Laboratory bioassays on the impact of cadmium, copper and lead on the development and survival of honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) larvae and foragers

Di, Ning; Hladun, Kristen R.; Zhang, Kai; Liu, Tong‐Xian; Trumble, John T.

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2016.03.033

Cited by 90 publications

(63 citation statements)

References 30 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…In regard to non-elemental toxicants, the insecticide imidacloprid and hydrogen peroxide were both lethal to bees at doses above normal exposure, and we note that bees appeared to avoid the highest doses of hydrogen peroxide. While adult bees tolerated above-field-relevant doses of copper and imidacloprid, sublethal exposure to these chemicals is known to reduce brood production and larvae population, which may cause negative colony-level effects (21,107). Lastly, bees seemed to tolerate natural levels of hydrogen peroxide, which is supported by studies showing high hydrogen peroxide levels in some flowers (16) and that bees can detoxify peroxide (108,109).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The direct and indirect effects of environmental toxicants on the health of bumble bees and their microbiomes

Rothman

Russell

Leger

et al. 2020

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Bumble bees (Bombus spp.) are important and widespread insect pollinators, but the act of foraging on flowers can expose them to harmful pesticides and environmental chemicals such as oxidizers and heavy metals. How these compounds directly influence bee survival and indirectly affect bee health via the gut microbiome is largely unknown. As the toxins and toxicants in floral nectar and pollen take many forms, we explored the genomes of core bumblebee microbes (Using RAST) for their potential to detoxify cadmium, copper, selenium, the neonicotinoid pesticide imidacloprid, and hydrogen peroxide - which have all been identified in floral nectar and pollen. We then exposed Bombus impatiens workers to varying concentrations of these chemicals spiked into their diet and identified the direct effects on bee survival. Using field realistic doses, we further explored indirect effects on bee microbiomes. We found multiple genes in core gut microbes that have the potential to aid in detoxifying harmful chemicals. We also found that while the chemicals are largely toxic at levels within and above field-realistic concentrations, the field-realistic concentrations - except for imidacloprid - altered the composition of the bee microbiome, potentially causing gut dysbiosis. Overall, our study shows that environmental chemicals found in floral nectar and pollen can directly cause bee mortality, and at field-realistic levels, likely have indirect, deleterious effects on bee health via their influence on the bee microbiome.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…and mason bees ( Osmia spp. ), all rapidly die after exposure to high concentrations of heavy metals and pesticides in lab experiments (19–21). Field-realistic doses of pesticides in flowers can also lead to reduced bee survival and reductions in hive fitness (5).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The direct and indirect effects of environmental toxicants on the health of bumble bees and their microbiomes

Rothman

Russell

Leger

et al. 2020

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Likewise, while the levels of accumulation of these toxicants under natural conditions are largely unknown, selenium and cadmium have been found in bee products (up to 0.83 mg/kg and 4.23 mg/kg, respectively) and in whole bees (up to 1.82 mg/kg and 15.81 mg/kg, respectively) in contaminated areas (15,16), indicating that transmission of these compounds occurs. As the concentrations of cadmium or selenate that have been measured in flowers and bee products are near or above the levels shown to increase larval and pupal mortality and reduce the larval growth rate and the honey bee colony worker population (5,17), bees living in contaminated areas are likely more stressed and less healthy than those living in pristine areas. Bees often forage regardless of the metallic content of nectar and pollen, as bees freely forage on plants grown in selenate-contaminated soil (12) and on aluminum-containing nectar (18).…”

mentioning

confidence: 98%

Cadmium and Selenate Exposure Affects the Honey Bee Microbiome and Metabolome, and Bee-Associated Bacteria Show Potential for Bioaccumulation

Rothman

Leger

Kirkwood

et al. 2019

Appl Environ Microbiol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Honey bees are important insect pollinators used heavily in agriculture and can be found in diverse environments. Bees may encounter toxicants such as cadmium and selenate by foraging on plants growing in contaminated areas, which can result in negative health effects. Honey bees are known to have a simple and consistent microbiome that conveys many benefits to the host, and toxicant exposure may impact this symbiotic microbial community. We used 16S rRNA gene sequencing to assay the effects that sublethal cadmium and selenate treatments had over 7 days and found that both treatments significantly but subtly altered the composition of the bee microbiome. Next, we exposed bees to cadmium and selenate and then used untargeted liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) metabolomics to show that chemical exposure changed the bees' metabolite profiles and that compounds which may be involved in detoxification, proteolysis, and lipolysis were more abundant in treatments. Finally, we exposed several strains of bee-associated bacteria in liquid culture and found that each strain removed cadmium from its medium but that only Lactobacillus Firm-5 microbes assimilated selenate, indicating the possibility that these microbes may reduce the metal and metalloid burden on their host. Overall, our report shows that metal and metalloid exposure can affect the honey bee microbiome and metabolome and that strains of bee-associated bacteria can bioaccumulate these toxicants. IMPORTANCE Bees are important insect pollinators that may encounter environmental pollution when foraging upon plants grown in contaminated areas. Despite the pervasiveness of pollution, little is known about the effects of these toxicants on honey bee metabolism and their symbiotic microbiomes. Here, we investigated the impact of selenate and cadmium exposure on the gut microbiome and metabolome of honey bees. We found that exposure to these chemicals subtly altered the overall composition of the bees' microbiome and metabolome and that exposure to toxicants may negatively impact both host and microbe. As the microbiome of animals can reduce mortality upon metal or metalloid challenge, we grew bee-associated bacteria in media spiked with selenate or cadmium. We show that some bacteria can remove these toxicants from their media in vitro and suggest that bacteria may reduce metal burden in their hosts.

show abstract

“…Lead was the metal that presented the lowest concentration in a study by Di et al (2016). Morgano et al (2010) reported different results by comparing pollen stored by bees, another hive product, from semi-rural environments and high-emission pollutants sites of automotive vehicles in Brazil, where they observed very high Pb concentrations (0.44 mg/kg).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 95%

Honey from Stingless Bee as Indicator of Contamination with Metals

Nascimento¹,

Chambó²,

Oliveira³

et al. 2018

Sociobiology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Melipona scutellaris (Apidae, Meliponini) is one of the main species of stingless bees used in beekeeping in the Northeast of Brazil. We examined the honey from M. scutellaris as an indicator to evaluate the levels of metals at sampling sites subject to a broad spectrum of environmental pollutants. The collections were carried out in the urban-industrial area of Salvador, Bahia and the metropolitan region. Samples (n= 58) were submitted to the nitroperchloric digestion procedure. We used the inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry technique (ICP OES) to determine the concentration of metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb and Zn) in the samples. The studied metals were detected among the samples, which presented tolerable levels according to current Brazilian legislation and recommendations from the World Health Organization (WHO), except for Cr, which presented mean values higher than the threshold for all sampling sites. The detection of the analyzed metals indicates that the honey of M. scutellaris is a useful tool to evaluate the presence of environmental contaminants; therefore, it can be considered a good indicator of environmental contamination for monitoring a particular region and preventing issues due to the release of metals into the environment.

show abstract

Laboratory bioassays on the impact of cadmium, copper and lead on the development and survival of honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) larvae and foragers

Cited by 90 publications

References 30 publications

The direct and indirect effects of environmental toxicants on the health of bumble bees and their microbiomes

The direct and indirect effects of environmental toxicants on the health of bumble bees and their microbiomes

Cadmium and Selenate Exposure Affects the Honey Bee Microbiome and Metabolome, and Bee-Associated Bacteria Show Potential for Bioaccumulation

Honey from Stingless Bee as Indicator of Contamination with Metals

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About