Fungi and the Effects of Fungicides on the Honey Bee Colony

Yoder, Jay A.; Nelson, Blake W.; Jajack, Andrew J.; Sammataro, Diana

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-60637-8_5

Cited by 8 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…If the processes involved with volatile production are genetically linked, the lack of important volatiles could result from genetically distinct haplotypes that have responded to directional selection by highly hygienic Australian colonies increasing virulence of specific strains. Yoder and colleagues [ 46 , 47 ] conclude that colony exposure to fungicides can increase chalkbrood disease, but not likely here because our test colonies were mainly surrounded by native flora and not exposed to agrochemicals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Hygienic behaviour selection via freeze-killed honey bee brood not associated with chalkbrood resistance in eastern Australia

Gerdts

Dewar²,

Simone-Finstrom

et al. 2018

PLoS ONE

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Hygienic behaviour is a social immune response in honey bees shown to help provide resistance to honey bee pests and diseases. A survey of hygienic behaviour and brood diseases was conducted on 649 colonies in eastern Australia to initiate a selective breeding program targeting disease resistance and provide a level of resistance to Varroa (Varroa destructor Anderson and Trueman and V. jacobsoni Oudemans) mites should they become established in Australia. The test population showed a remarkably high baseline level of hygienic behaviour with 17% of colonies meeting or exceeding breeding selection thresholds. Colonies belonging to a breeding program were 5.8 times more likely to be highly hygienic and colonies headed by queens raised from hygienic queen mothers were 2.2 times more likely. Nectar availability (nectar yielding flowering plants within honey bee forage range) influenced hygienic behaviour expression but was not a significant predictor of level of hygienic behaviour. Surprisingly, hygienic behaviour was not a significant predictor of the presence of infection of the honey bee brood disease chalkbrood (Ascosphaera apis) and was not influential in predicting severity of chalkbrood infection in surveyed honey bee colonies. This study, along with reports from commercial beekeepers that chalkbrood infection is on the rise, warrants a deeper exploration of the host-pathogen relationship between Apis mellifera and Ascosphaera apis in Australia.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Hygienic behaviour selection via freeze-killed honey bee brood not associated with chalkbrood resistance in eastern Australia

Gerdts

Dewar²,

Simone-Finstrom

et al. 2018

PLoS ONE

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show abstract

“…If the processes involved with volatile production are genetically linked, the lack of important volatiles could result from genetically distinct haplotypes that have responded to directional selection by highly hygienic Australian colonies increasing virulence of specific strains. Yoder and colleagues [44,45] conclude that colony exposure to fungicides can increase chalkbrood disease, but not likely here because our test colonies were mainly surrounded by native flora and not exposed to agrochemicals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Hygienic behaviour selection via freeze-killed honey bee brood not associated with chalkbrood resistance in eastern Australia

Gerdts

Dewar²,

Simone-Finstrom

et al. 2018

Preprint

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35 Hygienic behaviour is a social immune response in honey bees shown to help 36 provide resistance to honey bee pests and diseases. A survey of hygienic behaviour 37 and brood diseases was conducted on 649 colonies in eastern Australia to initiate a 38 selective breeding program targeting disease resistance and provide a level of 39 resistance to Varroa (Varroa destructor Anderson and Trueman and V. jacobsoni 40 Oudemans) mites should they become established in Australia. The test population 41 showed a remarkably high baseline level of hygienic behaviour with 17% of colonies 42 meeting or exceeding breeding selection thresholds. Colonies belonging to a 43 breeding program were 5.8 times more likely to be highly hygienic and colonies 44 headed by queens raised from hygienic queen mothers were 2.2 times more likely.45 Nectar availability (nectar yielding flowering plants within honey bee forage range) 46 influenced hygienic behaviour expression but was not a significant predictor of level 47 of hygienic behaviour. Surprisingly, hygienic behaviour was not a significant predictor 48 of the presence of infection of the honey bee brood disease chalkbrood 49 (Ascosphaera apis) and was not influential in predicting severity of chalkbrood the 50 infection in surveyed honey bee colonies. This study, along with reports from 51 commercial beekeepers that chalkbrood infection is on the rise, warrants a deeper 52 exploration of the host-pathogen relationship between Apis mellifera and 53 Ascosphaera apis in Australia. Introduction55 European honey bees (Apis mellifera), are an integral component of food security 56 worldwide. In Australia, honey bees provide essential pollination services for food 57 production, contributing directly to between $8.35 billion and $19.97 billion worth of 3 58 horticultural and agricultural production annually and produce between 20,000 and 59 30,000 tons of honey a year valued at $90 million [1]. Honey bee contribution to 60 Australian food security is only possible because of limited pest and disease 61 exposure as a direct consequence of the country's isolation. Although several major 62 brood diseases are endemic such as, American Foulbrood (Paenibacillus larvae) 63 European Foulbrood (Melissococcus pluton), and chalkbrood (Ascosphaera apis), 64 Australia remains the only country with a significant apicultural industry free of 65 Varroa mites (Varroa destructor Anderson and Trueman and V. jacobsoni 66 Oudemans). 67 V. destructor is the foremost cause of honey bee colony losses globally [2,3], 68 impacting both pollination services and honey production. Varroa parasitism has 69 been shown to vector deadly viruses [4] while chemical treatments used to control 70 Varroa in honey bee hives can affect reproduction [5,6,7] and interact negatively with 71 other agricultural chemicals [8]. Furthermore, Varroa species have been shown to 72 develop resistance to acaricides [9,10] rendering the reliance on these chemicals 73 unsustainable in the long term. 74 Once established, the mite will have devas...

