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Microplastics (MPs), in the form of fragments and fibers, were recently found in honey samples collected in Ecuador as well as in honey bees collected from Denmark and China. However, little is known about how MPs impact bee health. To fill this knowledge gap, we investigated the potential toxicity of irregularly shaped polystyrene (PS)-MP fragments…
Results of the Bee Informed Partnership’s annual loss and management survey have been published in the Journal of Apicultural Research for the years 2017-18, 2018-19, 2020-21. The open access article is available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/00218839.2022.2158586
Honeybees and their products are good bioindicators because they are inextricably linked to the natural environment they inhabit. The objectives of this research were to detect and identify pollution extent by the levels of metals in honeybees (foragers) (Apis mellifera jemenatica) and beeswax, including some elements such as K, Ca, Na, Mg, Fe, Mn, Cu,…
Sulfoxaflor (SULF), a well-known alternative for the banned neonicotinoids, is not environmentally persistent, yet numerous studies using field-realistic levels have demonstrated its detrimental impact on honey bee colonies. Despite this, even just a limited number of studies have addressed its residue-level effects on the physiological and immunological biomarkers of foraging honey bees in semi-field conditions.…
Herbicides are the most frequently used pesticides, accounting for more than 60% of all pesticides used in agriculture around the world. Clethodim (CTD) (Vixtol Super® 24% EC), haloxyfop-p-methyl (HFM) (Gallant Super® 10.8% EC), and their mixture (CTD (15%) + HFM (7.5%) (Fine® 22.5% EC) are among the most commonly used post-emergence graminicides in Egypt and worldwide. However,…
The biggest difficulty for beekeepers in the globe is the Varroa mite. So, the honey production and the mortality of adult honeybees are damaged by this pest. Therefore, this study tested some essential oils and chemicals (amitraz), for the control integrated on Varroa destructor and affected of (Apis mellifera L.). Five essential oils (garlic oil,…
Honey bees are important for ecological health, biodiversity preservation, and crop output. Antimicrobials, like Tetracyclines, are commonly used in agriculture, medicine, and beekeeping, bees might be exposed to Tetracycline residues in the environment either directly or indirectly. This study aimed to determine the effect of antibiotic treatment (Tetracycline) effect on the Bio-efficiency of the larvae…
Experiments assessed the comparative efficacy of oxalic acid solution (OA) and combination of formic acid (FA) evaporation and trickling OA to control the honey bee mite, Varroa destructor, at two apiary locations. Queen caging, consecutive OA treatments of broodless colonies, or combined treatments using OA and FA in colonies with brood increased mite mortality (P…
Stingless bees are ecologically and economically important species in the tropics and subtropics, but there has been little research on the characterization of detoxification systems and immune responses within them. This is critical for understanding their responses to, and defenses against, a variety of environmental stresses, including agrochemicals. Therefore, we studied the detoxification and immune…
Egypt has an ongoing long history with beekeeping, which started with the ancientEgyptians making various reliefs and inscriptions of beekeeping on their tombs and temples. TheEgyptian honeybee (Apis mellifera lamarckii) is an authentic Egyptian honeybee subspecies utilized inapiculture. A. m. lamarckii is a distinct honeybee subspecies that has a particular body color, size, andhigh levels…
With an almost global distribution, Varroa destuctor is the leading cause of weakening and loss of honey bee colonies. New substances are constantly being tested in order to find those that will exhibit high anti-Varroa efficacy at low doses/concentrations, without unwanted effects on bees. Lithium (Li) salts stood out as candidates based on previous research.…
In a cage experiment, lithium chloride (LiCl) and lithium citrate hydrate (Li-cit) were tested for varroacidal efficacy and impact on bees. Treatment with Li-cit (4, 7.5, 10, and 25 mM) resulted in 100% varroacidal efficacy and 100% bee survival. Due to better results in the cage experiment, Li-cit was further tested in field experiments on full-sized…
In the European honey bee (Apis mellifera), the olfactory system is essential for foraging and intraspecific communication via pheromones. Honey bees are equipped with a large repertoire of olfactory receptors belonging to the insect odorant receptor (OR) family. Previous studies have indicated that the transcription level of a few OR types including OR11, a receptor…
Environmental monitoring involves the quantification of microscopic cells and particles such as algae, plant cells, pollen, or fungal spores. Traditional methods using conventional microscopy require expert knowledge, are time-intensive and not well-suited for automated high throughput. Multispectral imaging flow cytometry (MIFC) allows measurement of up to 5000 particles per second from a fluid suspension and…
The increasing loss of honey bee colonies is assumed to be caused by various factors such as habitat degradation, parasites, pathogens, or the exposure to environmental pollutants like pesticides in agriculture practice. Different bee-related products like honey, bee bread, wax, and pollen can be contaminated by pesticides and some of them might affect colony health.…
To avoid potential adverse side effects of chemical plant protection products, microbial pest control products (MPCP) are commonly applied as biological alternatives. This study aimed to evaluate the biosafety of a MPCP with the active organism Bacillus thuringiensis ssp. aizawai (strain: ABTS-1857). An in-hive feeding experiment was performed under field-realistic conditions to examine the effect…
This mini-review aims at raising the interest in contractile phage tail-like particles (CPTPs) of bacteria as an efficient and pest-specific alternative to conventional chemical pesticides in agriculture, horticulture and forestry. CPTPs are used by various bacteria in diverse environments for interbacterial competition or for manipulation of eukaryotic hosts, such as fungi or insects. This review…
Abstract This article presents managed honey bee colony loss rates over winter 2019/20 resulting from using the standardised COLOSS questionnaire in 37 countries. Six countries were from outside Europe, including, for the first time in this series of articles, New Zealand. The 30,491 beekeepers outside New Zealand reported 4.5% of colonies with unsolvable queen problems,…
A honey bee colony’s ability to grow and develop is dependent on adequate nutrition. Bees collect pollen from flowers as a source of protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals. The crude protein content of corn pollen is considered low, around 15%; however, bees frequently visit the male flowers of the tassels for pollen. In this study,…
Flumethrin is one of the few acaricides that permit the control of Varroa disease or varroosis in bee colonies. However, flumethrin accumulates in hive products. We previously discovered that sublethal doses of flumethrin induce significant physiological stress in honeybees (Apis mellifera L.), however its potential impacts on the honeybee gut microenvironment remains unknown. To fill…
The gut microbiome plays an important role in bee health and disease. But it can be disrupted by pesticides and in-hive chemicals, putting honey bee health in danger. We used a controlled and fully crossed laboratory experimental design to test the effects of a 10-day period of chronic exposure to field-realistic sublethal concentrations of two…
Abstract Multiple stressors threaten bee health, a major one being pesticides. Bees are simultaneously exposed to multiple pesticides that can cause both lethal and sublethal effects. Risk assessment and most research on bee health, however, focus on lethal individual effects. Here, we performed a systematic literature review and meta-analysis that summarizes and re-interprets the available…
