Honeybees (Apis mellifera) are important pollinators of flowering plants and agricultural crops contributing annually to billions of dollars in revenues to crop production. Honeybees have an average lifespan between 8...Honeybees (Apis mellifera) are important pollinators of flowering plants and agricultural crops contributing annually to billions of dollars in revenues to crop production. Honeybees have an average lifespan between 8 weeks to 5 years. Dead honeybees are abundantly available in beehives and can be utilized as an alternative source to synthesize nanoparticles. In recent years, biologically synthesized nanoparticles have been preferred over their chemical counterparts. However, honeybee-based-green synthesis of nanoparticles has not been explored yet. Herein, we report the biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles from honeybees and its antibacterial activity. The synthesis of silver nanoparticles was monitored visually through a gradual change in color. Furthermore, the biosynthesized nanoparticles were confirmed and characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy. Scanning Electron Microscope was utilized to analyze the average size and morphologies of the biosynthesized nanoparticles. Subsequently, the antibacterial potential of the biosynthesized silver nanoparticles was tested against selected Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains. It was found that a distinct color change from yellow to brown in the reaction solution suggested the formation of silver nanoparticles. The biosynthesized nanoparticles exhibited absorption maxima at 430 nm. The SEM analysis confirmed the spherical and cuboidal shape of the biosynthesized silver nanoparticles with a size range between 10 - 40 nm. Furthermore, the biosynthesized silver nanoparticles exhibited strong antimicrobial potential against tested Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria strains by aggregating on the cell surface. This study showcases the biomedical and agricultural applications of biosynthesized silver nanoparticles from honeybee wings. .展开更多
The chemical composition of each of the eight total products of beekeeping, which are honey, bee venom, propolis, royal jelly, drone brood, bee pollen, bee bread and beeswax, is analyzed. Each beekeeping product has i...The chemical composition of each of the eight total products of beekeeping, which are honey, bee venom, propolis, royal jelly, drone brood, bee pollen, bee bread and beeswax, is analyzed. Each beekeeping product has its own chemical composition which varies from producer to producer. Some of these bee products have been used for centuries in traditional medicine, but to date research has demonstrated many other medicinal properties of these products that were not known. Therapeutic properties of bee products have been discovered even against various types of cancer and scientists are continuing their research to discover other secrets behind the therapeutic properties of bee products. In addition, therapeutic effects of bee products have also been discovered against COVID-19 disease which has significantly affected global health. Finally, it is concluded that bee products are proven to be one of the most valuable medicines that nature can offer showing the great value of the science of beekeeping.展开更多
[Objectives]To improve the yield and quality of different pear varieties by supplementary pollination.[Methods]The effects of bee pollination were compared with other pollination methods,and the effects of different f...[Objectives]To improve the yield and quality of different pear varieties by supplementary pollination.[Methods]The effects of bee pollination were compared with other pollination methods,and the effects of different factors on honeybee pollination were studied through experiments.[Results]Honeybee pollination significantly increased the number of fruit per inflorescence.In addition,it could improve the single fruit weight,fruit shape and other quality indicators of fruit.The pollination effect of honeybee was the best in all supplementary pollination measures.Honeybee pollination had good fruit setting effect on different pear varieties,but there were some differences in the effect of quality improvement.Spraying lime sulfur mixture and other measures could significantly affect the effects of honeybee pollination.[Conclusions]The research results prove the effectiveness of honeybee pollination technology in Hebei Province,and provide a certain reference for the establishment of a simple and practical artificial assisted pollination technology system.展开更多
