Article
Entomology
Wen-Feng Chen, Ying Wang, Wei-Xing Zhang, Zhen-Guo Liu, Bao-Hua Xu, Hong-Fang Wang
Summary: The study indicated that methionine plays a regulatory role in caste differentiation of honey bees. It affects the development of worker bee larvae and may direct female larvae towards becoming worker bees. By promoting DNA methylation, methionine may regulate caste differentiation through influencing gene expression.
Article
Ecology
Audrey J. Parish, Danny W. Rice, Vicki M. Tanquary, Jason M. Tennessen, Irene L. G. Newton
Summary: This study characterizes the bacterium Bombella apis associated with honey bee larvae and its impact on their nutritional resilience. The research shows that B. apis is the only bacterium capable of withstanding antimicrobial larval diet and can synthesize all essential amino acids. Analysis of genes reveals the recent acquisition of multiple amino acid transporters in B. apis ancestors. Moreover, honey bee larvae supplemented with B. apis experience less mass reduction under limited nutrition.
Article
Immunology
Karen Power, Manuela Martano, Ernesto Ragusa, Gennaro Altamura, Paola Maiolino
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the presence of honey bee viruses in Oriental hornet larvae and honey bees from the same apiary. The results showed that several honey bee viruses were detected in Oriental hornet larvae, including Deformed Wing Virus, Sac Brood Virus, Black Queen Cell Virus, and Acute Bee Paralysis Virus. The same viruses were also found in honey bee samples. The transmission route of infection may be through the ingestion of infected bees by Oriental hornet larvae. However, further research is needed to confirm this hypothesis and rule out other sources of infection.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Robert Lowe, Marek Wojciechowski, Nancy Ellis, Paul J. Hurd
Summary: This study provides the first comprehensive genome-wide maps of the regulatory landscape in all three phenotypes of honey bees, identifying thousands of regulatory regions and elucidating key gene regulatory networks associated with distinct polyphenisms.
NUCLEIC ACIDS RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Timur Bulatov, Sebastian Gensel, Andi Mainz, Tam Dang, Timm O. Koller, Kerstin Voigt, Julia Ebeling, Daniel N. Wilson, Elke Genersch, Roderich D. Suessmuth
Summary: The study reports the total synthesis and structural revision of paenilamicin B2, highlighting the N-terminal fragment as an important pharmacophore, and conducts biological activity evaluation and competition experiments with bacterial competitors in the ecological niche. It also presents data classifying paenilamicins as potential ribosome inhibitors, contributing to a better understanding of the pathogenicity of P. larvae and paving the way for future structure-activity relationship and mode-of-action studies.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Zhi-Xian Gong, Fu-Ping Cheng, Jia-Ning Xu, Wei-Yu Yan, Zi-Long Wang
Summary: This study reveals the role of the gene AmKr-h1 in honey bee caste differentiation, showing that AmKr-h1 acts as a JH-responsive gene and regulates the developmental fate of honey bee larvae.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Myra Dickey, Elizabeth M. M. Walsh, Tonya F. F. Shepherd, Raul F. F. Medina, Aaron Tarone, Juliana Rangel
Summary: Honey bees are crucial for global agricultural production due to their role in pollination services. However, their health is continuously threatened by factors such as mites, poor queen quality, and pesticide exposure. This study examines the sublethal effects of pesticides commonly found in wax on the queen's brain transcriptome, identifying differentially expressed genes. Further research should explore the relationship between these molecular findings and the queen's behavior and physiology.
Article
Microbiology
Kirk J. Grubbs, Daniel S. May, Joseph A. Sardina, Renee K. Dermenjian, Thomas P. Wyche, Adrian A. Pinto-Tomas, Jon Clardy, Cameron R. Currie
Summary: Research suggests that honey bees may use Actinobacteria derived from pollen and their associated small molecules to maintain colony health, particularly exhibiting inhibitory activity against Paenibacillus larvae, the causative agent of American foulbrood.
FRONTIERS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Brendan A. Daisley, Andrew P. Pitek, Elizabeth Mallory, Anna M. Chernyshova, Emma Allen-Vercoe, Gregor Reid, Graham J. Thompson
Summary: This study investigates the causal agent of American foulbrood (AFB), Paenibacillus larvae, a spore-forming bacterial entomopathogen that is deadly and incurable for honey bee colonies when active, but can persist asymptomatically for years in its dormant spore form. The study highlights the overlooked role of microbiota factors in the transition from spore to vegetative growth and offers insights on the collaborative and competitive interactions between P. larvae and other honey bee-adapted microorganisms. Additionally, it proposes probiotic and microbiota management strategies for sustainable control of AFB, considering the health trade-offs associated with chronic antibiotic exposure.
TRENDS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Entomology
Juyeong Kim, Kyongmi Chon, Bo-Seon Kim, Jin-A Oh, Chang-Young Yoon, Hong-Hyun Park, Yong-Soo Choi
Summary: The study evaluated the impact of horizontal and vertical rearing plates on newly emerged honey bees, finding that the horizontal plates led to significantly higher adult deformation rates compared to the vertical plates. The results suggest that the vertical rearing method is more suitable when considering the deformation rates of the control groups for verifying the sublethal effects of pesticides on honey bees.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Longtao Yu, Heyan Yang, Fuping Cheng, Zhihao Wu, Qiang Huang, Xujiang He, Weiyu Yan, Lizhen Zhang, Xiaobo Wu
Summary: This study revealed that under flumethrin treatment, the population and diversity of gut microbes in honey bee larvae significantly decreased, but increased with the concentration of flumethrin. Microbes acted as a barrier in the honey bee gut, protecting the larvae to some extent from the stress caused by flumethrin.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Yaping Ye, Xiaoxue Fan, Zongbing Cai, Ying Wu, Wende Zhang, Haodong Zhao, Sijia Guo, Peilin Feng, Qiming Li, Peiyuan Zou, Mengjun Chen, Nian Fan, Dafu Chen, Rui Guo
Summary: This study provides new insights into the interaction between honey bee hosts and fungal pathogens, and reveals the mechanism of DEcircRNA-mediated immune defense of A. m. ligustica larvae against A. apis invasion.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Zih-Ting Chang, Yu-Feng Huang, Yue-Wen Chen, Ming-Ren Yen, Po-Ya Hsu, Tzu-Han Chen, Yi-Hsuan Li, Kuo-Ping Chiu, Yu-Shin Nai
Summary: Deformed wing virus (DWV) has a high prevalence in honey bee populations, infecting bees through vertical and horizontal transmission. Infection with DWV in artificially reared honey bee larvae did not cause significant mortality, but survival rates decreased at the pupal stage. Transcriptomic analysis revealed differentially expressed genes (DEGs) related to metabolic pathways and stress responses, indicating potential impacts on gene expression levels from larval to pupal stages.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Christina Kast, Verena Kilchenmann
Summary: The study evaluated the toxicity of coumaphos to worker bee larvae in beeswax and found that concentrations of coumaphos below 20 mg/kg were non-lethal to the larvae.
Article
Agronomy
Juyeong Kim, Kyongmi Chon, Bo-Seon Kim, Jin-A Oh, Chang-Young Yoon, Hong-Hyun Park
Summary: This study evaluated the acute and chronic toxicities of cyantraniliprole (CYA) and sulfoxaflor (SUL) on honey bee larvae. The results showed that CYA exposure had no effect on larvae, while SUL exposure resulted in decreased body weight and wing deformities in newly emerged bees.
PEST MANAGEMENT SCIENCE
(2022)