Bee pollen is a natural cocktail of floral nectar, flower pollen, enzymes, and salivary secretions produced by honeybees. Bee pollen is one of the bee products most enriched in proteins, polysaccharides, polyphenols, lipids, minerals, and vitamins. It has a significant health and medicinal impact and provides protection against many diseases, including diabetes, cancer, infectious, and…
Abstract Varroa mites are highly attracted to drone brood of honey bees (Apis mellifera), as it increases their chance of successful reproduction. Therefore, drone brood removal with trap frames is common practice among beekeepers in Europe and part of sustainable varroa control. However, it is considered labour-intensive, and there are doubts about the effectiveness of…
Abstract Beekeepers have various options to control the parasitic mite Varroa destructor in honey bee colonies, but no empirical data are available on the methods they apply in practice. We surveyed 28,409 beekeepers maintaining 507,641 colonies in 30 European countries concerning Varroa control methods. The set of 19 different Varroa diagnosis and control measures was…
The effects of sulfoxaflor on various pollinators have long been debated. However, there have been few in-hive studies on sulfoximines, and the effects on honey bee colony growth and foraging activity are unknown. Here, we calculated the LC50 of Closer® 24% suspension concentrate (SC) using honey bee foragers and then assessed the impacts of chronic…
Automated bee counters have evolved and become more versatile over the last hundred years. To date, however, there is no method for standardized validation of counting accuracy and thus no reliable data on daily bee losses or background mortality in bee colonies. Such data, however, are urgently needed by regulators to establish future guidelines for…
My paper entitled: A Comprehensive Survey of Phenolic Constituents Reported in Monofloral Honeys around the Globe is finally published! In this paper, I summarised all the phenolic compounds that had been identified in monofloral (single origin) honeys from 130 journal articles. In order to build up this paper, i combined my knowledge in Botany (Plant…
Honeybees are the most prevalent insect pollinator species; they pollinate a wide range of crops. Colony collapse disorder (CCD), which is caused by a variety of biotic and abiotic factors, incurs high economic/ecological loss. Despite extensive research to identify and study the various ecological stressors such as microbial infections, exposure to pesticides, loss of habitat,…
Abstract The diversity of endemic honeybee subspecies and ecotypes is at risk in Europe because modern apiculture promotes only a small number of honeybee strains. A crucial step for the conservation of honeybee diversity is the assessment of the status of remaining wild populations and their limiting factors. Here we present a two-year census of native, wild-living honeybees inhabiting power poles…
Abstract Honey bees (Apis mellifera) perform pollination service for many agricultural crops and contribute to the global economy in agriculture and bee products. However, honey bee health is an ongoing concern, as illustrated by persistent local population decline, caused by some severe bee diseases (e.g., nosemosis, AFB, EFB, chalkbrood). Three natural recipes are in development…
Abstract Honey adulteration generates low quality products on the market. The study aimed to find a simple, specific and less time-consuming method than standard melissopalynology only, for monitoring honey botanical and geographical origin. In this study 42 honey samples from different sources were examined for their botanical origin by using melissopalynology and their specific protein…
Abstract Pollinating bees are stressed by highly variable environmental conditions, malnutrition, parasites and pathogens, but may also by getting in contact with microorganisms or entomopathogenic nematodes that are used to control plant pests and diseases. While foraging for water, food, or nest material social as well as solitary bees have direct contact or even consume…
Many parts of the globe experience severe losses and fragmentation of habitats, affecting the self-sustainability of pollinator populations. A number of bee species coexist as wild and managed populations. Using honey bees as an example, we argue that several management practices in beekeeping threaten genetic diversity in both wild and managed populations, and drive population…
Bee World, Volume 99, Issue 1 is a special issue on the honey bee research association COLOSS. This issue contains 11 articles written by key members of all COLOSS core projects and task forces. Thanks to some authors institutions and the support of COLOSS all articles are permanently freely available and can be found here.…
Background: Whole-genome sequencing has become routine for population genetic studies. Sequencing of individuals provides maximal data but is rather expensive and fewer samples can be studied. In contrast, sequencing a pool of samples (pool-seq) can provide sufficient data, while presenting less of an economic challenge. Few studies have compared the two approaches to infer population…
In order to investigate the geographical distribution of morphological and mitochondrial variation of the Western honey bee in West and Central Africa, 175 colonies, sampled from 44 localities (or a subset therefrom), were subjected to geometric morphometric (GM), traditional morphometric (TM) and mitochondrial DNA analyses. The shape of the forewing differed significantly between the three…
Inflammation is a defense process triggered when the body faces assaults from pathogens, toxic substances, microbial infections, or when tissue is damaged. Immune and inflammatory disorders are common pathogenic pathways that lead to the progress of various chronic diseases, such as cancer and diabetes. The overproduction of cytokines, such as interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and tumor…
Introduction The first SOLATINA-COLOSS meeting took place virtually on September 22, 2021. The event was set up with the aim of promoting collaboration between the two societies. SoLatInA (SOciedad LATinoamericana de INvestigación en Abejas; www.solatina.org) is the Latin American Society for Bee Research based in Montevideo, Uruguay, founded in 2017 with the objectives of contributing…
Consumers often believe that “natural food” is harmless, however naturally occurring toxins in food represent a health risk to humans. Honey as a natural, nutritious sweetener, is one of the most commonly consumed foods throughout the world. However, food safety concerns for honey arise when honeybees collect nectar from poisonous plants such as Rhododendron sp., Coriaria arborea, and Tripterygium wilfordii Hook…
Bee venom (BV) is a typical toxin secreted by stingers of honeybee workers. BV and BV therapy have long been attractive to different cultures, with extensive studies during recent decades. Nowadays, BV is applied to combat several skin diseases, such as atopic dermatitis, acne vulgaris, alopecia, vitiligo, and psoriasis. BV is used extensively in topical…
Abstract 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,…
The varroa mite (Varroa destructor), a complex ectoparasite with a very distinctive biology is considered a key pest affecting beekeeping and honey bee health worldwide. Several control strategies using synthetic and organic acaricides have been developed to deal with this invasive species in Europe, having also side effects on honey bee health. At the same…
VarroMed® is a soft acaricide registered for honey bees on the European Union market since 2017 for Varroa control. Researchers involved were partners of different countries of the Varroa control task force of the COLOSS Association. Our goal was to evaluate performances (acaricide efficacy and toxic effects on honey bees) of VarroMed® in different climatic…
Agricultural and apicultural practices expose honeybees to a range of pesticides that have the potential to negatively affect their physiology, neurobiology, and behavior. Accumulating evidence suggests that these effects extend to the honeybee gut microbiome, which serves important functions for honeybee health. Here we test the potential effects of the pesticides thiacloprid, acetamiprid, and oxalic…