The Gando Primary School project faces several challenges like extreme environmental constraints,resource scarcity,and design requirements.These challenges include the hot climate of Burkina Faso,economic underdevelop...The Gando Primary School project faces several challenges like extreme environmental constraints,resource scarcity,and design requirements.These challenges include the hot climate of Burkina Faso,economic underdevelopment,building material scarcity,and lack of electrical resources.To implement an architectural design for the classrooms that accommodates these difficulties,especially in the absence of an electrical system,architect Francis Kéréemployed various passive design strategies that can provide shelter from the rain and heat while achieving essential lighting levels and ventilation.This paper used Gando Primary School as the research object and utilized the parametric tools of Ladybug+Honeybee(L+H)to conduct numerical simulations and evaluations of the building’s daylighting,glare analysis,and indoor thermal comfort.The aim of this study is to investigate the application of passive design strategies in energy conservation under extreme environmental conditions,propose a parametric energy-saving evaluation strategy with L+H,and explore energy-saving design ideas in economically underdeveloped Third World countries.展开更多
The sting of Giant Asian honeybee(Apis dorsata) or Bambara in Sinhala and Kanmge Kulavi in Tamil is a common environmental hazard in Sri Lanka known to cause immediate allergic reactions,which could be fatal in sensit...The sting of Giant Asian honeybee(Apis dorsata) or Bambara in Sinhala and Kanmge Kulavi in Tamil is a common environmental hazard in Sri Lanka known to cause immediate allergic reactions,which could be fatal in sensitized individuals.We reported myocardial infarction, bowel gangrene and fatal anaphylaxis in a prospectively proven case series and the association of these uncommon complications with delayed removal of stingers from the patients’skin.展开更多
In learning and memory studies on honeybees (Apis mellifera), cold-induced narcosis has been widely used to temporarily immobilize honeybees. In this study, we investigated the effects of cold narcosis on the associ...In learning and memory studies on honeybees (Apis mellifera), cold-induced narcosis has been widely used to temporarily immobilize honeybees. In this study, we investigated the effects of cold narcosis on the associative memories in honeybees by using the proboscis extension response (PER) paradigm. Severe impairments in memory acquisition was found when cold narcosis was performed 30 rain, instead of 1 h before training. Locomotor activities were reduced when honeybees were tested 15 min, instead of 30 rain after cold narcosis. These results indicate that cold narcosis impairs locomotor activities, as well as memory acquisition in a time-dependent manner, but by comparison no such effects on memory retrieval have yet been observed.[0]展开更多
Cloud computing is a collection of disparate resources or services,a web of massive infrastructures,which is aimed at achieving maximum utilization with higher availability at a minimized cost.One of the most attracti...Cloud computing is a collection of disparate resources or services,a web of massive infrastructures,which is aimed at achieving maximum utilization with higher availability at a minimized cost.One of the most attractive applications for cloud computing is the concept of distributed information processing.Security,privacy,energy saving,reliability and load balancing are the major challenges facing cloud computing and most information technology innovations.Load balancing is the process of redistributing workload among all nodes in a network;to improve resource utilization and job response time,while avoiding overloading some nodes when other nodes are underloaded or idle is a major challenge.Thus,this research aims to design a novel load balancing systems in a cloud computing environment.The research is based on the modification of the existing approaches,namely;particle swarm optimization(PSO),honeybee,and ant colony optimization(ACO)with mathematical expression to form a novel approach called PACOHONEYBEE.The experiments were conducted on response time and throughput.The results of the response time of honeybee,PSO,SASOS,round-robin,PSO-ACO,and P-ACOHONEYBEE are:2791,2780,2784,2767,2727,and 2599(ms)respectively.The outcome of throughput of honeybee,PSO,SASOS,round-robin,PSO-ACO,and P-ACOHONEYBEE are:7451,7425,7398,7357,7387 and 7482(bps)respectively.It is observed that P-ACOHONEYBEE approach produces the lowest response time,high throughput and overall improved performance for the 10 nodes.The research has helped in managing the imbalance drawback by maximizing throughput,and reducing response time with scalability and reliability.展开更多
Mite (Varroa destructor) is one of the most serious parasite threats to the honey bee (Apis mellifera) reared in China. The beekeepers mainly use the drug to control and kill the mite in the past years, but the ho...Mite (Varroa destructor) is one of the most serious parasite threats to the honey bee (Apis mellifera) reared in China. The beekeepers mainly use the drug to control and kill the mite in the past years, but the honey products may be contaminated and the mite is becoming drug-resistant. The main idea of this paper is to research the possibility of mite-resistant honeybee rearing by nutritional crossbreed. The larvae (Apis mellifera ligustica) are bred with the royal jelly of Apis carana carana, and then the morphological index of the worker generation, genotypic frequency and gene frequency of the MDH Ⅱ, genetic resemblance, and mite resistance are measured. The results show that: compared