Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Influence of Age of Infection on the Gut Microbiota in Worker Honey Bees (Apis mellifera iberiensis) Experimentally Infected with Nosema ceranae

Researchers studied how infection with the gut parasite Nosema ceranae affects the microbiome of honey bees at different ages. The study found that infected bees, especially those infected shortly after emerging, showed significant shifts in their gut bacteria populations, suggesting that both age and infection timing play important roles in how bee gut health is disrupted.

2024 Microorganisms 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Microbiota and Its Importance in Honey Bees

This review examines the role of microbiota in honey bee health, finding that gut microbiome composition is critical for metabolism, immune function, and protection against pathogens, with environmental stressors including pollution threatening bee microbiome stability.

2021 Bee Studies- Apiculture Research Institute 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Tetracycline exposure alters key gut microbiota in Africanized honey bees ( Apis mellifera scutellata x spp.)

Researchers found that exposure to tetracycline antibiotics significantly altered gut bacteria communities in Africanized honey bees, disrupting their microbiome health. Since bees can be exposed to antibiotics through agricultural practices, the findings raise concern about antibiotic impacts on pollinator health.

2021
Article Tier 2

How Environmental and Ecological Stressors Reprogram Honey Bee Chemistry Through the Microbiome–Metabolome Axis

Researchers reviewed how major environmental stressors — including pesticides, pathogens, nutritional imbalance, and contaminants — disrupt the honey bee gut microbiome-metabolome axis, finding recurring patterns of functional dysbiosis such as impaired energy metabolism and weakened immune regulation that can scale up to threaten colony resilience.

2026 Insects
Article Tier 2

Developing Strategies to Help Bee Colony Resilience in Changing Environments

This review identified strategies for improving bee colony resilience under multiple stressors including climate change, pathogen pressure, and pesticide exposure, with a focus on the links between nutrition, gut microbiota, and immune and stress response systems. The authors highlight dietary diversity and microbiome support as practical levers for maintaining colony health.

2022 Animals 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Gut microbiota protects honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) against polystyrene microplastics exposure risks

Researchers found that honey bees with intact gut microbiota were significantly more resilient to polystyrene microplastic exposure than bees with disrupted gut communities. The gut microbiota helped reduce oxidative stress and maintained immune function in bees exposed to microplastics. The study suggests that a healthy gut microbiome may serve as a natural defense mechanism against the harmful effects of microplastic ingestion in pollinators.

2020 Journal of Hazardous Materials 203 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

A systematic review of honey bee (Apis mellifera, Linnaeus, 1758) infections and available treatment options

This systematic review catalogued the major pathogens threatening honey bee colonies worldwide, including Varroa mites, Nosema fungi, and several viruses, along with current treatment options. The authors call for a global monitoring system to track parasite prevalence and protect pollinator health.

2023 Veterinary Medicine and Science 19 citations
Article Tier 2

The Gut Microbiome Associated to Honeybees and Waste-reducing Insects

This review examined the gut microbiomes of honeybees and insects that consume organic waste including plastic-contaminated food, finding that gut bacteria play key roles in digestion and immunity. Some insect gut bacteria are being studied for their potential to biodegrade plastics, making this a relevant intersection of microbiology and plastic pollution research.

2017 Archivio Istituzionale della Ricerca (Universita Degli Studi Di Milano) 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of different microplastic types and co-exposure on the survival of Apis mellifera ligustica (Spinola, 1806) and its associated microbial communities

Researchers fed honey bees three types of microplastics (polystyrene, polyethylene, and polymethyl methacrylate) individually and in combination, and found that all treatments significantly reduced bee survival compared to controls. The combination of all three microplastic types had the strongest negative effect, and the gut microbial community showed time- and treatment-specific shifts that may represent an initial compensatory response to maintain functional stability.

2026 Journal of Hazardous Materials
Article Tier 2

Association of specific gut microbiota with polyethylene microplastics caused gut dysbiosis and increased susceptibility to opportunistic pathogens in honeybees

Honeybees fed polyethylene microplastics (the type used in food packaging) showed disrupted gut bacteria and became more vulnerable to disease-causing pathogens. The larger 100-micrometer particles caused the most harm, physically damaging the gut lining and displacing beneficial bacteria. This research demonstrates how microplastic contamination in the environment can weaken important pollinator species by compromising their gut health and immune defenses.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Current Knowledge on Bee Innate Immunity Based on Genomics and Transcriptomics

This review synthesized genomic and transcriptomic studies on innate immunity in bees, covering defense mechanisms against pathogens including viruses, bacteria, and parasites. The authors identified key immune genes and signaling pathways across solitary and social bee species, with implications for understanding colony health and designing interventions against bee population decline.

2022 International Journal of Molecular Sciences 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Acute and chronic effects of Titanium dioxide (TiO2) PM1 on honey bee gut microbiota under laboratory conditions

Researchers exposed honey bees to titanium dioxide PM1 particles under laboratory conditions for acute and chronic periods and found that even sublethal TiO2 exposure altered gut microbiota composition, reduced microbial diversity, and shifted metabolic activity, with potential implications for bee immune function and colony health.