Plant reproduction in red clover requires cross-fertilization via insect pollination. However, the influences of visitation rate and timing on maximizing ovule utilization are yet to be determined. We aimed to study the influences of visitation rate, flowering stage, and self-incompatibility on reproductive success. We applied hand and honey bee pollination in the study of eight…
A Bee World article on the use of Citizen Scientist on varroa research. Citizen Science is the involvement of volunteers in science and CSI Varroa project is an initiative of COLOSS members, started at the end of 2018, aiming to gain more knowledge about varroa infestation thresholds above which beekeepers start observing economic damages, and…
As part of the MUST‐B project, a research project on field data collection for honey bee colony model evaluation was carried out in 2018‐2020. In a preparatory phase (2018), methods for monitoring of honey bee colonies were tested, field operators trained, and experimental colonies established. The main field experiment was conducted in 2019‐2020, during which…
In red clover seed production, low seed yield is limiting the commercial exploitation of tetraploid red clover. To explore if pollination is the limiting factor for the seed yield in tetraploid red clover, we investigated pollinator behaviour and plant reproductive success in diploid (2x) cultivar ‘Rajah’ and tetraploid (4x) cultivar ‘Amos’ using honey bee and…
Abstract: Simone Tos, James C. Nieh, Annely Brandt, Monica Colli, Julie Fourrier, Herve Giffard, Javier Hernández-López, Valeria Malagnini, Geoffrey R. Williams, Noa Simon-Delso The assessment of pesticide risks to insect pollinators have typically focused on short-term, lethal impacts. The environmental ramifications of many of the world’s most commonly employed pesticides, such as those exhibiting systemic…
Many different pollinators often visit the same flower, as seen in this image where a buff-tailed bumble bee (Bombus terrestris), a red-tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) and a small sweat bee (Lasioglossum sp.) are sharing a plume thistle Cirsium rivulare flower. On pages 623-636, Willem Proesmans and colleagues discuss how sharing of flowers in this way is a potential…
Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous and persistent pollutants, and have been detected in a wide variety of media, from soils to aquatic systems. MPs, consisting primarily of polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyacrylamide polymers, have recently been found in 12% of samples of honey collected in Ecuador. Recently, MPs have also been identified in honey bees collected from…
Abstract: Assessment of colony infestation by Varroa destructor is a crucial part of the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) applied to beekeeping. Natural mite fall, quantified by counting the mites on sticky sheets, is considered a reference method to estimate varroa infestation level in honey bee colonies. However, in recent years, alternative methods that can be…
Abstract The One Health approach acknowledges that human health is firmly linked to animal and environmental health. It involves using animals such as bees and other pollinators as sentinels for environmental contamination or biological indicators. Beekeepers noticed intoxications of apiaries located in the vicinity of sheep and cattle farms, which led to the suspicion of…
Abstract European foulbrood (EFB), caused by Melissococcus plutonius, is a globally distributed bacterial brood disease affecting Apis mellifera larvae. There is some evidence, even if under debate, that spreading of the disease within the colony is prevented by worker bees performing hygienic behaviour, including detection and removal of infected larvae. Olfactory cues (brood pheromones, signature…
Abstract Nosema ceranae is a ubiquitous microsporidian pathogen infecting the midgut of honey bees. The infection causes bee nosemosis, a disease associated with malnutrition, dysentery, and lethargic behavior, and results in considerable economic losses in apiculture. The use of a rapid, sensitive, and inexpensive DNA-based molecular detection method assists in the surveillance and eventual control…
Abstract Bees are essential pollinators and their protection is relevant to secure biodiversity and agricultural production. MonViA-project members and partners collaborate in monitoring projects to develop effective policies to support biodiversity in Germany. In the current case-study, the impact of climate on honey bee population performance was assessed. We modeled year-to-year Central-European honey yield changes…
Abstract Paenibacillus larvae is the etiological agent of American Foulbrood (AFB), a highly contagious brood disease of honey bees (Apis mellifera). AFB requires mandatory reporting to the veterinary authority in many countries and until now four genotypes, P. larvae ERIC I-IV, have been identified. We isolated a new genotype, ERIC V, from a Spanish honey…
Abstract After the early advent of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, myriads of FDA-approved drugs have been massively repurposed for COVID-19 treatment based on molecular docking against selected protein targets that play fundamental roles in the replication cycle of the novel coronavirus. Honeybee products are well known of their nutritional values and medicinal effects. Bee products…
A recurrent concern in nature conservation is the potential competition for forage plants between wild bees and managed honey bees. Specifically, that the highly sophisticated system of recruitment and large perennial colonies of honey bees quickly exhaust forage resources leading to the local extirpation of wild bees. However, different species of bees show different preferences…
Abstract The ongoing loss of global biodiversity is endangering ecosystem functioning and human food security. While environmental pollutants are well known to reduce fertility, the potential effects of common neonicotinoid insecticides on insect fertility remain poorly understood. Here, we show that field-realistic neonicotinoid exposure can drastically impact male insect fertility. In the laboratory, male and…
Abstract Honeybees are of great importance because of their role in pollination as well as for hive products. The population of managed colonies fluctuates over time, and recent monitoring reports show different levels of colony losses in many regions and countries. The cause of this kind of loss is a combination of various factors, such…
Red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) is an important forage legume grown in many of the temperate regions around the world. In order to evaluate possible causes for the low seed yield in particular in tetraploid red clover, we surveyed 71 studies of red clover seed production published from 1948 to 2019, reviewing seed yield components,…
The losses of honey bee colonies and declines of other insect pollinators have been associated with negative effects of pesticides. Honey bees as well as other pollinators are nectar and pollen foragers and thus are exposed to an extensive range of phytochemicals. Understanding the synergistic, additive, and antagonistic effects of plant secondary metabolites and pesticides…
Abstract Pesticides and parasites have each been linked to increased mortality in western honey bees (Apis mellifera). Currently, it is uncertain if one makes the other worse; several studies have tested for potential synergistic stressor effects, but results have been mixed. Here, we use a hierarchical meta‐analysis of 63 experiments from 26 studies to gain…
The second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic is exacerbating in most of the countries creating a state of international alert. After a year of COVID-19 emergence, while some COVID-19 vaccines are currently being produced and available, new concerns regarding their safety and efficacy are coming up particularly with the emergence of mutated strains of SARS-CoV-2…
Dear Colleagues, Traditionally, honeybee breeding has been focusing on traits of immediate benefit to apiculturists, such as maximizing honey yield or selecting for traits that allow handling colonies with greater ease, for instance, gentleness or low swarming tendency. In particular since the establishment of breeding value estimation, significant genetic progress has been achieved in this…