to the parent workers, the proboscis length, anterior wing area, the total length of the third and fourth dorsal plate of the abdomen, the length of the fourth dorsal plate of the tuberculum, the area of the sixth abdominal segment, and the area of wax mirrors are significantly different, but the differences in the brachium index, dactylus index, and wing claw are not significant. Moreover, there are some mutations in the genotypic frequency and gene frequency of the MDH Ⅱ. The mite resistance of the nutritional crossbreed worker is significantly higher. The morphological, physical, and biochemical characters, genetic resemblance, and the mite-resistant ability of the worker generation can be changed by nutritional crossbreeding. Nutritional crossbreeding can be a new way to breed the honeybee.展开更多
The aim of our study was to explore whether honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) could be used as a reliable alternative to the standard mechanical devices for monitoring of air quality, in particular with respect to the con...The aim of our study was to explore whether honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) could be used as a reliable alternative to the standard mechanical devices for monitoring of air quality, in particular with respect to the concentration of the heavy metals cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and vanadium (V). We therefore tested whether the concentrations of these metals in adult honeybees and in ambient air were positively correlated, and whether differences in concentration between locations were similar for bees and air. On the basis of our measurements, conducted over a two-month period at three distinct locations in the Netherlands with each three replicate honeybee colonies placed next to mechanical monitoring devices, we concluded that a significant positive relationship between the concentrations in bees and in air could only be established for V. Also, only in the case of V, the differences between the three locations in mean concentration were similar for bees and air. Both outcomes were probably due to the relatively large range over which the concentrations of V varied, both in bees and in air, as compared to Cd and Pb. However, for V, as well as for Cd and Pb, the concentrations in ambient air were about two orders of magnitude below the established air quality standards. We therefore conclude that in the Netherlands, both variation and levels of the atmospheric concentrations of these metals are too low to establish a relationship between the concentration in bees and in air that is useful to present honeybees as an alternative to mechanical devices in monitoring of air pollution. However, in countries with larger variation and higher levels of the atmospheric concentrations of these metals, further exploration of the potential of honeybees in biomonitoring of air pollution may be worthwhile.展开更多
The injection to emerging adult workerbees with fluvalinate doses ranging from 1 femtomol to 1 nanomol per individual resulted in a reduction of haemolymph carbohydrate concentrations, particularly at the lowest dose ...The injection to emerging adult workerbees with fluvalinate doses ranging from 1 femtomol to 1 nanomol per individual resulted in a reduction of haemolymph carbohydrate concentrations, particularly at the lowest dose 1 hour after injections. At the same time, a large increase was observed for triacylglycerols and to a much lesser extent for steroids and phospholipids with 0.1 picomol per bee. By contrast, fatty acids, steroids and triacylglycerols exhibited a depress at the higher dose. Most responses were thus biphasic, showing that much attention should be paid to the effects of very low doses of pesticide.展开更多
Many species of insect egg can be targeted individually or (and) collectively for cryopreservation by vitrification. However, there has been no report on cryopreservation of honeybee eggs by vitrification. In an att...Many species of insect egg can be targeted individually or (and) collectively for cryopreservation by vitrification. However, there has been no report on cryopreservation of honeybee eggs by vitrification. In an attempt to define a preliminary procedure of cryopreservation of honeybee eggs by vitrification, queen honeybee born worker eggs (worker eggs) were stored through vitrification in liquid nitrogen up to 1 h, and then post-vitrification survival of the vitrified worker eggs in vitro and their hatching rates during maturation in vivo were observed using microscopic and close visual inspections. The procedure of cryopreservation by vitrification included dechorionation with sodium hypochlorite and permeabilization with isopropyl alcohol; equilibration by addition of loading solution (i.e., 25% vitrification storage solution) and dehydration by gradual replacement of loading solution with vitrification storage solution; cooling in liquid nitrogen vapor right before droplet vitrification in liquid nitrogen; and recovery in liquid nitrogen vapor right after storage in liquid nitrogen, thawing at temperature of thawing medium (5% sucrose in TC 100-insect medium) and rehydration by gradual replacement of vitrification storage solution with rehydration solution (5% fetal bovine serum in TC 100-insect medium). It was found that among the worker eggs experiencing cyropreservation by vitrification, 1.25% of them were successfully passed through the four life stages, viz., egg, larva, pupa, and adult. In summary, it can be inferred that although a majority of worker eggs were dead after cyropreservation by vitrification, a few of them were developed into larvae, pupae, and finally emerged as adults.展开更多
