Honeybee glands as possible infection reservoirs of Nosema ceranae and Nosema apis in naturally infected forager bees

Aims: To determine whether Nosema ceranae and Nosema apis are present in different gland tissues of honeybee, Apis mellifera L. and to monitor spore presence and quantity in these glands in naturally infected hives from July 2009 to July 2010 in Quebec, Canada. Methods and Results: Nosema spp. were quantified using duplex quantitative real‐time PCR in the thoracic salivary, hypopharyngeal, mandibular glands, and venom sac and glands of A. mellifera over a period of 8 months. Both Nosema species were present in all the glands as single or mixed species; however, N. apis was not present as single‐species detections in the salivary glands (see Table 2). Nosema ceranae was more prevalent throughout the 8 months. Significant correlative relationships were established for N. ceranae and N. apis levels in the honeybee glands and those found within the intestines of forager honeybees. Overall, the seasonality of N. ceranae and N. apis in the different glands tightly followed the seasonal patterns in the honeybee guts. Conclusions: Nosema ceranae and N. apis are not tissue specific, and honeybee glands have potential to become a useful indicator of the extent of disease in the colony and may represent a potential infection reservoir. Significance and Impact of the Study: First report of spore load quantification of Nosema spp. in different honeybee glands.     

Ribosomal Gene Polymorphism in Small Genomes: Analysis of Different 16S rRNA Sequences Expressed in the Honeybee Parasite Nosema ceranae (Microsporidia)

To date, few organisms have been shown to possess variable ribosomal RNA, otherwise considered a classic example of uniformity by concerted evolution. The polymorphism for the 16S rRNA in Nosema ceranae analysed here is striking as Microsporidia are intracellular parasites which have suffered a strong reduction in their genomes and cellular organization. Moreover, N. ceranae infects the honeybee Apis mellifera, and has been associated with the colony‐loss phenomenon during the last decade. The variants of 16S rRNA include single nucleotide substitutions, one base insertion‐deletion, plus a tetranucleotide indel. We show that different gene variants are expressed. The polymorphic sites tend to be located in particular regions of the rRNA molecule, and the comparison to the Escherichia coli 16S rRNA secondary structure indicates that most variations probably do not preclude ribosomal activity. The fact that the polymorphisms in such a minimal organism as N. ceranae are maintained in samples collected worldwide suggest that the existence of differently expressed rRNA may play an adaptive role in the microsporidian.     

Morphological,Molecular, and Phylogenetic Characterization of Nosema ceranae,a Microsporidian Parasite Isolated from the European Honey Bee,Apis mellifera1

ABSTRACT. Nosema ceranae, a microsporidian parasite originally described from Apis cerana, has been found to infect Apis melllifera and is highly pathogenic to its new host. In the present study, data on the ultrastructure of N. ceranae, presence of N. ceranae-specific nucleic acid in host tissues, and phylogenetic relationships with other microsporidia species are described. The ultrastructural features indicate that N. ceranae possesses all of the characteristics of the genus Nosema. Spores of N. ceranae measured approximately 4.4 × 2.2 μm on fresh smears. The number of coils of the polar filament inside spores was 18–21. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) signals specific for N. ceranae were detected not only in the primary infection site, the midgut, but also in the tissues of hypopharyngeal glands, salivary glands, Malpighian tubules, and fat body. The detection rate and intensity of PCR signals in the fat body were relatively low compared with other examined tissues. Maximum parsimony analysis of the small subunit rRNA gene sequences showed that N. ceranae appeared to be more closely related to the wasp parasite, Nosema vespula, than to N. apis, a parasite infecting the same host.     

Nosema ceranae, a new parasite in Thai honeybees

Adult workers of Apis cerana, Apis florea and Apis mellifera from colonies heavily infected with Nosema ceranae were selected for molecular analyses of the parasite. PCR-specific 16S rRNA primers were designed, cloned, sequenced and compared to GenBank entries. The sequenced products corresponded to N. ceranae. We then infected A. cerana with N. ceranae spores isolated from A. florea workers. Newly emerged bees from healthy colonies were fed 10,000, 20,000 and 40,000 spores/bee. There were significant dosage dependent differences in bee infection and survival rates. The ratio of infected cells to non-infected cells increased at 6, 10 and 14 d post infection. In addition, hypopharyngeal glands of bees from the control group had significantly higher protein concentrations than infected groups. Bees infected with 40,000 spores/bee had the lowest protein concentrations. Thus, N. ceranae isolated from A. florea is capable of infecting another bee species, impairing hypopharyngeal gland protein production and reducing bee survival in A. cerana.     