Ensuring adequate treatments for acaricide efficacy to combat mite infestation is a pre-requisite for healthy honeybees and a good yield of hive products. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the effect of the mode of application on efficiency of two acaricides; Vapcozin-20 (amitraz) and Mavrik 2F (fluvalinate) against Varroa mite infesting brood and adult honeybees. Methods: To do so,…
With numerous endemic subspecies representing four of its five evolutionary lineages, Europe holds a large fraction of Apis mellifera genetic diversity. This diversity and the natural distribution range have been altered by anthropogenic factors. The conservation of this natural heritage relies on the availability of accurate tools for subspecies diagnosis. Based on pool-sequence data from…
Nanna Hjort Vidkjær, Inge S. Fomsgaard, and Per Kryger Abstract: The honey bee pollen/nectar diet is rich in bioactive phytochemicals and recent studies have demonstrated the potential of phytochemicals to influence honey bee disease resistance. To unravel the role of dietary phytochemicals in honey bee health it is essential to understand phytochemical uptake, bioavailability, and metabolism but presently…
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Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) has infected people in 210 nations and has been declared a pandemic on March 12, 2020 by the World Health Organization (WHO). In the absence of effective treatment and/or vaccines for COVID-19, natural products of known therapeutic and antiviral activity could offer an inexpensive, effective option for managing the disease. Benefits of…
The decline of insect pollinators threatens global food security. A major potential cause of decline is considered to be the interaction between environmental stressors, particularly between exposure to pesticides and pathogens. To explore pesticide–pathogen interactions in an important pollinator insect, the honey bee, we used two new nicotinic acetylcholine receptor agonist insecticides (nACHRs), flupyradifurone (FPF)…
Most Varroa induced colony losses occur during the autumn or winter season as a consequence of an elevated Varroa infestation level and an insufficient health status of the adult bees. Even with an initial low Varroa infestation in early spring, critical mite and virus infection levels can be reached before winter if colonies continuously rear…
Several negative factors contribute to a decline in the number of insect pollinators. As a novel approach in therapy, we hypothesize that the EM® for bees could potentially have an important therapeutic and immunomodulatory effect on honey bee colonies. The aim of our study was to evaluate its impact on honey bees at the individual…
Abstract This article presents managed honey bee colony loss rates over winter 2018/19 resulting from using the standardised COLOSS questionnaire in 35 countries (31 in Europe). In total, 28,629 beekeepers supplying valid loss data wintered 738,233 colonies, and reported 29,912 (4.1%, 95% confidence interval (CI) 4.0–4.1%) colonies with unsolvable queen problems, 79,146 (10.7%, 95% CI…
Highlights: Honey bees orally exposed to imidacloprid exhibit reduced metabolism of quercetin. Dietary quercetin reduces the con- centration of imidacloprid absorbed in honey bees. Dietary quercetin does not affect the concentration of tebuconazole or tau-fluvalinate in contact-exposed honey bees. Free download for until 20th September 2020 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0045653520320439?dgcid=coauthor
In the past centuries, viruses have benefited from globalization to spread across the globe, infecting new host species and populations. A growing number of viruses have been documented in the western honey bee, Apis mellifera. Several of these contribute significantly to honey bee colony losses. This review synthetizes the knowledge of the diversity and distribution…
Numerous studies have recently reported on the discovery of bee viruses in different arthropod species and their possible transmission routes, vastly increasing our understanding of these viruses and their distribution. Here, we review the current literature on the recent advances in understanding the transmission of viruses, both on the presence of bee viruses in Apis…
Honey bees (Apis mellifera) can be infected by many viruses, some of which pose a major threat to their health and well-being. A critical step in the dynamics of a viral infection is its mode of transmission. Here, we compared for the first time the effect of mode of horizontal transmission of Black queen cell virus (BQCV),…
Carl-Johan Junge a beekeeper in Denmark has made a beautiful video about the bees and the beeekeepers dedicated to their conservation on the island of Læsø. First a brief introduction to the bee (Apis mellifera mellifera) and their morphological characters. Honey on Læsø is mostly from heather (Calluna vulgaris). The bees are dark and a…
Abstract The honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) is an important pollinator and a model for pesticide effects on insect pollinators. The effects of agricultural pesticides on honeybee health have therefore raised concern. Bees can be exposed to multiple pesticides that may interact synergistically, amplifying their side effects. Attention has focused on neonicotinoid pesticides, but flupyradifurone (FPF)…
Report for the IUCN on alien honey bee subspecies within the EU. 1.4. Areas within the EU where the alien sub-species is a potential threat, but not yet present A. m. ligustica As the sub-species is already present in all EU countries, the only areas where it could still be introduced and become a threat…
Authentication of the botanical and geographic origin of Egyptian honey using pollen analysis methods to use pollen analyses to authenticate the botanical origin and labeling of seven kinds of Egyptian honey and to identify sources of pollen used by honey bees in Egypt. Honeys are labeled, based on sources of pollen, which are usually provided…
Dramatic losses of pollinating insects have become of global concern, as they threaten not only key ecosystem services but also human food production. Recent research provided evidence that interactions between ecological stressors are drivers of declining pollinator health and responsible for observed population collapses. We used the honeybee Apis mellifera and conducted a series of…
Melissococcus plutonius is the causative agent of European foulbrood (EFB), an important bacterial disease of honey bee larvae, and various methods have been developed for the detection of this disease. Adult bees are not affected but spread M. plutonius among beehives and serve as a diagnostic tool to detect EFB. Melissococcus plutonius detection based on…
Robert Brodschneider Kristina Gratzer, Elfriede Kalcher-Sommersguter, Helmut Heigl, Waltraud Auer, Rudolf Moosbeckhofer & Karl Crailsheim Scientific Reports volume 9, Article number: 16633 (2019) https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-53016-5 Austrian beekeepers participated in the “C.S.I. Pollen” study as citizen scientists and collected pollen from honey bee colonies in hive mounted traps every three weeks from April to September in 2014 and 2015 to…
Tesovnik Tanja, Zorc Minja, Ristanić Marko, Glavinić Uroš, Stevanović Jevrosima, Narat Mojca, Stanimirović Zoran (2019) Exposure of honey bee larvae to thiamethoxam and its interaction with Nosema ceranae infection in adult honey bees, Environmental Pollution, DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113443 Abstract During their lifetime honey bees (Apis mellifera) rarely experience optimal conditions. Sometimes, a simultaneous action of multiple…
Slobodan Dolasevic, Jevrosima Stevanovic, Nevenka Aleksic, Uros Glavinic, Nebojsa Deletic, Mica Mladenovic & Zoran Stanimirovic The influence of various diets on the quality of Apis mellifera queens was assessed. Colonies intended for queen cell production were assigned to four groups fed on (1) sugar-only, (2) mix of sugar, honey and fresh pollen, (3) sugar and pollen substitute…
Honey proteins are essential bee nutrients and antimicrobials that protect honey from microbial spoilage. The majority of the honey proteome includes bee-secreted peptides and proteins, produced in specialised glands; however, bees need to forage actively for nitrogen sources and other basic elements of protein synthesis. Nectar and pollen of dierent origins can vary significantly in…