2021 Scientific Reports 26 citations
Article Tier 2

Polystyrene microplastics reduce honeybee survival by disrupting gut microbiota and metabolism

Honeybees exposed to polystyrene microplastics at environmentally realistic concentrations showed reduced survival rates, damaged gut walls, and disrupted gut bacteria and metabolism. The microplastics accumulated in the bees' guts, causing oxidative stress and shifting the microbial community toward harmful species. Since honeybees are essential pollinators for many food crops, microplastic threats to bee health could have indirect consequences for agriculture and human food security.

2025 Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined transcriptome and metabolite profiling analyses provide insights into the chronic toxicity of carbaryl and acetamiprid to Apis mellifera larvae

Researchers exposed honeybee larvae in vitro to no-observed-adverse-effect concentrations of the insecticides carbaryl and acetamiprid and used combined transcriptome and metabolite profiling to reveal that carbaryl disrupted oxidative stress responses and amino acid metabolism, while acetamiprid altered different metabolic pathways.

2022 Research Square (Research Square) 1 citations
Article Tier 2

The Human Archaeome: Commensals, Opportunists, or Emerging Pathogens?

This review examines the human archaeome—archaeal microorganisms inhabiting the gut, skin, and other body sites—and their potential roles in health and disease. It finds no conclusive archaeal pathogens in humans but identifies indirect roles through metabolic interactions with bacteria, relevant to gut microbiome research.

2025 Preprints.org
Article Tier 2

Nano- and micro-polystyrene plastics disturb gut microbiota and intestinal immune system in honeybee.

Honeybees orally exposed to polystyrene micro- and nanoplastics showed disrupted gut microbiota and impaired intestinal immune function, with nanoplastics causing greater effects than microplastics. Since honeybees are critical pollinators for food production, microplastic contamination in their environment could affect both bee health and agricultural systems.

2022 The Science of the total environment
Article Tier 2

Microplastics incorporated by honeybees from food are transferred to honey, wax and larvae

Researchers found that when honeybees consume food contaminated with microplastics, the particles are transferred to honey, beeswax, and developing larvae inside the hive. Chronic exposure did not significantly affect colony growth, but the presence of microplastics in honey means humans may be ingesting them through this food source. This study reveals another pathway by which microplastics can enter the human diet through contaminated bee products.

2023 Environmental Pollution 89 citations
Article Tier 2

In vitro assays reveal inherently insecticide-tolerant termite symbionts

Researchers discovered that certain termite gut bacterial symbionts show inherent tolerance to insecticides in vitro, suggesting these microorganisms may contribute to their hosts' resistance and could have applications in environmental bioremediation.

2023 Frontiers in Physiology 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Use of Gas Chromatography and SPME Extraction for the Differentiation between Healthy and Paenibacillus larvae Infected Colonies of Bee Brood—Preliminary Research

Researchers used gas chromatography with SPME extraction to analyze volatile organic compounds in honey bee brood from healthy hives and those infected with Paenibacillus larvae, identifying distinct VOC profiles that could potentially serve as early diagnostic markers for American foulbrood disease.

2023 Agriculture 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Combined transcriptome and metabolite profiling analyses provide insights into the chronic toxicity of carbaryl and acetamiprid to Apis mellifera larvae

Researchers exposed honeybee larvae to low, non-lethal doses of two common insecticides — carbaryl and acetamiprid — and found distinct disruptions in gene activity and metabolism, including effects on antioxidant defenses and amino acid processing. These findings reveal that even "safe" pesticide levels can cause subtle but meaningful biological harm to developing bees, which are essential for pollinating crops.

2022 Scientific Reports 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Single and Synergistic Effects of Microplastics and Difenoconazole on Oxidative Stress, Transcriptome, and Microbiome Traits in Honey Bees

Researchers exposed honey bees to microplastics and the fungicide difenoconazole, both alone and together, and found that the combination caused worse oxidative stress and gut microbiome disruption than either pollutant alone. This is concerning because bees encounter both pollutants in agricultural environments, and the combined exposure may weaken their health more than expected.

2025 Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of Oxytetracycline on Apis mellifera Colonies: Preliminary Results on Residues and Antibiotic Resistance

Researchers conducted a preliminary study testing two oxytetracycline (OTC) administration protocols (long and short) on 18 honeybee (Apis mellifera) colonies divided into three groups to assess toxicity, honey residues, and antibiotic resistance gene transfer. They found no toxicity to adult bees or brood but detected OTC residues in nest honey up to seven months post-treatment (210.3 micrograms/kg after long protocol) and identified genes encoding OTC antibiotic resistance in bacteria isolated from adult bee guts.

2022 Journal of Apicultural Science 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Species-specific Microorganisms in Acid-tolerant Chironomus Larvae Reared in a Neutral pH Range under Laboratory Conditions: Single Dataset Analysis

Researchers systematically compared larval microbiomes of 11 Chironomus midge species from acidic and neutral pH environments using amplicon sequencing, finding that acid-tolerant species exhibited lower microbiome evenness and a biased abundance of specific microorganisms consistent with acid tolerance mechanisms.

2023 Microbes and Environments 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Biotic and abiotic stresses on honeybee health

This review covers the many threats facing honeybee health, including parasites, pesticides, habitat loss, climate change, and emerging pollutants like microplastics. Microplastics have been found in bee habitats and can be ingested during foraging, potentially affecting bee health and colony survival. Since honeybees are essential crop pollinators, threats to their health from microplastic pollution could indirectly impact human food production.

2023 Integrative Zoology 33 citations