Nosema ceranae, a new microsporidian parasite in honeybees in Europe

Twelve samples of adult honey bees from different regions of Spain from colonies with clear signs of population depletion, positive to microsporidian spores using light microscopy (1% of total positive samples analysed), were selected for molecular diagnosis. PCR specific primers for a region of the 16S rRNA gene of Microsporidia were developed and the PCR products were sequenced and compared to GenBank entries. The sequenced products of 11 out of the 12 samples were identical to the corresponding Nosema ceranae sequence. This is the first report of N. ceranae in colonies of Apis mellifera in Europe. The suggested link of the infections to clinical disease symptoms makes imperative a study of the virulence of N. ceranae in European races of honey bees.     

Shell Temperature, Activity and Resistance to Desiccation in the Polymorphic Land Snail Cepaea Vindobonensis

Shell temperature during the morning hours, and the 24-houractivity pattern have been studied in the two distinct morphsof the polymorphic land snail Cepaea vindobonensis. Shell temperaturesbetween the two morphs differed significantly when snails wereplaced in the sun and the temperature difference was about 1°C. Activity observations in the field and in the laboratory revealedthat adult dark-banded snails were in general less active thanboth morphs of juveniles and adult faint-banded snails during sunnymornings or under severe heat load. In the field and duringcloudy mornings no statistically significant differences betweenmorphs were seen. Resistance to desiccation was studied among the two morphs ofthe same population in which activity was observed and anotherpopulation coming from a more northern and more humid habitat.A clear intraspecific difference was found in resistance todesiccation. Snails from the southern population living in amore arid habitat were more resistant than snails from the northernpopulation. Within the same population percentage water lossdid not differ significantly between the two morphs but thefaint-banded snails seemed better adapted to aridity since onlyin these snails was no difference detected in relative bodywater after desiccation. (Received 28 July 1997; accepted 20 June 1998)     

The Response of Transpiration Resistance to Leaf Temperature as a Desiccation Resistance Mechanism in Tree Seedlings

Transpiration rate and leaf transfer resistance to water vapor loss were determined under a range of leaf temperatures for Quercus macrocarpa, Q. velutina, Q. alba, Q. rubra, and Acer saccharum. Transfer resistance increased with rising leaf temperatures between 20 and 40°C in all species, but the rate of increase in resistance was greatest in species which normally occupy xeric sites. Increased transfer resistance with rising leaf temperature may be significant in preventing rapid desiccation of leaves under the large evaporative stress imposed by high leaf temperature.     

Distribution of Nosema ceranae in the European honeybee, Apis mellifera in Japan

The microsporidian species, Nosema apis and Nosema ceranae are both known to infect the European honeybee, Apis mellifera. Nosema disease has a global distribution and is responsible for considerable economic losses among apiculturists. In this study, 336 honeybee samples from 18 different prefectures in Japan were examined for the presence of N. apis and N. ceranae using a PCR technique. Although N. ceranae was not detected in most of the apiaries surveyed, the parasite was detected at three of the sites examined. Further, N. ceranae appears to be patchily distributed across Japan and no apparent geographic difference was observed among the areas surveyed. In addition, the apparent absence of N. apis suggests that N. ceranae may be displacing N. apis in A. mellifera in Japan. Partial SSU rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed the possible existence of two N. ceranae groups from different geographic regions in Japan. It seems likely that these microsporidian parasites were introduced into Japan through the importation of either contaminated honeybee-related products or infected queens. This study confirmed that PCR detection is effective for indicating the presence of this pathogen in seemingly healthy colonies. It is therefore hoped that the results presented here will improve our understanding of the epidemiology of Nosema disease so that effective controls can be implemented.     