The genome of the western honeybee (Apis mellifera) harbors nine transcribed major royal jelly protein genes (mrjp1‐9) which originate from a single‐copy precursor via gene duplication. The first MRJP was identified in royal jelly, a secretion of the bees’ hypopharyngeal glands that is used by young worker bees, called nurses, to feed developing larvae. Thus,…
Kim Bjerge, Carsten Eie Frigaard, Peter Høgh Mikkelsen, Thomas Holm Nielsen, Michael Misbih, Per Kryger Highlights: Computer vision system to monitor the infestation level of varroa mites in abeehive. A nondestructive method as alternative to traditional methods. The vision system is based on deep learning to determine the number of infested bees. Measures an infestation level…
Gajić B, Muñoz I, De la Rúa P, Stevanović J, Lakić N, Kulišić Z, Stanimirović Z. Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate the genetic diversity of Varroa destructor parasitizing Apis mellifera colonies and to test for possible host-parasite association at the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) level. Six A. mellifera haplotypes (including a novel C2aa) and five haplotypes of V.…
Colony losses, including those induced by the colony collapse disorder, are an urgent problem of contemporary apiculture which has been capturing the attention of both apiculturists and the research community. CCD is characterized by the absence of adult dead bees in the hive in which few workers and a queen remain, the ratio between the…
Among numerous factors that contribute to honey bee colony losses and problems in beekeeping, pesticides and Nosema ceranae have been often reported. In contrast to insecticides, whose effects on bees have been widely studied, fungicides did not attract considerable attention. Prochloraz, an imidazole fungicide widely used in agriculture, was detected in honey and pollen stored inside hives…
Several environmental factors (e.g. food source, pesticides, toxins, parasites and pathogens) influence development and maturation of honey bees (Apis mellifera). Therefore, controlled experimental conditions are mandatory when studying the impact of environmental factors: particularly food quality and nutrient consumption. In vitro larval rearing is a standard approach for monitoring food intake of larvae and the…
Honey bees directly affect and are influenced by their local environment, in terms of food sources, pollinator densities, pathogen and toxin exposure and climate. Currently, there is a lack of studies analyzing these data with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to investigate spatial relationships with the environment. Particularly for inter-colonial pathogen transmission, it is known that…
Honey bees are highly prone to infectious diseases, causing colony losses in the worst case. However, they combat diseases through a combination of their innate immune system and social defence behaviours like foraging for health-enhancing plant products (e.g. nectar, pollen and resin). Plant secondary metabolites are not only highly active against bacteria and fungi, they…
In Europe, approximately 84% of cultivated crop species depend on insect pollinators, mainly bees. Apis mellifera (the Western honey bee) is the most important commercial pollinator worldwide. The Gram-positive bacterium Melissococcus plutonius is the causative agent of European foulbrood (EFB), a global honey bee brood disease. In order to detect putative virulence factors, we sequenced…
Front of the new honey bee lab at the University of Florida. It was the tumultuous beginning to a long-awaited Florida Fall. Hurricane Michael headed toward the state’s panhandle in early October. Only a few short weeks previously, the grand opening of the honey bee Research and Extension Laboratory at the University of Florida took…
Today, scientists of the honey bee research association COLOSS1 have published an article2 in the peer reviewed journal Biological Invasions which provides an action plan on how to deal with new introductions of small hive beetles (Aethina tumida) into regions free of this honey bee pest. Their proposed course of action will help stakeholders all…
Abstract: This work was aimed at the detection of the differences in the occurrence of seven bee pathogens between bee colonies kept in commercial and traditional ways. The research was conducted on 120 apparently healthy, commercially kept colonies in DB hives and 24 traditionally kept colonies in primitive, so-called trmka hives on the Pester Plateau.…
Abstract: Protection of honey bees is of great economic importance because of their role in pollination. Crucial steps towards this goal are epidemiological surveys of pathogens connected with honey bee losses. In this study deformed wing virus (DWV), chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV), acute bee paralysis virus (ABPV) and sacbrood virus (SBV) were investigated in…
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Cadmium and lead-based nanotechnologies are increasingly used in agricultural, industrial, and biological processes; however, potential adverse effects of nanomaterials on honey bees had not been assessed. In this study, effects of exposures to sublethal concentrations of PbO and CdO nanoparticles (NPs), either separately or in combination on honey bee (Apis mellifera) workers, were assessed. Honey…
Beside many beneficial applications in industry, agriculture and medicine, nanoparticles (NPs) released into the environment might cause adverse effects. In the present study, effects of exposure to sublethal concentrations of PbO and CdO NPs, either separately or in combination on honey bee (A. mellifera) workers were assessed. Honey bee workers were fed sugar syrup contained…
Reference: Haddad, N. J., Adjlane, N., Saini, D., Menon, A., Krishnamurthy, V., Jonklaas, D., … & Horth, L. (2018). Whole
Reference: Haddad, N., Horth, L., Al-Shagour, B., Adjlane, N., & Loucif-Ayad, W. (2018). Next-generation sequence data demonstrate several pathogenic bee viruses in Middle East and African honey bee subspecies (Apis mellifera syriaca, Apis mellifera intermissa) as well as their cohabiting pathogenic mites (Varroa destructor). Virus genes, 1-12. RNA viruses are associated with honey bee (Apis…
The aim of this review is to compile what is known about beekeeping in Egypt, statistics on beehives in Egypt, non-Apis pollinators, crops in need of pollination, and the potential honey bee pollination gap in Egypt. This review was performed in an attempt to draw the attention of stakeholders and decision makers to the value…
Currently, there are four Varroa species identified worldwide, which present a high interspecific and intraspecific variability. The objective of this investigation was to identify the predominant species of Varroa and the effect of thymol on the plasticity of the mite. To determine the species and effect of thymol on the plasticity of the mite, 150…
Abstract Asian hornets (Vespa velutina) are voracious predators of bees, and are the latest emerging threat to managed and wild pollinator populations in Europe. To prevent establishment or reduce the rate of spread of V. velutina, early detection and destruction of nests is considered the only option. Detection is difficult as their nests are well…
Seven bee honey types identified botanically in terms of their floral origin (Clover, Cedrus, Citrus, Banana, Cotton, Brazilian pepper, and Sun flower), and their geographical regions during 2016 – 2017 have been characterized in comparison with artificial honey. Characterization of honeys was based on their physicochemical properties, antimicrobial activity, heavy metal contents and multi-pesticides residues…
European foulbrood is a globally distributed brood disease affecting honey bees. It may lead to lethal infections of larvae and, in severe cases, even to colony collapse. Lately, a profound genetic and phenotypic diversity was documented for the causative agent Melissococcus plutonius. However, experimental work on the impact of diverse M. plutonius strains on hosts with…
Reference: Brodschneider, Gray, Adjlane, Ballis, Brusbardis, Charrière, Chlebo, Coffey, Dahle, de Graaf, Dražić, Evans, Fedoriak, Forsythe, Gregorc, Grzęda, Hetzroni, Kauko, Kristiansen, Martikkala, Martín-Hernández, Medina-Flores, Mutinelli, Raudmets, Ryzhikov, Simon-Delso, Stevanovic, Uzunov, Vejsnæs, Woehl, Zammit-Mangion, Danihlík (2018) Multi-country loss rates of honey bee colonies during winter 2016/17 from the COLOSS survey. Journal of Apicultural Research, 57(3), 452-457.…
