Investigation of the use of honey bees and honey bee products to assess heavy metals contamination

1996 ◽  
Vol 43 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Leita ◽  
G. Muhlbachova ◽  
S. Cesco ◽  
R. Barbattini ◽  
C. Mondini
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Heavy Metals Contamination

Monitoring the Anthropogenic Toxicity of Spontaneous Flora in Neamt County through Studies of the Honey Bee Chemical Characteristics

2018 ◽  
Vol 69 (8) ◽  
pp. 2150-2159
Author(s):  
Dan Bodescu ◽  
George Ungureanu ◽  
Radu Adrian Moraru ◽  
Ioan Gabriel Sandu ◽  
Costica Bejinariu
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Environmental Pollution ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Plant Protection ◽  
Morphological Features ◽  
Energy Output ◽  
Toxic Substances ◽  
Energy Productivity

The products of honey bees can be used as indicators and monitors of a variety of environmental pollutants because of the bees� ability to collect materials that reflect their immediate environmental conditions. Human activities produce more waste and administrate the pesticides, the amounts and toxicity of which often exceed the environment�s homeostatic capacity to cleanse itself, and this is constantly transforming due to intensive agricultural practices necessary to increase food production as human population grows. The main sources for contamination of honey with heavy metals are represented by placing hives near urban areas with heavy car traffic, or industrialized areas and the use on the entire circuit of production, objects or containers made of materials unsuitable (unacceptable). For that reason regular monitoring of the environment is so important. Honey bees, thanks to their morphological features, and also bee products are regarded as good indicators of environmental pollution by toxic substances, be these heavy metals, radioactive elements or persistent organic pollutants such as pesticides. Consequently, it is important to estimate the environmental fate and Eco toxicological effects of these different xenobiotic. Honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) have been used as biological indicators of Plant Protection Products (PPPs) in two intensely cultivated in areas of Neamt County, Romania. This area is representative for the pre-mountain and mountain zone of Romania. The stratified sample has been face-to-face interviewed in 2016 regarding the data from the year 2015. The total consumption specific for the honey production was about 628 MJ hive-1, and the energy output reached 235 MJ hive-1, determining an energy productivity of 0.030 kg MJ-1 and an energy use efficiency of 0.37. Specific energy amounted 33.3MJ kg-1 due to the inefficiency of traveling during the apiaries movements and the inappropriate correlation between the apiaries size and the zonal melliferous potential. In this paper available literature data and information on the morphological features of the honey bee, the utilization of the honey bee and its products as indicators of environmental pollution, and a historical outline of some of the legislation relating to beekeeping have been critically compared and discussed.

SEASONAL INFLUENCE AND RISK ASSESSMENT OF HEAVY METALS CONTAMINATION IN GROUNDWATER, ARJAAT VILLAGE, MOROCCO

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 579-587 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria-Ema Faciu ◽  
Francois Xavier Nshimiyimana ◽  
Souad El Blidi ◽  
Abdellah El Abidi ◽  
Abdelmajid Soulaymani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Seasonal Influence ◽  
Heavy Metals Contamination

Rice cultivation in former rubber land without soil remediation contribute toxicity risk of heritable heavy metals contamination

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diana Demiyah Mohd Hamdan ◽  
Mohd Khalizan Sabullah ◽  
Jovelyn Seludin ◽  
Amirah Syuhada Mohd Azman ◽  
Mohd Hamdan Adnan
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Soil Remediation ◽  
Rice Cultivation ◽  
Toxicity Risk ◽  
Heavy Metals Contamination

scholarly journals Acinetobacter tandoii ZM06 Assists Glutamicibacter nicotianae ZM05 in Resisting Cadmium Pressure to Preserve Dipropyl Phthalate Biodegradation

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 1417
Author(s):  
Xuejun Wang ◽  
Si Shen ◽  
Hao Wu ◽  
Haixia Wang ◽  
Lvjing Wang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Microbial Consortia ◽  
Environmental Media ◽  
Degrading Bacterium ◽  
Coculture System ◽  
Heavy Metals Contamination ◽  
Metabolite Inhibition ◽  
Comparative Transcriptomic Analysis ◽  
Scanning Electron

