Occurrence of virus, microsporidia, and pesticide residues in three species of stingless bees (Apidae: Meliponini) in the field.

Bees are important pollinators whose population has declined due to several factors, including infections by parasites and pathogens. Resource sharing may play a role in the dispersal dynamics of pathogens among bees. This study evaluated the occurrence of viruses (DWV, BQCV, ABPV, IAPV, KBV, and CBPV) and microsporidia (Nosema ceranae and Nosema apis) that infect Apis mellifera, as well as pesticide residues in the stingless bees Nannotrigona testaceicornis, Tetragonisca angustula, and Tetragona elongata sharing the same foraging area with A.

Potential costs of bacterial infection on storage protein gene expression and reproduction in queenless Apis mellifera worker bees on distinct dietary regimes.

Insects are able to combat infection by initiating an efficient immune response that involves synthesizing antimicrobial peptides and a range of other defense molecules. These responses may be costly to the organism, resulting in it exploiting endogenous resources to maintain homeostasis or support defense to the detriment of other physiological needs. We used queenless worker bees on distinct dietary regimes that may alter hemolymph protein storage and ovary activation to investigate the physiological costs of infection with Serratia marcescens.

Mars is close to venus--female reproductive proteins are expressed in the fat body and reproductive tract of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) drones.

Vitellogenin (Vg) and lipophorin (Lp) are lipoproteins which play important roles in female reproductive physiology of insects. Both are actively taken up by growing oocytes and especially Vg and its receptor are considered as female-specifically expressed. The finding that the fat body of in honey bee (Apis mellifera) drones synthesizes Vg and is present in hemolymph has long been viewed as a curiosity.

Expression analysis of putative vitellogenin and lipophorin receptors in honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) queens and workers.

Two members of the low density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR) family were identified as putative orthologs for a vitellogenin receptor (Amvgr) and a lipophorin receptor (Amlpr) in the Apis mellifera genome. Both receptor sequences have the structural motifs characteristic of LDLR family members and show a high degree of similarity with sequences of other insects. RT-PCR analysis of Amvgr and Amlpr expression detected the presence of both transcripts in different tissues of adult female (ovary, fat body, midgut, head and specifically hypopharyngeal gland), as well as in embryos.

RNAi-mediated silencing of vitellogenin gene function turns honeybee (Apis mellifera) workers into extremely precocious foragers.

The switch from within-hive activities to foraging behavior is a major transition in the life cycle of a honeybee (Apis mellifera) worker. A prominent regulatory role in this switch has long been attributed to juvenile hormone (JH), but recent evidence also points to the yolk precursor protein vitellogenin as a major player in behavioral development. In the present study, we injected vitellogenin double-stranded RNA (dsVg) into newly emerged worker bees of Africanized genetic origin and introduced them together with controls into observation hives to record flight behavior.