Royal jelly (RJ) is a beehive product with a complex composition, major royal jelly proteins (MRJPs) being the most abundant proteins. Cell culture and animal studies suggest various biological activities for the full-length/native MRJPs. In the field of apitherapy, it is assumed that MRJPs can positively affect human health. However, whenever RJ is administered orally,…
The female sex in honeybees (Apis spp.) comprises a reproductive queen and a sterile worker caste. Nurse bees feed all larvae progressively with a caste-specific food jelly until the prepupal stage. Only those larvae that are exclusively fed a large amount of royal jelly (RJ) develop into queens. RJ is a composite secretion of two…
ABSTRACT This study was done to discover any beneficial effect of a medicinal mushroom Agaricus brasiliensis extract on the honey bee. Firstly, a laboratory experiment was conducted on 640 bees reared in 32 singleuse plastic rearing cups. A. brasiliensis extract proved safe in all doses tested (50, 100 and 150 mg/kg/ day) irrespective of feeding…
Abstract In this study we show that honey bee colonies placed in a greenhouse for pollination of strawberry can simultaneously be used to indicate the presence of the plant pathogenic bacterium Erwinia pyrifoliae. This was demonstrated by using two methods of qualitative sacrificial and non-sacrificial bio sampling of the honey bee colony. A novel method…
Abstract The Small Hive Beetle (SHB), Aethina tumida, is an invasive pest of honey bee colonies that causes significant damage to the beekeeping sector. SHB was detected in southern Italy (EU) in 2014 and despite adopted eradication measures, is still present there. After three years of observations of SHB in Calabria (2014-2016), we provide here…
Abstract We verified the acaricide efficacy on Varroa destructor and the toxicity on honey bees of summer treatments carried out in three different apiaries in Central Italy with an evaporator filled with 290 ml of formic acid 60%. Acaricide efficacy was evaluated counting the number of mites killed by the application of formic acid in the…
We here describe the results of the investigation of a honeybee hive that exhibited symptoms of poisoning in the July 2013. During the summer, only a few pesticides such as desiccants, typically quaternary ammonium (quat) and glyphosate formulations, are applied. We therefore analysed samples of not only a wide range of pesticides, but also desiccants. Additionally,…
We describe the identification by a metagenomics approach of Apis rhabdovirus, ARV-1, in A. mellifera, Bombus impatiens and in V. destructor mites from populations collected in the US and in Israel. By RT-PCR we found that ARV-1 can reach high titers of 107–108 viral genomic copies per individual in individual honey bees and mites . ARV-1…
Two new articles of our team: New article 1. Vejnovic Branislav, Stevanovic Jevrosima, Schwarz Ryan S, Aleksic Nevenka, Mirilovic Milorad, Jovanovic Nemanja M, Stanimirovic Zoran (2017) Quantitative PCR assessment of Lotmaria passim in Apis mellifera colonies co-infected naturally with Nosema ceranae. Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, doi: 10.1016/j.jip.2017.11.003. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022201117303245 New article 2. Glavinic Uros, Stankovic Biljana,…
Honeybee losses have been attributed to multiple stressors and factors including the neonicotinoid insecticides (NIs). Much of the study of hive contamination has been focused upon temperate regions such as Europe, Canada and the United States. This study looks for the first time at honey, pollen and bees collected from across the Nile Delta in…
In two recently published reports, hazards posed by dietary exposure to organophosphate and neonicotinoid plant protection products on the European honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) in Egypt were investigated. Using concentrations reported in those studies, an assessment of hazards posed by these two classes of insecticides to humans due to consumption of Egyptian honey from…
In this study we measured in vitro honey bee enzyme activities in presence of the synergist piperonyl butoxide (PBO) and some new benzodioxole and dihydrobenzofuran derivatives through absorbance and fluorescence spectrophotometric assays, to determine if and to what extent detoxification systems and acetylcholinesterases are affected by these compounds. Both Italian (Italy) and Carniolan (Czech Republic)…
Abstract Natural honey bee products, especially propolis are well known for their biological properties. However, less well known are the impact of propolis’ single phenolic substances and variation across different landscapes, geographic locations and botanical origins. Here, we determined the chemical composition of propolis samples collected in different geographic areas of Romania with a continental…
Abstract The microsporidium Nosema neumanni n. sp., a new parasite of the honeybee Apis mellifera is described based on its ultra-structural and molecular characteristics. Structures resembling microsporidian spores were found by microscopic examination of honeybees from Uganda. Molecular confirmation failed when PCR primers specific for Nosema apis and Nosema ceranae were used, but was successful…
Abstract The Chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV) is the aetiological agent of chronic bee paralysis, a contagious disease associated with nervous disorders in adult honeybees leading to massive mortalities in front of the hives. Some of the clinical signs frequently reported, such as trembling, may be confused with intoxication syndromes. Therefore, laboratory diagnosis using real-time PCR to…
Abstract Reports of honey bee population decline has spurred many national efforts to understand the extent of the problem and to identify causative or associated factors. However, our collective understanding of the factors has been hampered by a lack of joined up trans-national effort. Moreover, the impacts of beekeeper knowledge and beekeeping management practices have…
Abstract In order to produce such ‘custom design’ colonies, it will however be necessary to reliably reproduce suitable sperm mixes to inseminate the queens. Using individual drones to inseminate a queen will be insufficient. Another queen will be inseminated with a set of semen from different drones. Hence, no single colony will have identical fathers…
Abstract Honeybees are prone to parasite and pathogen infestations/infections due to their social colony life. Bacterial pathogens in particular lead to destructive infections of the brood. European foulbrood is caused by the bacterium Melissococcus plutonius in combination with several other Gram-positive bacteria (Achromobacter eurydice, Bacillus pumilus, Brevibacillus laterosporus, Enterococcus faecalis, Paenibacillus alvei, Paenibacillus dendritiformis) involved as secondary invaders following the initial infection.…
Abstract There are various chemicals available for the control of Varroa mites from honey bee colonies including amitraz and tau-fluvalinate. The optimum dose of these chemicals should give the highest Varroa control efficacy with minimal negative impacts on honey bees. The high doses are expected to have destructive impacts on honey bees. However, the impacts…
Abstract Western honey bees, Apis mellifera, live in highly eusocial colonies that are each typically headed by a single queen. The queen is the sole reproductive female in a healthy colony, and because long-term colony survival depends on her ability to produce a large number of offspring, queen health is essential for colony success. Honey bees…
Abstract Under normal conditions, each honey bee colony contains one queen. Queenless colonies are mostly supplied with new queens using commercial caged queens. In some countries, caged virgin queens are commonly sold for such purpose. Keeping virgin queens for a long period is essential for marketing and shipping purposes. In this study, a new cage…
Abstract In spring there is often a rise in honey bee mortality incidents. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential correlation, in the reported incidents, between exposure to pesticide treatments and virus infections. Here we summarize the situation in northeastern Italy during spring 2014, evaluated by monitoring 150 active ingredients and three honey bee…