Exposure of the wild bee Osmia bicornis to the honey bee pathogen Nosema ceranae

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Polymorphism and recombination for rDNA in the putatively asexual microsporidian Nosema ceranae, a pathogen of honeybees

Nosema ceranae is currently one of the major pathogens of honeybees, related to the worldwide colony losses phenomenon. The genotyping of strains based on ribosomal DNA (rDNA) can be misleading if the repeated units are not identical. The analysis of cloned rDNA fragments containing the intergenic spacer (IGS) and part of the rDNA small-subunit (SSU) gene, from N. ceranae isolates from different European and Central Asia populations, revealed a high diversity of sequences. The variability involved single-nucleotide polymorphisms and insertion/deletions, resulting in 79 different haplotypes. Two sequences from the same isolate could be as different as any pair of sequences from different samples; in contrast, identical haplotypes were also found in very different geographical origins. Consequently, haplotypes cannot be organized in a consistent phylogenetic tree, clearly indicating that rDNA is not a reliable marker for the differentiation of N. ceranae strains. The results indicate that recombination between different sequences may produce new variants, which is quite surprising in microsporidia, usually considered to have an asexual mode of reproduction. The diversity of sequences and their geographical distribution indicate that haplotypes of different lineages may occasionally be present in a same cell and undergo homologue recombination, therefore suggesting a sexual haplo-diploid cycle.     

Experimental infection of red dwarf honeybee,Apis florea,with Nosema ceranae

This research is the first record of the infection of Apis florea by Nosema ceranae, a newly identified pathogen of honeybee in Thailand which was initially isolated from A. florea workers. Each Nosema free-bee was fed 2 μl of 50% (w/v) sucrose solution containing 0, 10,000 20,000 or 40,000 Nosema spores/bee. The survival rates of treated bees were significantly lower compared to control bees. Infectivity was not statistically different among the three spore concentrations, whereas no infection was found in control bees. Protein content of control bee hypopharyngeal glands 14 days post inoculation (p.i) was significantly higher (21.47 ± 0.17 mg/bee) compared to all treatments. The infection ratio of bees treated with 40,000 spores/bee increased with time after inoculation. These results suggest that N. ceranae has a significant negative effect on honeybee hypopharyngeal gland protein production and contributes to their shortened life span.     

Genomic Analyses of the Microsporidian Nosema ceranae,an Emergent Pathogen of Honey Bees

Recent steep declines in honey bee health have severely impacted the beekeeping industry, presenting new risks for agricultural commodities that depend on insect pollination. Honey bee declines could reflect increased pressures from parasites and pathogens. The incidence of the microsporidian pathogen Nosema ceranae has increased significantly in the past decade. Here we present a draft assembly (7.86 MB) of the N. ceranae genome derived from pyrosequence data, including initial gene models and genomic comparisons with other members of this highly derived fungal lineage. N. ceranae has a strongly AT-biased genome (74% A+T) and a diversity of repetitive elements, complicating the assembly. Of 2,614 predicted protein-coding sequences, we conservatively estimate that 1,366 have homologs in the microsporidian Encephalitozoon cuniculi, the most closely related published genome sequence. We identify genes conserved among microsporidia that lack clear homology outside this group, which are of special interest as potential virulence factors in this group of obligate parasites. A substantial fraction of the diminutive N. ceranae proteome consists of novel and transposable-element proteins. For a majority of well-supported gene models, a conserved sense-strand motif can be found within 15 bases upstream of the start codon; a previously uncharacterized version of this motif is also present in E. cuniculi. These comparisons provide insight into the architecture, regulation, and evolution of microsporidian genomes, and will drive investigations into honey bee–Nosema interactions.     

Spores of Paenibacillus larvae,Ascosphaera apis,Nosema ceranae and Nosema apis in bee products supervised by the Brazilian Federal Inspection Service

Due to their ecological and economic importance, honey bees have attracted much scientific attention, which has intensified due to the recent population decline of these insects in the several parts of the world. Among the factors related to these patterns, infection by pathogens are the most relevant, mainly because of the easy dissemination of these microorganisms. Although no zoonotic diseases are associated with these insects, the presence of infectious agents in bee products should still be considered because they play a role as disease dispersers, increasing the risk to animal health. Because of the possibility of dispersion of pathogens via bee products, this work aimed to identify the presence of spores of the pathogens Paenibacillus larvae, Ascosphaera apis and Nosema spp. in samples of honey, pollen and royal jelly that are registered with Brazil's Federal Inspection Service (S.I.F.) and commercially available in the state of São Paulo. Of the 41 samples of bee products analyzed, only one showed no contamination by any of these pathogens. N. ceranae and P. larvae had the highest prevalence considering all the samples analyzed (present in 87.80% and 85.37% of the total, respectively), with N. apis present in 26.83% and A. apis present in 73.17% of the samples. These results provide support for the formulation of government regulations for sanitary control of exotic diseases by preventing dispersion of pathogens, including through illegal importation, since local and international trade and the transfer of colonies between regions play important roles in the dispersion of these microorganisms.     

