PUs self-assembled into spherical particles (primary population) and supramolecular structures formed by hydrogen-bonded HMDI and DMPA acid-rich fragments (secondary population). Analysis of the scattering patterns of the dispersions, using a structural model based on conservation of mass, reveals that the proportion of supramolecular structures increases with DMPA content.

Heatwaves exacerbate pollen limitation through reductions in pollen production and pollen vigour.

Increasingly frequent heat waves threaten the reproduction of flowering plants; compromising the future persistence, adaptive capacity, and dispersal of wild plant populations, and also the yield of fruit-bearing crop plants. Heat damages the development of sensitive floral organs and gametes, which inhibits pollen germination, pollen tube growth, and fertilization. However, the role of heat has not been integrated into the framework of pollen quantity and quality limitation and how heat influences the success of cross and self-pollination.

Warming summer temperatures are rapidly restructuring North American bumble bee communities.

A rapidly warming climate is driving changes in biodiversity worldwide, and its impact on insect communities is critical given their outsized role in ecosystem function and services. We use a long-term dataset of North American bumble bee species occurrences to determine whether the community temperature index (CTI), a measure of the balance of warm- and cool-adapted species in a community, has increased given warming temperatures. CTI has increased by an average of 0.

Resurrecting Historical Observations to Characterize Species-Specific Nesting Traits of Bumblebees.

AbstractIn recent years, ecological research has become increasingly synthetic, relying on revolutionary changes in data availability and accessibility. In spite of their strengths, these approaches may cause us to overlook natural history knowledge that is not part of the digitized English-language scientific record. Here, we combine historic and modern documents to quantify species-specific nesting habitat associations of bumblebees ( spp.

Methadone in combination with magnesium, ketamine, lidocaine, and dexmedetomidine improves postoperative outcomes after coronary artery bypass grafting: an observational multicentre study.

Background: An optimal pharmacological strategy for fast-track cardiac anesthesia (FTCA) is unclear. This study evaluated the effectiveness and safety of an FTCA program using methadone and non-opioid adjuvant infusions (magnesium, ketamine, lidocaine, and dexmedetomidine) in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting.

Methods: This retrospective, multicenter observational study was conducted across private and public teaching sectors.

A test of balanced fitness limitations theory: Pollen limitation in plants.

When reproductive success is determined by the relative availabilities of a series of essential, non-substitutable resources, the theory of balanced fitness limitations predicts that the cost of harvesting a particular resource shapes the likelihood that a shortfall of that resource will constrain realized fitness. Plant reproduction through female function offers a special opportunity to test this theory; essential resources in this context include, first, the pollen received from pollinators or abiotic vectors that is used to fertilize ovules, and, second, the resources needed to provision the developing seeds and fruit. For many plants realized reproductive success through female function can be readily quantified in the field, and one key potential constraint on fitness, pollen limitation, can be assessed experimentally by manually supplementing pollen receipt.

Wildflower plantings enhance nesting opportunities for soil-nesting bees.

Ongoing declines of bees and other pollinators are driven in part by the loss of critical floral resources and nesting substrates. Most conservation/restoration efforts for bees aim to enhance floral abundance and continuity but often assume the same actions will bolster nesting opportunities. Recent research suggests that habitat plantings may not always provide both forage and nesting resources.

The transit of oral premedication beyond the stomach in patients undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy: a retrospective observational multicentre study.

Background: Antiemetic and analgesic oral premedications are frequently prescribed preoperatively to enhance recovery after laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy. However, it is unknown whether these medications transit beyond the stomach or if they remain in the sleeve resection specimen, thereby negating their pharmacological effects.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was performed on patients undergoing laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy and receiving oral premedication (slow-release tapentadol and netupitant/palonosetron) as part of enhanced recovery after bariatric surgery program.

A spatially explicit model of landscape pesticide exposure to bees: Development, exploration, and evaluation.

Pesticides represent one of the greatest threats to bees and other beneficial insects in agricultural landscapes. Potential exposure is generated through compound- and crop-specific patterns of pesticide use over space and time and unique degradation behavior among compounds. Realized exposure develops through bees foraging from their nests across the spatiotemporal mosaic of floral resources and associated pesticides throughout the landscape.

Evidence of exploitative competition between honey bees and native bees in two California landscapes.

Human-mediated species introductions provide real-time experiments in how communities respond to interspecific competition. For example, managed honey bees Apis mellifera (L.) have been widely introduced outside their native range and may compete with native bees for pollen and nectar.

Sublethal behavioral impacts of resource limitation and insecticide exposure reinforce negative fitness outcomes for a solitary bee.

Contemporary landscapes present numerous challenges for bees and other beneficial insects that play critical functional roles in natural ecosystems and agriculture. Pesticides and the loss of food resources from flowering plants are two stressors known to act together to impair bee fitness. The impact of these stressors on key behaviors like foraging and nesting can limit pollination services and population persistence, making it critical to understand these sublethal effects.

Honey bee introductions displace native bees and decrease pollination of a native wildflower.