Abstract Beekeepers usually supply their colonies with alternatives to nectar (i.e. sugar feeding) during dearth periods of the year, especially cold times of winter. The objective of the study was to determine the best substances to feed bees to enhance the tolerance and survival of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) to low temperatures. Seven feeding…
Abstract Varroa mite, Varroa destructor, is the most destructive factor to western honey bee colonies worldwide. In 1904, Varroa was firstly recorded on honey bees, at the beginning it was hypothesized that Varroa is one species but recently this hypothesis has been considered to be incorrect. In 1983, Varroa mite was recorded in Egypt for…
Abstract The study was conducted t oinvestigate the effect of Lactobacillus rhamnosus (a commercial probiotic) and inulin (a prebiotic) on the survival rates of honeybees infected and uninfected with Nosema ceranae, the level of phenoloxidase (PO) activity, the course of nosemosis, and the effect on the prevention of nosemosis development in bees. The cells of…
Abstract Background Nosema ceranae infection not only damages honey bee (Apis melifera) intestines, but we believe it may also affect intestinal yeast development and its seasonal pattern. In order to check our hypothesis, infection intensity versus intestinal yeast colony forming units (CFU) both in field and cage experiments were studied. Methods/Findings Field tests were carried…
Abstract Bio-analysis of insects is increasingly dependent on highly sensitive methods that require high quality biological material, such as hemolymph. However, it is difficult to collect fresh and uncontaminated hemolymph from adult bees since they are very active and have the potential to sting, and because hemolymph is rapidly melanized. Here we aimed to develop…
Abstract During the 2000s, the problem of pesticide poisoning of honeybees seemed to be almost solved. The number of cases has decreased in comparison to the 1970s. The problem of acute honeybee poisoning, however, has not disappeared, but instead has transformed into a problem of poisoning from ‘traditional’ pesticides like organophosphorus pesticides or pyrethroids, to…
Abstract Study combines data about the exposure of honeybees to pesticides from plant protection products and veterinary medicinal products. Residues of 200 pesticide and pesticide metabolites in 343 live and 74 poisoned honeybee samples, obtained during the years of 2014–2015, were determined by LC-MS/MS and GC-MS/MS. In 44% of live honeybee 48 different pesticide residues…
Abstract The effect of sublethal doses of imidacloprid on protein content and activity of proteases on honey bees was analyzed. The study was conducted in three experimental groups: colonies from groups BE-5 and BE-200 were contaminated with 5 and 200 ppb of imidacloprid, respectively, via their food supply (syrup and pollen), while group BE was…
Abstract The presence of nanoparticles on the body of the honeybee Apis dorsata Fabricius, was investigated for the frst time to better understand the bee’s behaviour. These have been observed by using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and confrmed by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). Our study clearly denotes that the Indian rock honey bee Apis…
Abstract 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…
Abstract Wax moth larvae (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) are serious pests on wax combs outside and inside of beehives. Management of wax moths is particularly difficult inside hive bodies housing weak colonies. In this study, five traps were designed and evaluated for their efficacy to attract mature larvae inside beehives. These traps were: (1) mesh envelope trap…
Abstract The liquid form of honey is relatively undesirable because honey could be crystallized and then spoilage under certain conditions. In this study, producing honey jelly from liquid citrus, clover and cotton honey using gelatin was investigated. Only gelatin and water were used to produce the honey jelly without other additives. Some chemical components were…
Abstract Various treatments are currently available for the control of Varroa mites. Some of these treatments depend on using natural and nonchemical compounds. In this study, the impacts of some materials (oxalic acid, thymol, and potassium citrate) on the survival of honey bees and some quality parameters were investigated under laboratory conditions. The potential impacts…
Abstract We measured the distribution of sugar solution within groups of caged honey bees (Apis mellifera) under standard in vitro laboratory conditions using 14C polyethylene glycol as a radioactive marker to analyze ingestion by individual bees after group feeding. We studied the impact of different experimental setups by varying the number of bees, age of bees, origin of…
Abstract The western honeybee, Apis mellifera is a prominent model organism in the field of sociogenomics and a recent upgrade substantially improved annotations of the reference genome. Nevertheless, genome assemblies based on short-sequencing reads suffer from problems in regions comprising e.g. multi-copy genes. We used single-molecule nanopore-based sequencing with extensive read-lengths to reconstruct the organization of the major…
Abstract The honeybee (Apis mellifera) has been threatened by multiple factors including pests and pathogens, pesticides and loss of locally adapted gene complexes due to replacement and introgression. In western Europe, the genetic integrity of the native A. m. mellifera (M-lineage) is endangered due to trading and intensive queen breeding with commercial subspecies of eastern…
Abstract In global industry, the steady pursuance of miniaturization has led to the creation of minute particles, the nanoparticles (NPs; 0.1– 100 nm).The industrial division that deals with NPs is defined as nanotechnology, which is still young and promising and has been developing quickly for the last 20 years. Unluckily, very limited information is available…
Abstract Insect pollinators are essential to global food production. For this reason, it is alarming that honey bee (Apis mellifera) populations across the world have recently seen increased rates of mortality. These changes in colony mortality are often ascribed to one or more factors including parasites, diseases, pesticides, nutrition, habitat dynamics, weather and/or climate. However,…
Abstract In this short note we present comparable loss rates of honey bee colonies during winter 2015/16 from 29 countries, obtained with the COLOSS questionnaire. Altogether, we received valid answers from 19,952 beekeepers. These beekeepers collectively wintered 421,238 colonies, and reported 18,587 colonies with unsolvable queen problems and 32,048 dead colonies after winter. This gives…
Abstract Authors: Sofia Levin1,2, Noa Sela3 & Nor Chejanovsky1 1 Department of Entomology, Institute of Plant Protection, Agricultural Research Organization, The Volcani Center, Rishon LeZion, 7528809, Israel. 2 Institute of Agroecology and Plant Health, Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, 76100, Israel. 3 Department of Plant Pathology and Weed Research, Institute of Plant Protection,…
Abstract Propolis is a multifunctional material collected and used by honey bees in the construction and maintenance of their hives. It has been used in folk medicine for centuries. Concentrations of major constituents and antioxidant characteristicsof ethanolic extracts of three samples of propolis (EEPs) collected from different geographical locations in Canada (Saskatchewan, Ontario and British…
Abstract Honeybee colonies (Apis mellifera) serve as attractive hosts for a variety of pathogens providing optimal temperatures, humidity, and an abundance of food. Thus, honeybees have to deal with pathogens throughout their lives and, even as larvae they are affected by severe brood diseases like the European Foulbrood caused by Melissococcus plutonius. Accordingly, it is highly…
Abstract In this study, the possibility to produce creamed honey from liquid clover and cotton honey using glucose powder and temperature of 5°C was investigated. Various glucose powder amounts were added to the liquid honey as 0.1, 0.3, 0.6, 1.2, 1.8 and 2.4% (w/w). Then, some parameters as well as the potential use of creamed…