Dipropyl phthalate (DPrP) coexists with cadmium as cocontaminants in environmental media. A coculture system including the DPrP-degrading bacterium Glutamicibacter nicotianae ZM05 and the nondegrading bacterium Acinetobacter tandoii ZM06 was artificially established to degrade DPrP under Cd(II) stress. Strain ZM06 relieved the pressure of cadmium on strain ZM05 and accelerated DPrP degradation in the following three ways: first, strain ZM06 adsorbed Cd(II) on the cell surface (as observed by scanning electron microscopy) to decrease the concentration of Cd(II) in the coculture system; second, the downstream metabolites of ZM05 were utilized by strain ZM06 to reduce metabolite inhibition; and third, strain ZM06 supplied amino acids and fatty acids to strain ZM05 to relieve stress during DPrP degradation, which was demonstrated by comparative transcriptomic analysis. This study provides an elementary understanding of how microbial consortia improve the degradation efficiency of organic pollutants under heavy metals contamination.

Survey of feral honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies for Nosema apis in Western Australia

2007 ◽  
Vol 47 (7) ◽  
pp. 883 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rob Manning ◽  
Kate Lancaster ◽  
April Rutkay ◽  
Linda Eaton
Keyword(s):  
Apis Mellifera ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Nosema Apis ◽  
The South ◽  
South West ◽  
Feral Populations ◽  
Significant Difference

The parasite, Nosema apis, was found to be widespread among feral populations of honey bees (Apis mellifera) in the south-west of Western Australia. The location, month of collection and whether the feral colony was enclosed in an object or exposed to the environment, all affected the presence and severity of infection. There was no significant difference in the probability of infection between managed and feral bees. However, when infected by N. apis, managed bees appeared to have a greater severity of the infection.

scholarly journals The Honey Bee: An Active Biosampler of Environmental Pollution and a Possible Warning Biomarker for Human Health

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (14) ◽  
pp. 6481
Author(s):  
Marianna Martinello ◽  
Chiara Manzinello ◽  
Nicoletta Dainese ◽  
Ilenia Giuliato ◽  
Albino Gallina ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Health ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Animal Health ◽  
Close Correlation ◽  
The European Union ◽  
National Guidelines ◽  
Pesticide Pollution ◽  
Tandem Mass Spectrometric ◽  
Active Substances

Member states of the European Union are required to ensure the initiation of monitoring programs to verify honey bee exposure to pesticides, where and as appropriate. Based on 620 samples of dead honey bees—42 of pollen, 183 of honey and 32 of vegetables—we highlighted the presence, as analyzed by liquid and gas chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometric detection, of many active substances, mainly tau-fluvalinate, piperonyl butoxide, chlorpyrifos and chlorpyrifos-methyl, permethrin and imidacloprid. Among the active substances found in analyzed matrices linked to honey bee killing incidents, 38 belong to hazard classes I and II, as methiocarb, methomyl, chlorpyrifos, cypermethrin and permethrin, thus representing a potential risk for human health. We have shown that, at different times between 2015 and 2020, during implementation of the Italian national guidelines for managing reports of bee colony mortality or depopulation associated with pesticide use, pesticide pollution events occurred that could raise concern for human health. Competent authorities could, as part of a One Health approach, exploit the information provided by existing reporting programs on honey bees and their products, in view of the close correlation to human health, animal health and ecosystem health.

scholarly journals Exploring Two Honey Bee Traits for Improving Resistance Against Varroa destructor: Development and Genetic Evaluation

Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 216
Author(s):  
Matthieu Guichard ◽  
Benoît Droz ◽  
Evert W. Brascamp ◽  
Adrien von Virag ◽  
Markus Neuditschko ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Apis Mellifera ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Varroa Destructor ◽  
Field Trial ◽  
Genetic Evaluation ◽  
Phenotypic Correlation ◽  
Apis Mellifera Mellifera ◽  
Novel Traits ◽  
Resistance Traits

