Comprehensive Approach to Phenotype Reproduction in Honey Bee Drone Brood and Its Correlation with Decreased Mite Reproduction (DMR).

The mechanisms of action behind decreased mite reproduction (DMR) are still unknown, but current hypotheses state that DMR is the result of brood-intrinsic and/or external disturbances in the -honey bee pupa signal interactions. For accurate and precise DMR phenotyping, sufficient single infested honey bee brood cells are required (e.g.

Known and novel viruses in Belgian honey bees: yearly differences, spatial clustering, and associations with overwintering loss.

Unlabelled: In recent years, managed honey bee colonies have been suffering from an increasing number of biotic and abiotic stressors, resulting in numerous losses of colonies worldwide. A pan-European study, EPILOBEE, estimated the colony loss in Belgium to be 32.4% in 2012 and 14.

Virus Prevalence in Egg Samples Collected from Naturally Selected and Traditionally Managed Honey Bee Colonies across Europe.

Monitoring virus infections can be an important selection tool in honey bee breeding. A recent study pointed towards an association between the virus-free status of eggs and an increased virus resistance to deformed wing virus (DWV) at the colony level. In this study, eggs from both naturally surviving and traditionally managed colonies from across Europe were screened for the prevalence of different viruses.

An international inter-laboratory study on Nosema spp. spore detection and quantification through microscopic examination of crushed honey bee abdomens.

Nosemosis is a microsporidian disease causing mortality and weakening of honey bee colonies, especially in the event of co-exposure to other sources of stress. As a result, the disease is regulated in some countries. Reliable and harmonised diagnosis is crucial to ensure the quality of surveillance and research results.

Heritability estimates of the novel trait 'suppressed in ovo virus infection' in honey bees (Apis mellifera).

Honey bees are under pressure due to abnormal high colony death rates, especially during the winter. The infestation by the Varroa destructor mite and the viruses that this ectoparasite transmits are generally considered as the bees' most important biological threats. Almost all efforts to remedy this dual infection have so far focused on the control of the Varroa mite alone and not on the viruses it transmits.