Intra-abdominal injection of amitraz(0.25 nmol per honeybee,i.e.,approx 2.3 nmol/g)to emerging worker bees,in vivo,led to a significant hypertrehalosemia(300-400%)followed by a hyperglucosemia(≈600%).Maxima were reac...Intra-abdominal injection of amitraz(0.25 nmol per honeybee,i.e.,approx 2.3 nmol/g)to emerging worker bees,in vivo,led to a significant hypertrehalosemia(300-400%)followed by a hyperglucosemia(≈600%).Maxima were reached at 0.5 and 2h,respectively.A strong negative correlation between glucosemia and trehalosemia appeared after injection of pure phentolamine (1 nmol per bee),suggesting stimulation of trehalase activities.Simultaneous administration of the α-blocker at≥0.25 nmol per individual suppressed the hyperglycemic response of amitraz. The formamidine pesticide thus likely acts on the honeybee α-aminergic system.1989 Academic Press,Inc.展开更多
An investigation on the proteome of drone egg development of native Italian bee (Apis mellifera ligustica Spinola,1806) was carried out in order to prove up the characteristics in protein expression and regulation a...An investigation on the proteome of drone egg development of native Italian bee (Apis mellifera ligustica Spinola,1806) was carried out in order to prove up the characteristics in protein expression and regulation at egg stage and open out the molecular mechanism of the development. The experiment was carried out by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. The results showed that there were 200, 242 and 233 proteins in a wide rang of molecular weight (12.42-169.60 kDa) and in a relatively narrow scope of pI (4.50-9.00) detected on day 1, day 2 and day 3, respectively, during the developmental process of the drone egg. Meanwhile, 164 protein spots were resolved at all the images (i.e., the protein was consistently expressed) along with the egg development, among which 7 were significantly up-expressed (P 〈 0.05) and 4 were significantly down-expressed (P 〈 0.05) while 79 had no significant differences (P 〉 0.05). In addition, the specific proteins expressing proteins on day 1, day 2 and day 3 were 11, 18 and 18, respectively. Besides, 17 proteins expressed both on day 1 and day 2 but silenced on day 3, and 43 proteins expressed both on day 2 and day 3 but silenced on day 1, while only 8 proteins expressed both on day 1 and day 3 but silenced on day 2. The results indicate that 2-d-old eggs are at the most active expressional stage in the development of drone egg. The protein expressing at all images suggests that it should be indispensable for drone egg development, but their expression pattern is different. The proteins expressing at a specific age of egg suggest that specific proteins are needed in different developmental stages to regulate. And there are more house-keeping proteins in the developmental process of the drone egg than that of worker egg, and it will provide more targets for gene improvement.展开更多
The stinging response thresholds of individual European and Africanized worker honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) were analyzed. Workers of each genotype performing defense (guard and soldier bees) and non-defense (nest an...The stinging response thresholds of individual European and Africanized worker honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) were analyzed. Workers of each genotype performing defense (guard and soldier bees) and non-defense (nest and forager bees) associated tasks were collected and exposed to an electric stimulus of 0.5 mA, and the time they took to sting a leather substrate was recorded. Africanized bees had significant lower thresholds of response than European bees. Guards and soldiers were faster to sting than nest and forager bees for the Africanized genotype, whereas for the European genotype, guards stung significantly faster than bees of the other three task groups. This is the first study that shows that individual bees specialized in two defensive tasks also have a lower response threshold for stinging. Our results fit a model of division of labor based on differences in response thresholds to stimuli among workers of different genotypes and task groups.展开更多
