A honeybee storage protein gene, hex 70a, expressed in developing gonads and nutritionally regulated in adult fat body

Martins, Juliana Ramos; Nunes, Francis Morais Franco; Simões, Zilá Luz Paulino; Bitondi, Márcia Maria Gentile

doi:10.1016/j.jinsphys.2008.03.009

Cited by 47 publications

(75 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…Furthermore, Hex 70a levels also increase in these workers, which suggest a role in reproduction (Martins et al 2008;. We also observed higher levels of Vg and Hex 70 in pollen-treated groups with bees showing activated ovaries compared to the control bees.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 61%

“…Vg (Bitondi and Simões 1996) and Hex 70a (Martins et al 2008) accumulation in adult honey bee worker hemolymph also depends on the amount of proteins that they consume, resulting in low levels of Vg and Hex if there is a lack or shortage of pollen in the diet. The relationship between these storage proteins levels and the amount of protein consumption was observed in 21-day-old bees, supporting the hypothesis that a proteinaceous diet promotes higher levels of storage proteins in the hemolymph.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The growing oocytes sequester Vg, which is incorporated into the yolk during vitellogenesis (Engels et al 1990). Hex levels likely play a role in reproduction because they positively correlate with ovarian activation in queenless workers (Martins et al 2008;. A link between pollen nutrition and ovarian activation was demonstrated in queenless workers exhibiting high or low levels of ovarian activation when fed high-or low-pollen diets, respectively (Hoover et al 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Pollen is mainly consumed by nurse bees and promotes development of the hypopharyngeal glands, the fat body, and the ovaries of these bees (Maurizio 1954;Dustmann and von der Ohe 1988). Ingestion of pollen or other protein-rich food is reflected in high protein levels in the hemolymph, which is often accompanied by high levels of storage proteins, such as vitellogenin (Vg), the yolk protein, and hexamerins (Hex) (Bitondi and Simões 1996;Cremonez et al 1998;Martins et al 2008;Di Pasquale et al 2013). These proteins are synthesized in the fat body and secreted into the hemolymph where they accumulate.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pollen nutrition in honey bees (Apis mellifera): impact on adult health

2015

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-Pollen is the main protein source for honey bees, and its quality and digestibility are important factors for bee health. We compared the effects of eight different mixed-pollen diets on queenless adult survival and physiology. The mixtures represented the pollen source for bees in a natural environment. They consisted of three to five familial pollen types, and the protein percentage varied from 8.4 to 18.1 %. The mixtures that contained mainly Asteraceae pollen were less consumed and enhanced bee mortality, suggesting that this pollen type offers poor nutritional quality and assimilation for the bees. All pollen diets promoted ovarian activation, but among the pollentreated groups, the percentage of bees with activated ovaries was not related to the protein content of the diet, which suggests that ovarian activation may also depend on other nutrients. Survival was also positively correlated to the vitellogenin levels in the hemolymph. Our results showed that the amount of protein consumption and the pollen type influenced bee survival and physiology.polyfloral pollen diet / ovary / hemolymph proteins / survival

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 61%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pollen nutrition in honey bees (Apis mellifera): impact on adult health

2015

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“…In Apis mellifera, accumulation of the storage proteins vitellogenin and hexamerins in the hemolymph of adult workers is significantly influenced by nutrition (Bitondi and Simões, 1996;Cunha et al, 2005;Bitondi et al, 2006, Martins et al, 2008. Adequate nutrition ensures proper maintenance of honey bees.…”

Section: Protein Diets In Honey Beesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Protein levels and colony development of Africanized and European honey bees fed natural and artificial diets

Morais

Turcatto²,

Pereira³

et al. 2013

Genet. Mol. Res.

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ABSTRACT. Pollen substitute diets are a valuable resource for maintaining strong and health honey bee colonies. Specific diets may be useful in one region or country and inadequate or economically unviable in others. We compared two artificial protein diets that had been formulated from locally-available ingredients in Brazil with bee bread and a nonprotein sucrose diet. Groups of 100 newly-emerged, adult workers of Africanized honey bees in Brazil and European honey bees in the USA were confined in small cages and fed on one of four diets for seven days. The artificial diets included a high protein diet made of soy milk powder and albumin, and a lower protein level diet consisting of soy milk powder, brewer's yeast and rice bran. The initial protein levels in newly emerged bees were approximately 18-21 µg/µL hemolymph. After feeding on the diets for seven days, the protein levels in the hemolymph were similar among the protein diet groups (~37-49 µg/µL after seven days), although Africanized bees acquired higher protein levels, increasing 145 and 100% on diets D1 and D2, respectively, versus 83 and 60% in the European bees. All the protein diets resulted in significantly higher levels of protein than sucrose solution alone. In the field, the two pollen substitute diets were tested during periods of low pollen availability in the field in two regions of Brazil. Food consumption, population development, colony weight, and honey production were evaluated to determine the impact of the diets on colony strength parameters. The colonies fed artificial diets had a significant improvement in all parameters, while control colonies dwindled during the dearth period. We conclude that these two artificial protein diets have good potential as pollen substitutes during dearth periods and that Africanized bees more efficiently utilize artificial protein diets than do European honey bees.

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Trade‐off between immune stimulation and expression of storage protein genes

Lourenço

Martins

Bitondi

et al. 2009

Arch Insect Biochem Physiol

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Proteins stored in insect hemolymph may serve as a source of amino acids and energy for metabolism and development. The expression of the main storage proteins was assessed in bacterial-challenged honey bees using real-time (RT)-PCR and Western blot. After ensuring that the immune system had been activated by measuring the ensuing expression of the innate immune response genes, defensin-1 (def-1) and prophenoloxidase (proPO), we verified the expression of four genes encoding storage proteins. The levels of vitellogenin (vg) mRNA and of the respective protein were significantly lowered in bees injected with bacteria or water only (injury). An equivalent response was observed in orally-infected bees. The levels of apolipophorin II/I (apoLp-II/I) and hexamerin (hex 70a) mRNAs did not significantly change, but levels of Hex 70a protein subunit showed a substantial decay after bacterial challenge or injury. Infection also caused a strong reduction in the levels of apoLp-III transcripts. Our findings are consistent with a down-regulation of the expression and accumulation of storage proteins as a consequence of activation of the immune system, suggesting that this phenomenon represents a strategy to redirect resources to combat injury or infection.

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A honeybee storage protein gene, hex 70a, expressed in developing gonads and nutritionally regulated in adult fat body

Cited by 47 publications

References 52 publications

Pollen nutrition in honey bees (Apis mellifera): impact on adult health

Pollen nutrition in honey bees (Apis mellifera): impact on adult health

Protein levels and colony development of Africanized and European honey bees fed natural and artificial diets

Trade‐off between immune stimulation and expression of storage protein genes

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