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“…Several methods are under consideration in view of improving the capacity by honey bees to contrast these noxious biotic agents, including the administration of probiotics based on microbial consortia ( Borges et al, 2021 ), or single strains of bacteria and fungi, such as Aureobasidium melanogenum ( Hsu et al, 2021 ). Although beneficial fungi may be transient passengers and less important than bacteria as gut symbionts ( Decker et al, 2022 ), they can inhibit growth of other species ( Gilliam et al, 1988 ) and mediate detoxification ( Bush et al, 2018 ), thus enhancing a general honey bee resistance towards pathogens ( Yoder et al, 2017 ).…”

Section: Bee Defensesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although the role of non-aflatoxigenic Aspergillus spp. in preserving or enhancing the nutritional value of bee provisions has been poorly investigated, the spread of fungicide use has been suggested as one of the detrimental factors leading to honey bee colony collapse ( Yoder et al, 2017 ). In this context, fungicides negatively affect Aspergillus abundance, reducing their beneficial effects.…”

Section: Environmental Fungi Commensals or Mutualistsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aspergillus-bees: A dynamic symbiotic association

Becchimanzi

Nicoletti

2022

Front. Microbiol.

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Besides representing one of the most relevant threats of fungal origin to human and animal health, the genus Aspergillus includes opportunistic pathogens which may infect bees (Hymenoptera, Apoidea) in all developmental stages. At least 30 different species of Aspergillus have been isolated from managed and wild bees. Some efficient behavioral responses (e.g., diseased brood removal) exerted by bees negatively affect the chance to diagnose the pathology, and may contribute to the underestimation of aspergillosis importance in beekeeping. On the other hand, bee immune responses may be affected by biotic and abiotic stresses and suffer from the loose co-evolutionary relationships with Aspergillus pathogenic strains. However, if not pathogenic, these hive mycobiota components can prove to be beneficial to bees, by affecting the interaction with other pathogens and parasites and by detoxifying xenobiotics. The pathogenic aptitude of Aspergillus spp. likely derives from the combined action of toxins and hydrolytic enzymes, whose effects on bees have been largely overlooked until recently. Variation in the production of these virulence factors has been observed among strains, even belonging to the same species. Toxigenic and non-toxigenic strains/species may co-exist in a homeostatic equilibrium which is susceptible to be perturbed by several external factors, leading to mutualistic/antagonistic switch in the relationships between Aspergillus and bees.

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Fungi and the Effects of Fungicides on the Honey Bee Colony

Cited by 8 publications

References 23 publications

Hygienic behaviour selection via freeze-killed honey bee brood not associated with chalkbrood resistance in eastern Australia

Hygienic behaviour selection via freeze-killed honey bee brood not associated with chalkbrood resistance in eastern Australia

Hygienic behaviour selection via freeze-killed honey bee brood not associated with chalkbrood resistance in eastern Australia

Aspergillus-bees: A dynamic symbiotic association

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