For the development of novel selection traits in honey bees, applicability under field conditions is crucial. We thus evaluated two novel traits intended to provide resistance against the ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor and to allow for their straightforward implementation in honey bee selection. These traits are new field estimates of already-described colony traits: brood recapping rate (‘Recapping’) and solidness (‘Solidness’). ‘Recapping’ refers to a specific worker characteristic wherein they reseal a capped and partly opened cell containing a pupa, whilst ‘Solidness’ assesses the percentage of capped brood in a predefined area. According to the literature and beekeepers’ experiences, a higher recapping rate and higher solidness could be related to resistance to V. destructor. During a four-year field trial in Switzerland, the two resistance traits were assessed in a total of 121 colonies of Apis mellifera mellifera. We estimated the repeatability and the heritability of the two traits and determined their phenotypic correlations with commonly applied selection traits, including other putative resistance traits. Both traits showed low repeatability between different measurements within each year. ‘Recapping’ had a low heritability (h2 = 0.04 to 0.05, depending on the selected model) and a negative phenotypic correlation to non-removal of pin-killed brood (r = −0.23). The heritability of ‘Solidness’ was moderate (h2 = 0.24 to 0.25) and did not significantly correlate with resistance traits. The two traits did not show an association with V. destructor infestation levels. Further research is needed to confirm the results, as only a small number of colonies was evaluated.

scholarly journals Comparing Survival of Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus Infection among Stocks of U.S. Honey Bees

Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 60
Author(s):  
Shilpi Bhatia ◽  
Saman S. Baral ◽  
Carlos Vega Melendez ◽  
Esmaeil Amiri ◽  
Olav Rueppell
Keyword(s):  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Virus Infections ◽  
Israeli Acute Paralysis Virus ◽  
Immune Genes ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Bee Health ◽  
Honey Bee Health ◽  
Survival Differences ◽  
Paralysis Virus

Among numerous viruses that infect honey bees (Apis mellifera), Israeli acute paralysis virus (IAPV) can be linked to severe honey bee health problems. Breeding for virus resistance may improve honey bee health. To evaluate the potential for this approach, we compared the survival of IAPV infection among stocks from the U.S. We complemented the survival analysis with a survey of existing viruses in these stocks and assessing constitutive and induced expression of immune genes. Worker offspring from selected queens in a common apiary were inoculated with IAPV by topical applications after emergence to assess subsequent survival. Differences among stocks were small compared to variation within stocks, indicating the potential for improving honey bee survival of virus infections in all stocks. A positive relation between worker survival and virus load among stocks further suggested that honey bees may be able to adapt to better cope with viruses, while our molecular studies indicate that toll-6 may be related to survival differences among virus-infected worker bees. Together, these findings highlight the importance of viruses in queen breeding operations and provide a promising starting point for the quest to improve honey bee health by selectively breeding stock to be better able to survive virus infections.

scholarly journals Identification of long noncoding RNAs reveals the effects of dinotefuran on the brain in Apis mellifera (Hymenopptera: Apidae)

BMC Genomics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Minjie Huang ◽  
Jie Dong ◽  
Haikun Guo ◽  
Minghui Xiao ◽  
Deqian Wang
Keyword(s):  
Immune Response ◽  
Honey Bee ◽  
Honey Bees ◽  
Transforming Growth Factor ◽  
Sublethal Effects ◽  
Inflammatory Responses ◽  
Noncoding Rnas ◽  
Enrichment Analysis ◽  
Long Noncoding Rnas ◽  
Gene Set Enrichment Analysis

Abstract Background Dinotefuran (CAS No. 165252–70-0), a neonicotinoid insecticide, has been used to protect various crops against invertebrate pests and has been associated with numerous negative sublethal effects on honey bees. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) play important roles in mediating various biological and pathological processes, involving transcriptional and gene regulation. The effects of dinotefuran on lncRNA expression and lncRNA function in the honey bee brain are still obscure. Results Through RNA sequencing, a comprehensive analysis of lncRNAs and mRNAs was performed following exposure to 0.01 mg/L dinotefuran for 1, 5, and 10 d. In total, 312 lncRNAs and 1341 mRNAs, 347 lncRNAs and 1458 mRNAs, and 345 lncRNAs and 1155 mRNAs were found to be differentially expressed (DE) on days 1, 5 and 10, respectively. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) indicated that the dinotefuran-treated group showed enrichment in carbohydrate and protein metabolism and immune-inflammatory responses such as glycine, serine and threonine metabolism, pentose and glucuronate interconversion, and Hippo and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) signaling pathways. Moreover, the DE lncRNA TCONS_00086519 was shown by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) to be distributed mainly in the cytoplasm, suggesting that it may serve as a competing endogenous RNA and a regulatory factor in the immune response to dinotefuran. Conclusion This study characterized the expression profile of lncRNAs upon exposure to neonicotinoid insecticides in young adult honey bees and provided a framework for further study of the role of lncRNAs in honey bee growth and the immune response.

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