Public transit planning is a user-oriented problem, respectful of financial issues and involves different stakeholders such as the general public, the transportation provider and the local government. One of the main ...Public transit planning is a user-oriented problem, respectful of financial issues and involves different stakeholders such as the general public, the transportation provider and the local government. One of the main components of public transit planning is the transit network design (TND) problem. This research is an attempt to perform transit network design and analysis in the city of Sanandaj, Iran using the capabilities of GIS and Honeybee algorithm. Objectives of this study are formulating a multi-objective model of the TND problem, developing a GIS-based procedure for solving the TND problem and examination of the solutions using artificial metaheuristic methods such as honeybee algorithm. The transit network design approach in this research, aims to reduce the walking distance, the total travel distance and the total number of stops needed for a suitable transit service in Sanandaj, Iran. One of the contributions of this research is developing a transit network design with utilizing a spectrum of GIS software modelling functionalities and using the abilities of the artificial intelligence in modelling and assessment of the transit network.展开更多
文摘Honeybees (Apis mellifera) are important pollinators of flowering plants and agricultural crops contributing annually to billions of dollars in revenues to crop production. Honeybees have an average lifespan between 8 weeks to 5 years. Dead honeybees are abundantly available in beehives and can be utilized as an alternative source to synthesize nanoparticles. In recent years, biologically synthesized nanoparticles have been preferred over their chemical counterparts. However, honeybee-based-green synthesis of nanoparticles has not been explored yet. Herein, we report the biosynthesis of silver nanoparticles from honeybees and its antibacterial activity. The synthesis of silver nanoparticles was monitored visually through a gradual change in color. Furthermore, the biosynthesized nanoparticles were confirmed and characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy. Scanning Electron Microscope was utilized to analyze the average size and morphologies of the biosynthesized nanoparticles. Subsequently, the antibacterial potential of the biosynthesized silver nanoparticles was tested against selected Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial strains. It was found that a distinct color change from yellow to brown in the reaction solution suggested the formation of silver nanoparticles. The biosynthesized nanoparticles exhibited absorption maxima at 430 nm. The SEM analysis confirmed the spherical and cuboidal shape of the biosynthesized silver nanoparticles with a size range between 10 - 40 nm. Furthermore, the biosynthesized silver nanoparticles exhibited strong antimicrobial potential against tested Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria strains by aggregating on the cell surface. This study showcases the biomedical and agricultural applications of biosynthesized silver nanoparticles from honeybee wings. .
文摘The chemical composition of each of the eight total products of beekeeping, which are honey, bee venom, propolis, royal jelly, drone brood, bee pollen, bee bread and beeswax, is analyzed. Each beekeeping product has its own chemical composition which varies from producer to producer. Some of these bee products have been used for centuries in traditional medicine, but to date research has demonstrated many other medicinal properties of these products that were not known. Therapeutic properties of bee products have been discovered even against various types of cancer and scientists are continuing their research to discover other secrets behind the therapeutic properties of bee products. In addition, therapeutic effects of bee products have also been discovered against COVID-19 disease which has significantly affected global health. Finally, it is concluded that bee products are proven to be one of the most valuable medicines that nature can offer showing the great value of the science of beekeeping.
基金Supported by Special Fund Project for the Construction of National Modern Agricultural Industrial Technology System(CARS-28-28)Science and Technology Innovation Project of Hebei Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences(2022KJCXZX-SGS-5)+1 种基金Hebei Modern Seed Industry Science and Technology Innovation Project(21326308D)Hebei Modern Agricultural Industrial Technology System(HBCT2021210201).
文摘[Objectives]To improve the yield and quality of different pear varieties by supplementary pollination.[Methods]The effects of bee pollination were compared with other pollination methods,and the effects of different factors on honeybee pollination were studied through experiments.[Results]Honeybee pollination significantly increased the number of fruit per inflorescence.In addition,it could improve the single fruit weight,fruit shape and other quality indicators of fruit.The pollination effect of honeybee was the best in all supplementary pollination measures.Honeybee pollination had good fruit setting effect on different pear varieties,but there were some differences in the effect of quality improvement.Spraying lime sulfur mixture and other measures could significantly affect the effects of honeybee pollination.[Conclusions]The research results prove the effectiveness of honeybee pollination technology in Hebei Province,and provide a certain reference for the establishment of a simple and practical artificial assisted pollination technology system.
