Tele-Exercise in Non-Hospitalized versus Hospitalized Post-COVID-19 Patients.

The purpose of our study was to investigate the effect of tele-exercise (TE) performed for 4 consecutive weeks on fitness indicators in hospitalized post-COVID-19 patients versus non-hospitalized patients. Forty COVID-19 survivors were included, and divided into two groups: non-hospitalized versus hospitalized. Body composition, anthropometric characteristics, pulmonary function tests, single-breath diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide, 6-min walk tests (6MWT) and handgrip strength tests were recorded before and after a TE regimen (3 sessions per week, 60 min each session, warm-up and cool-down with mobility exercises, aerobic exercise such as walking outdoors, and multi-joint strength exercises). Following TE, the 6-min walk distance and handgrip were increased in both groups, with a greater observed response in the non-hospitalized group (6MWT: 32.9 ± 46.6% vs. 18.5 ± 14.3%, p < 0.001; handgrip: 15.9 ± 12.3% vs. 8.9 ± 7.6%, p < 0.001). Self-assessed dyspnea and leg fatigue were reduced in both groups, while a higher percentage of reduction was observed in the non-hospitalized group (dyspnea: 62.9 ± 42.5% vs. 37.5 ± 49.0%, p < 0.05; leg fatigue: 50.4 ± 42.2% vs. 31.7 ± 45.1%, p < 0.05). Post- vs. pre-TE arterial blood pressure decreased significantly in both groups, with the hospitalized group exhibiting more prominent reduction (p < 0.001). Both groups benefited from the TE program, and regardless of the severity of the disease the non-hospitalized group exhibited a potentially diminished adaptative response to exercise, compared to the hospitalized group.

CSI Pollen: Diversity of Honey Bee Collected Pollen Studied by Citizen Scientists.

A diverse supply of pollen is an important factor for honey bee health, but information about the pollen diversity available to colonies at the landscape scale is largely missing. In this COLOSS study, beekeeper citizen scientists sampled and analyzed the diversity of pollen collected by honey bee colonies. As a simple measure of diversity, beekeepers determined the number of colors found in pollen samples that were collected in a coordinated and standardized way. Altogether, 750 beekeepers from 28 different regions from 24 countries participated in the two-year study and collected and analyzed almost 18,000 pollen samples. Pollen samples contained approximately six different colors in total throughout the sampling period, of which four colors were abundant. We ran generalized linear mixed models to test for possible effects of diverse factors such as collection, i.e., whether a minimum amount of pollen was collected or not, and habitat type on the number of colors found in pollen samples. To identify habitat effects on pollen diversity, beekeepers' descriptions of the surrounding landscape and CORINE land cover classes were investigated in two different models, which both showed that both the total number and the rare number of colors in pollen samples were positively affected by 'urban' habitats or 'artificial surfaces', respectively. This citizen science study underlines the importance of the habitat for pollen diversity for bees and suggests higher diversity in urban areas.

Stress indicator gene expression profiles, colony dynamics and tissue development of honey bees exposed to sub-lethal doses of imidacloprid in laboratory and field experiments.

In this study, different context-dependent effects of imidacloprid exposure on the honey bee response were studied. Honey bees were exposed to different concentrations of imidacloprid during a time period of 40 days. Next to these variables, a laboratory-field comparison was conducted. The influence of the chronic exposure on gene expression levels was determined using an in-house developed microarray targeting different immunity-related and detoxification genes to determine stress-related gene expression changes. Increased levels of the detoxification genes encoding, CYP9Q3 and CYT P450, were detected in imidacloprid-exposed honey bees. The different context-dependent effects of imidacloprid exposure on honey bees were confirmed physiologically by decreased hypopharyngeal gland sizes. Honey bees exposed to imidacloprid in laboratory cages showed a general immunosuppression and no detoxification mechanisms were triggered significantly, while honey bees in-field showed a resilient response with an immune stimulation at later time points. However, the treated colonies had a brood and population decline tendency after the first brood cycle in the field. In conclusion, this study highlighted the different context-dependent effects of imidacloprid exposure on the honey bee response. These findings warn for possible pitfalls concerning the generalization of results based on specific experiments with short exposure times. The increased levels of CYT P450 and CYP9Q3 combined with an immune response reaction can be used as markers for bees which are exposed to pesticides in the field.