东方蜜蜂微孢子虫的SNP与InDel位点鉴定及分析

【目的】东方蜜蜂微孢子虫Nosema ceranae是一种专性侵染成年蜜蜂中肠上皮细胞的单细胞真菌病原,广泛感染世界各地的蜂群。本研究拟利用已获得的东方蜜蜂微孢子虫纯净孢子的高质量转录组数据进行单核苷酸多态性（Single nucleotide polymorphism,SNP）和插入缺失（Insertion-Deletion,InDel）位点的鉴定和分析,旨在丰富东方蜜蜂微孢子虫的SNP和InDel信息,并为新型分子标记的开发提供基础。【方法】使用GATK软件识别东方蜜蜂微孢子虫的SNP和InDel位点。采用SnpEff软件预测变异位点发生的基因组区域及变异产生的影响。通过相关生物信息学软件分别将SNP和InDel位点所在基因分别比对GO和KEGG数据库,获得相应的功能和通路注释。【结果】共鉴定到28195个SNP位点,其中发生转换和颠换的SNP位点分别有21403和6792个;上述SNP位点的突变类型有12种,其中最丰富的突变类型为C/T;分布在CDS区的SNP位点最多,其次是基因间区、上游区、下游区和内含子区;最丰富的密码子突变类型是同义突变;SNP位点所在基因可注释到代谢进程、细胞组分和催化活性等43个GO条目以及代谢途径、核糖体和等次生代谢产物的生物合成等85条KEGG通路。共鉴定到2831个InDel位点,其中分布在基因间区InDel位点最多,分布在CDS区的InDel位点最少;最丰富的密码子突变类型是移码突变;InDel位点所在基因可注释到细胞进程、细胞和结合等38个GO条目以及代谢途径、次生代谢产物的生物合成及核糖体等73条KEGG通路。【结论】东方蜜蜂微孢子虫中存在大量的SNP和InDel位点,SNP位点的突变类型主要为转换,与其他物种类似;SNP与InDel位点的基因组功能元件分布规律和突变类型具有明显差异;SNP和InDel位点所在基因与东方蜜蜂微孢子虫适应宿主细胞内环境及病原增殖过程具有潜在关系。     

Host sharing by the honey bee parasites Lotmaria passim and Nosema ceranae

The trypanosome Lotmaria passim and the microsporidian Nosema ceranae are common parasites of the honey bee, Apis mellifera, intestine, but the nature of interactions between them is unknown. Here, we took advantage of naturally occurring infections and quantified infection loads of individual workers (N = 408) originating from three apiaries (four colonies per apiary) using PCR to test for interactions between these two parasites. For that purpose, we measured the frequency of single and double infections, estimated the parasite loads of single and double infections, and determined the type of correlation between both parasites in double infections. If interactions between both parasites are strong and antagonistic, single infections should be more frequent than double infections, double infections will have lower parasite loads than single infections, and double infections will present a negative correlation. Overall, a total of 88 workers were infected with N. ceranae, 53 with L. passim, and eight with both parasites. Although both parasites were found in all three apiaries, there were significant differences among apiaries in the proportions of infected bees. The data show no significant differences between the expected and observed frequencies of single‐ and double‐infected bees. While the infection loads of individual bees were significantly higher for L. passim compared to N. ceranae, there were no significant differences in infection loads between single‐ and double‐infected hosts for both parasites. These results suggest no strong interactions between the two parasites in honey bees, possibly due to spatial separation in the host. The significant positive correlation between L. passim and N. ceranae infection loads in double‐infected hosts therefore most likely results from differences among individual hosts rather than cooperation between parasites. Even if hosts are infected by multiple parasites, this does not necessarily imply that there are any significant interactions between them.     