文摘The Gando Primary School project faces several challenges like extreme environmental constraints,resource scarcity,and design requirements.These challenges include the hot climate of Burkina Faso,economic underdevelopment,building material scarcity,and lack of electrical resources.To implement an architectural design for the classrooms that accommodates these difficulties,especially in the absence of an electrical system,architect Francis Kéréemployed various passive design strategies that can provide shelter from the rain and heat while achieving essential lighting levels and ventilation.This paper used Gando Primary School as the research object and utilized the parametric tools of Ladybug+Honeybee(L+H)to conduct numerical simulations and evaluations of the building’s daylighting,glare analysis,and indoor thermal comfort.The aim of this study is to investigate the application of passive design strategies in energy conservation under extreme environmental conditions,propose a parametric energy-saving evaluation strategy with L+H,and explore energy-saving design ideas in economically underdeveloped Third World countries.
文摘The sting of Giant Asian honeybee(Apis dorsata) or Bambara in Sinhala and Kanmge Kulavi in Tamil is a common environmental hazard in Sri Lanka known to cause immediate allergic reactions,which could be fatal in sensitized individuals.We reported myocardial infarction, bowel gangrene and fatal anaphylaxis in a prospectively proven case series and the association of these uncommon complications with delayed removal of stingers from the patients’skin.
基金supported by the National Science Foundation of China(91132307)the K.C.Wong Education Foundation,Hong Kong
文摘In learning and memory studies on honeybees (Apis mellifera), cold-induced narcosis has been widely used to temporarily immobilize honeybees. In this study, we investigated the effects of cold narcosis on the associative memories in honeybees by using the proboscis extension response (PER) paradigm. Severe impairments in memory acquisition was found when cold narcosis was performed 30 rain, instead of 1 h before training. Locomotor activities were reduced when honeybees were tested 15 min, instead of 30 rain after cold narcosis. These results indicate that cold narcosis impairs locomotor activities, as well as memory acquisition in a time-dependent manner, but by comparison no such effects on memory retrieval have yet been observed.[0]
基金Taif University Researchers are supporting project number(TURSP-2020/211),Taif University,Taif,Saudi Arabia.
文摘Cloud computing is a collection of disparate resources or services,a web of massive infrastructures,which is aimed at achieving maximum utilization with higher availability at a minimized cost.One of the most attractive applications for cloud computing is the concept of distributed information processing.Security,privacy,energy saving,reliability and load balancing are the major challenges facing cloud computing and most information technology innovations.Load balancing is the process of redistributing workload among all nodes in a network;to improve resource utilization and job response time,while avoiding overloading some nodes when other nodes are underloaded or idle is a major challenge.Thus,this research aims to design a novel load balancing systems in a cloud computing environment.The research is based on the modification of the existing approaches,namely;particle swarm optimization(PSO),honeybee,and ant colony optimization(ACO)with mathematical expression to form a novel approach called PACOHONEYBEE.The experiments were conducted on response time and throughput.The results of the response time of honeybee,PSO,SASOS,round-robin,PSO-ACO,and P-ACOHONEYBEE are:2791,2780,2784,2767,2727,and 2599(ms)respectively.The outcome of throughput of honeybee,PSO,SASOS,round-robin,PSO-ACO,and P-ACOHONEYBEE are:7451,7425,7398,7357,7387 and 7482(bps)respectively.It is observed that P-ACOHONEYBEE approach produces the lowest response time,high throughput and overall improved performance for the 10 nodes.The research has helped in managing the imbalance drawback by maximizing throughput,and reducing response time with scalability and reliability.