Abstract One of the safest methods to reduce Varroa infestation in honey bee colonies is the use of mechanical methods. Dusting or spraying honey bees with some materials (e.g. powdered sugar or oxalic acid solution) can be considered as safe mechanical methods. In this study, the effects of dusting or spraying on the survival rate…
Abstract Honeybee (Apis mellifera) females occur in two castes: workers and one reproductive queen. Caste is nutritionally regulated and only larvae exclusively fed on royal jelly (RJ) develop into queens. Decades of search for a queen ‘determinator’ in RJ found no specific compound, concluding that the discrete feeding regime throughout larval development controlled caste fate.…
Abstract Objectives: To evaluate administration of bee stings at sites of acupuncture on the hormonal profile of patients with idiopathic premature ovarian failure (POF).Study design: A pilot study carried at Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department, Tanta University Hospital, and at the Entomology Unit, Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Tanta University from June 2015 to December 2015. Patients…
Abstract Deformed wing virus is an important contributor to honey bee colony losses. Frequently queen failure is reported as a cause for colony loss. Here we examine whether sexual transmission during multiple matings of queens is a possible way of virus infection in queens. In an environment with high prevalence of deformed wing virus, queens…
Abstract In this study, honey bees collected in Serbia over 9 consecutive years (2007-2015) were retrospectively surveyed to determine the prevalence of eukaryotic gut parasites by molecular screening of archival DNA samples. We developed species-specific primers for PCR to detect the two known honey bee trypanosomatid species, Crithidia mellificae and the recently described Lotmaria passim. These primers were…
Abstract Honeybee collected pollen exhibits high nutritional and pharmaceutical benefits for the human diet and medicine. Pollen’s antioxidant, anti-ageing, anti-inflammatory, anti-atherosclerosis, and cardioprotective activity, depending on the floral origin, are well known. Recent studies proposed that pollen may also be an excellent cancer-fighting candidate, as pollen harbours high amounts of phenolic substances. In our study,…
Abstract Efficacies of two miticides, Apivar and Thymovar, were evaluated as a fall treatment against V. destructor. The effect of treatment with miticides was further evaluated by monitoring both viral load and rate of indoor overwintering survival of colonies of European honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) in the vicinity of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. Forty-five colonies…
Abstract Viral diseases are one of the multiple factors associated with honeybee colony losses. Apart from their innate immune system, including the RNAi machinery, honeybees can use secondary plant metabolites to reduce or fully cure pathogen infections. Here, we tested the antiviral potential of Laurus nobilis leaf ethanolic extracts on forager honeybees naturally infected with BQCV (Black…
Abstract The parasitic mite Varroa destructor is a major pest of the western honeybee, Apis mellifera. The development of acaricide resistance in Varroa populations is a global issue. Discriminating concentrations of acaricides are widely used to detect pest resistance. Two methods, using either glass vials or paraffin capsules, are used to screen for Varroaresistance to various acaricides. We found the glass vial…
Abstract A method for the determination of 200 pesticides and pesticide metabolites in honeybee samples has been developed and validated. Almost 98% of compounds included in this method are approved to use within European Union, as active substances of plant protection products or veterinary medicinal products used by beekeepers to control mites Varroa destructor in…
Abstract Recent losses of honeybee (Apis mellifera) colonies have been linked to several non-exclusive factors; such as pests, parasites, pesticides (e.g., neonicotinoids) and other toxins. Whereas these losses pose a threat to apiculture, the number of globally managed colonies appeared to be less affected because beekeepers replace lost colonies. From a socioeconomic and ecological perspective…
Abstract Honey bee virus prevalence data are an essential prerequisite for managing epidemic events in a population. A survey study was carried out for seven viruses in colonies representing a healthy Danish honey bee population. In addition, colonies from apiaries with high level Varroainfestation or high level of winter mortality were also surveyed. Results from RT-qPCR…
Abstract There are several reports of honey bee populations in Europe which survive without treatment for Varroa. However, when evaluated outside their native area, higher survival and resistance traits were not observed in colonies of a survivor population. Varroainfestation is strongly influenced by environmental factors, probably affecting threshold levels on a European scale. In a Europe-wide experiment…
Abstract We assessed whether exposure to environmentally-relevant mixtures of four organophosphorus insecticides (OPs) exerted adverse effects on honey bees. Adult and worker bees were orally exposed for five days under laboratory conditions to mixtures of four insecticides, diazinon, malathion, profenofos and chlorpyrifos at two concentrations. Concentration in the mixtures tested were equivalent to the median…
Abstract We investigated pathogens in the parasitic honeybee mite Varroa destructor using nanoLC-MS/MS (TripleTOF) and 2D-E-MS/MS proteomics approaches supplemented with affinity-chromatography to concentrate trace target proteins. Peptides were detected from the currently uncharacterized Varroa destructor Macula-like virus (VdMLV), the deformed wing virus (DWV)-complex and the acute bee paralysis virus (ABPV). Peptide alignments revealed detection of complete structural DWV-complex block…
Abstract Nosema ceranae is a honey bee pathogen parasitizing the ventricular epithelium and potentially causing colony death. The effect of 0.25 M oxalic acid solution administered to the bees in the form of sugar syrup was determined in laboratory and field trials. The spore numbers in an 8-day laboratory experiment were significantly lower when AO was administered…
Abstract Background The shift from solitary to social behavior is one of the major evolutionary transitions. Primitively eusocial bumblebees are uniquely placed to illuminate the evolution of highly eusocial insect societies. Bumblebees are also invaluable natural and agricultural pollinators, and there is widespread concern over recent population declines in some species. High-quality genomic data will…
Abstract The widespread losses of honeybee colonies recorded over the past number of years in the northern hemisphere represent a major concern for the beekeeping industry and, more importantly, may have a severe impact on ecological services and biodiversity. There is now a general consensus about the multifactorial origin of colony losses, but the mechanistic…
Abstract The present study was conducted at Mekelle Agricultural Research Center with the objective of determining the foraging behavior of local honeybees in relation to climatic factors. This was done during the blooming time of Guzotia abyssinica (LF). The data were collected during five observations at time intervals of: 8:30-3:30 AM, 10:30-11:30AM, 12:30-13:30PM, 14:30-15:30 PM…
Abstract The determinants of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), a particular case of collapse of honey bee colonies, are still unresolved. Viruses including the Israeli acute paralysis virus (IAPV) were associated with CCD. We found an apiary with colonies showing typical CCD characteristics that bore high loads of IAPV, recovered some colonies from collapse and tested…
Abstract Microsporidiosis caused by Nosema species is one of the factors threatening the health of the honeybee(Apis mellifera), which is an essential element in agriculture mainly due to its pollination function. Thedispersion of this pathogen may be influenced by many factors, including various aspects of beekeepingmanagement such as introduction of queens with different origin. Herein…