Male orchid bees collect volatile and semi-volatile compounds from the environment for storage and accumulation in specialized hind legs. Later, these compounds form a perfume blend used during courtship to lure conspecific females for mating. Male orchid bees perfume has been suggested to play an important role as a sexual signaling trait involved in pre-mating isolation of species, functioning as an indicator of male genetic quality.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlzheimer's disease (AD) is considered the leading cause of dementia in the elderly worldwide. It results in progressive memory loss and impairment of cognitive and motor skills, leading to a high degree of disability and dependence. The development of AD is associated with the accumulation of senile plaques in the brain, caused by the amyloidogenic pathway of the disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Sci Food Agric
August 2023
Background: The importance of pollination is recognized worldwide. This study investigates the influence of biotic pollination on the chemical composition of coffee (Coffea arabica L.) cultivated in the municipalities of Araguari and Monte Carmelo, in Minas Gerais state, Brazil.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Pollination enhances coffee quality at the material level, improves the symbolic attributes of coffee and promotes sustainability. The objective of this work was to quantify the composition of volatile compounds in roasted coffee produced in the presence and absence of biotic pollination, aiming at investigating the effects of pollination on the composition of volatile compounds in coffee beans. This is the first report of its kind in the literature.
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