文摘Mite (Varroa destructor) is one of the most serious parasite threats to the honey bee (Apis mellifera) reared in China. The beekeepers mainly use the drug to control and kill the mite in the past years, but the honey products may be contaminated and the mite is becoming drug-resistant. The main idea of this paper is to research the possibility of mite-resistant honeybee rearing by nutritional crossbreed. The larvae (Apis mellifera ligustica) are bred with the royal jelly of Apis carana carana, and then the morphological index of the worker generation, genotypic frequency and gene frequency of the MDH Ⅱ, genetic resemblance, and mite resistance are measured. The results show that: compared to the parent workers, the proboscis length, anterior wing area, the total length of the third and fourth dorsal plate of the abdomen, the length of the fourth dorsal plate of the tuberculum, the area of the sixth abdominal segment, and the area of wax mirrors are significantly different, but the differences in the brachium index, dactylus index, and wing claw are not significant. Moreover, there are some mutations in the genotypic frequency and gene frequency of the MDH Ⅱ. The mite resistance of the nutritional crossbreed worker is significantly higher. The morphological, physical, and biochemical characters, genetic resemblance, and the mite-resistant ability of the worker generation can be changed by nutritional crossbreeding. Nutritional crossbreeding can be a new way to breed the honeybee.
文摘The aim of our study was to explore whether honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) could be used as a reliable alternative to the standard mechanical devices for monitoring of air quality, in particular with respect to the concentration of the heavy metals cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and vanadium (V). We therefore tested whether the concentrations of these metals in adult honeybees and in ambient air were positively correlated, and whether differences in concentration between locations were similar for bees and air. On the basis of our measurements, conducted over a two-month period at three distinct locations in the Netherlands with each three replicate honeybee colonies placed next to mechanical monitoring devices, we concluded that a significant positive relationship between the concentrations in bees and in air could only be established for V. Also, only in the case of V, the differences between the three locations in mean concentration were similar for bees and air. Both outcomes were probably due to the relatively large range over which the concentrations of V varied, both in bees and in air, as compared to Cd and Pb. However, for V, as well as for Cd and Pb, the concentrations in ambient air were about two orders of magnitude below the established air quality standards. We therefore conclude that in the Netherlands, both variation and levels of the atmospheric concentrations of these metals are too low to establish a relationship between the concentration in bees and in air that is useful to present honeybees as an alternative to mechanical devices in monitoring of air pollution. However, in countries with larger variation and higher levels of the atmospheric concentrations of these metals, further exploration of the potential of honeybees in biomonitoring of air pollution may be worthwhile.
文摘The injection to emerging adult workerbees with fluvalinate doses ranging from 1 femtomol to 1 nanomol per individual resulted in a reduction of haemolymph carbohydrate concentrations, particularly at the lowest dose 1 hour after injections. At the same time, a large increase was observed for triacylglycerols and to a much lesser extent for steroids and phospholipids with 0.1 picomol per bee. By contrast, fatty acids, steroids and triacylglycerols exhibited a depress at the higher dose. Most responses were thus biphasic, showing that much attention should be paid to the effects of very low doses of pesticide.
基金supported by Science Technology Foundation of Jilin Province, China (20040555 and 20082215)
文摘Many species of insect egg can be targeted individually or (and) collectively for cryopreservation by vitrification. However, there has been no report on cryopreservation of honeybee eggs by vitrification. In an attempt to define a preliminary procedure of cryopreservation of honeybee eggs by vitrification, queen honeybee born worker eggs (worker eggs) were stored through vitrification in liquid nitrogen up to 1 h, and then post-vitrification survival of the vitrified worker eggs in vitro and their hatching rates during maturation in vivo were observed using microscopic and close visual inspections. The procedure of cryopreservation by vitrification included dechorionation with sodium hypochlorite and permeabilization with isopropyl alcohol; equilibration by addition of loading solution (i.e., 25% vitrification storage solution) and dehydration by gradual replacement of loading solution with vitrification storage solution; cooling in liquid nitrogen vapor right before droplet vitrification in liquid nitrogen; and recovery in liquid nitrogen vapor right after storage in liquid nitrogen, thawing at temperature of thawing medium (5% sucrose in TC 100-insect medium) and rehydration by gradual replacement of vitrification storage solution with rehydration solution (5% fetal bovine serum in TC 100-insect medium). It was found that among the worker eggs experiencing cyropreservation by vitrification, 1.25% of them were successfully passed through the four life stages, viz., egg, larva, pupa, and adult. In summary, it can be inferred that although a majority of worker eggs were dead after cyropreservation by vitrification, a few of them were developed into larvae, pupae, and finally emerged as adults.
