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The neonicotinoid thiamethoxam impairs male fertility in solitary bees, Osmia cornuta

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…

Metabolomics unveils the influence of dietary phytochemicals on residual pesticide concentrations in honey bees

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…

Back to Ancient Remedy: Could Inhalation of Aerosolised-Honey and Propolis Tincture Protect Against the COVID-19 Pandemic?

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…

Mode of application of acaricides against the ectoparasitic mite (Varroa destructor) infesting honeybee colonies, determines their efficiencies and residues in honey and beeswax

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,…

Authoritative subspecies diagnosis tool for European honey bees based on ancestry informative SNPs

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…

LC–MS/MS Quantification Reveals Ample Gut Uptake and Metabolization of Dietary Phytochemicals in Honey Bees

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…