Introduced species can have cascading effects on ecological communities, but indirect effects of species introductions are rarely the focus of ecological studies. For example, managed honey bees (Apis mellifera) have been widely introduced outside their native range and are increasingly dominant floral visitors. Multiple studies have documented how honey bees impact native bee communities through floral resource competition, but few have quantified how these competitive interactions indirectly affect pollination and plant reproduction.

Solution and Solid-State Behavior of Amphiphilic ABA Triblock Copolymers of Poly(acrylic acid--styrene)--poly(butyl acrylate)--poly(acrylic acid--styrene).

A combination of statistical and triblock copolymer properties is explored to produce stable aqueous polymer dispersions suitable for the film formation. In order to perform an extensive structural characterization of the products in the dissolved, dispersed, and solid states, a wide range of symmetrical poly(acrylic acid--styrene) --poly(butyl acrylate) --poly(acrylic acid--styrene) , poly(AA--St) --PBA --poly(AA--St) , ( = 56, 108 and 140, = 100-750; the AA:St molar ratio is 42:58) triblock copolymers were synthesized by reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) solution polymerization using a bifunctional symmetrical RAFT agent. It is demonstrated that the amphiphilic statistical outer blocks can provide sufficient stabilization to largely hydrophobic particles in aqueous dispersions.

Rare and declining bee species are key to consistent pollination of wildflowers and crops across large spatial scales.

Biodiversity promotes ecosystem function (EF) in experiments, but it remains uncertain how biodiversity loss affects function in larger-scale natural ecosystems. In these natural ecosystems, rare and declining species are more likely to be lost, and function needs to be maintained across space and time. Here, we explore the importance of rare and declining bee species to the pollination of three wildflowers and three crops using large-scale (72 sites across 5000 km ), multi-year datasets.

Greater bee diversity is needed to maintain crop pollination over time.

The current biodiversity crisis underscores the need to understand how biodiversity loss affects ecosystem function in real-world ecosystems. At any one place and time, a few highly abundant species often provide the majority of function, suggesting that function could be maintained with relatively little biodiversity. However, biodiversity may be critical to ecosystem function at longer timescales if different species are needed to provide function at different times.

The Association of Postoperative Complications and Hospital Costs Following Distal Pancreatectomy.

Background: Understanding the financial implications associated with the complications post-distal pancreatectomy (DP) may be beneficial for the future optimisation of postoperative care pathways and improved cost-efficiency. The primary outcome of this retrospective study was the characterisation of the additional cost associated with postoperative complications following DP. The secondary outcome was the estimation of the prevalence, type and severity of complications post-DP and the determination of which complications were associated with higher costs.

A contemporary survey of bumble bee diversity across the state of California.

Bumble bees (genus ) are important pollinators with more than 260 species found worldwide, many of which are in decline. Twenty-five species occur in California with the highest species abundance and diversity found in coastal, northern, and montane regions. No recent studies have examined California bumble bee diversity across large spatial scales nor explored contemporary community composition patterns across the state.

Evaluation of a calcium, magnesium and phosphate clinical ordering tool in the emergency department.

Objective: We developed a clinical tool comprising patient risk factors for having an abnormal calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg) or phosphate (PO) level. We hypothesized that patients without a risk factor do not require testing. This study examined the tool's potential utility for rationalizing Ca, Mg and PO ordering in the emergency department (ED).

CropPol: A dynamic, open and global database on crop pollination.

Seventy five percent of the world's food crops benefit from insect pollination. Hence, there has been increased interest in how global change drivers impact this critical ecosystem service. Because standardized data on crop pollination are rarely available, we are limited in our capacity to understand the variation in pollination benefits to crop yield, as well as to anticipate changes in this service, develop predictions, and inform management actions.

Past insecticide exposure reduces bee reproduction and population growth rate.

Pesticides are linked to global insect declines, with impacts on biodiversity and essential ecosystem services. In addition to well-documented direct impacts of pesticides at the current stage or time, potential delayed "carryover" effects from past exposure at a different life stage may augment impacts on individuals and populations. We investigated the effects of current exposure and the carryover effects of past insecticide exposure on the individual vital rates and population growth of the solitary bee, Bees in flight cages freely foraged on wildflowers, some treated with the common insecticide, imidacloprid, in a fully crossed design over 2 y, with insecticide exposure or no exposure in each year.

Nature and extent of selection bias resulting from convenience sampling in the emergency department.

Background: To compare the clinical and demographic variables of patients who present to the ED at different times of the day in order to determine the nature and extent of potential selection bias inherent in convenience sampling METHODS: We undertook a retrospective, observational study of data routinely collected in five EDs in 2019. Adult patients (aged ≥18 years) who presented with abdominal or chest pain, headache or dyspnoea were enrolled. For each patient group, the discharge diagnoses (primary outcome) of patients who presented during the day (08:00-15:59), evening (16:00-23:59), and night (00:00-07:59) were compared.

Early resources lead to persistent benefits for bumble bee colony dynamics.

Conditions experienced early in development can affect the future performance of individuals and populations. Demographic theories predict persistent population impacts of past resources, but few studies have experimentally tested such carry-over effects across generations or cohorts. We used bumble bees to test whether resource timing had persistent effects on within-colony dynamics over sequential cohorts of workers.