文摘Intra-abdominal injection of amitraz(0.25 nmol per honeybee,i.e.,approx 2.3 nmol/g)to emerging worker bees,in vivo,led to a significant hypertrehalosemia(300-400%)followed by a hyperglucosemia(≈600%).Maxima were reached at 0.5 and 2h,respectively.A strong negative correlation between glucosemia and trehalosemia appeared after injection of pure phentolamine (1 nmol per bee),suggesting stimulation of trehalase activities.Simultaneous administration of the α-blocker at≥0.25 nmol per individual suppressed the hyperglycemic response of amitraz. The formamidine pesticide thus likely acts on the honeybee α-aminergic system.1989 Academic Press,Inc.
基金supported by the Special Fund of Technical Production System of the National Beekeeping Industry, the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (NYCYTX-43)the National Natural Science Foundation of China (30972148)the Special Scientific and Research Fund for Public Welfare Industry,China (nyhyzx07-041)
文摘An investigation on the proteome of drone egg development of native Italian bee (Apis mellifera ligustica Spinola,1806) was carried out in order to prove up the characteristics in protein expression and regulation at egg stage and open out the molecular mechanism of the development. The experiment was carried out by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. The results showed that there were 200, 242 and 233 proteins in a wide rang of molecular weight (12.42-169.60 kDa) and in a relatively narrow scope of pI (4.50-9.00) detected on day 1, day 2 and day 3, respectively, during the developmental process of the drone egg. Meanwhile, 164 protein spots were resolved at all the images (i.e., the protein was consistently expressed) along with the egg development, among which 7 were significantly up-expressed (P 〈 0.05) and 4 were significantly down-expressed (P 〈 0.05) while 79 had no significant differences (P 〉 0.05). In addition, the specific proteins expressing proteins on day 1, day 2 and day 3 were 11, 18 and 18, respectively. Besides, 17 proteins expressed both on day 1 and day 2 but silenced on day 3, and 43 proteins expressed both on day 2 and day 3 but silenced on day 1, while only 8 proteins expressed both on day 1 and day 3 but silenced on day 2. The results indicate that 2-d-old eggs are at the most active expressional stage in the development of drone egg. The protein expressing at all images suggests that it should be indispensable for drone egg development, but their expression pattern is different. The proteins expressing at a specific age of egg suggest that specific proteins are needed in different developmental stages to regulate. And there are more house-keeping proteins in the developmental process of the drone egg than that of worker egg, and it will provide more targets for gene improvement.
文摘The stinging response thresholds of individual European and Africanized worker honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) were analyzed. Workers of each genotype performing defense (guard and soldier bees) and non-defense (nest and forager bees) associated tasks were collected and exposed to an electric stimulus of 0.5 mA, and the time they took to sting a leather substrate was recorded. Africanized bees had significant lower thresholds of response than European bees. Guards and soldiers were faster to sting than nest and forager bees for the Africanized genotype, whereas for the European genotype, guards stung significantly faster than bees of the other three task groups. This is the first study that shows that individual bees specialized in two defensive tasks also have a lower response threshold for stinging. Our results fit a model of division of labor based on differences in response thresholds to stimuli among workers of different genotypes and task groups.
文摘Public transit planning is a user-oriented problem, respectful of financial issues and involves different stakeholders such as the general public, the transportation provider and the local government. One of the main components of public transit planning is the transit network design (TND) problem. This research is an attempt to perform transit network design and analysis in the city of Sanandaj, Iran using the capabilities of GIS and Honeybee algorithm. Objectives of this study are formulating a multi-objective model of the TND problem, developing a GIS-based procedure for solving the TND problem and examination of the solutions using artificial metaheuristic methods such as honeybee algorithm. The transit network design approach in this research, aims to reduce the walking distance, the total travel distance and the total number of stops needed for a suitable transit service in Sanandaj, Iran. One of the contributions of this research is developing a transit network design with utilizing a spectrum of GIS software modelling functionalities and using the abilities of the artificial intelligence in modelling and assessment of the transit network.