Explaining Susceptibility and Resistance to a Multi-Host Parasite

Closely related host species are known to show variation in the level of resistance towards the same or similar parasite species, but this phenomenon is understudied. Such studies are important for understanding the ecological factors that might promote susceptibility or resistance to parasites: in particular, whether one host species is a larger target of selection for the parasite by virtue of being more abundant locally or more regionally widespread than another host species. In this study, we examined the expression of resistance by two closely related species of damselflies (Nehalennia irene and Nehalennia gracilis) against an Arrenurus water mite species. We show that the host species at each of two isolated sphagnum bogs have statistically indistinguishable levels of prevalence and intensity of infection by mite larvae. Despite having similar measures of parasitism, the regionally less represented species (N. gracilis) showed total resistance, whereas the regionally well-represented species (N. irene) was completely susceptible. Moreover, the form of resistance expressed by N. gracilis was unique, in that the oral glands of the mite were melanised. Also, this mite species was not found outside of isolated bog habitats. These results suggest that there might have been strong historical selection from this mite on the bog specialist, N. gracilis, and that this selection may have resulted in resistance evolving to fixation in a series of isolated populations.     

东方蜜蜂微孢子虫基因的可变剪接及可变腺苷酸化解析

本研究旨在基于已获得的第三代纳米孔全长转录组数据对东方蜜蜂微孢子虫Nosema ceranae基因的可变剪接(alternative splicing,AS)和可变多聚腺苷酸化(alternative polyadenylation,APA)进行分析.通过Astalavista软件鉴定东方蜜蜂微孢子虫基因的AS事件类型...     

Infra-Population and -Community Dynamics of the Parasites Nosema apis and Nosema ceranae,and Consequences for Honey Bee (Apis mellifera) Hosts

Nosema spp. fungal gut parasites are among myriad possible explanations for contemporary increased mortality of western honey bees (Apis mellifera, hereafter honey bee) in many regions of the world. Invasive Nosema ceranae is particularly worrisome because some evidence suggests it has greater virulence than its congener N. apis. N. ceranae appears to have recently switched hosts from Asian honey bees (Apis cerana) and now has a nearly global distribution in honey bees, apparently displacing N. apis. We examined parasite reproduction and effects of N. apis, N. ceranae, and mixed Nosema infections on honey bee hosts in laboratory experiments. Both infection intensity and honey bee mortality were significantly greater for N. ceranae than for N. apis or mixed infections; mixed infection resulted in mortality similar to N. apis parasitism and reduced spore intensity, possibly due to inter-specific competition. This is the first long-term laboratory study to demonstrate lethal consequences of N. apis and N. ceranae and mixed Nosema parasitism in honey bees, and suggests that differences in reproduction and intra-host competition may explain apparent heterogeneous exclusion of the historic parasite by the invasive species.     

东方蜜蜂微孢子虫腺苷酸激酶的生物信息学与基因表达特征

本研究旨在解析东方蜜蜂微孢子虫Nosema ceranae的腺苷酸激酶（Adenylat kinase, ADK）NcADK的理化性质和分子特性,并检测NcADK基因在东方蜜蜂微孢子虫侵染意大利蜜蜂Apis mellifera ligustica工蜂过程中的表达特征,以期丰富NcADK相关信息,并为进一步的功能研究提供依据。利用相关生物信息学软件预测和分析NcADK的理化性质、信号肽、磷酸化位点、二级结构和三级结构。使用MEME软件和Batch CD-Search工具分别预测东方蜜蜂微孢子虫和其它7种微孢子ADK蛋白的保守基序和保守结构域。通过Mega 11.0软件基于ADK氨基酸序列构建进化树。采用RT-qPCR检测东方蜜蜂微孢子虫侵染过程中NcADK的相对表达量。结果表明,NcADK的CDS含有540个核苷酸,可编码179个氨基酸;NcADK的分子量约为20.66 kDa,分子式为C903H1488N258O278S8,脂肪系数为100.61,平均亲水系数为-0.502,等电点为6.83,含29个负电荷氨基酸和29个正电荷氨基酸;NcADK可同时定位于细胞质、线粒体、细胞核、囊泡和过氧化物酶体;NcADK含20个磷酸化位点,不含典型的信号肽;NcADK含88个α-螺旋,24条延长链,17个β-转角,50个无规则卷曲,与模板A0A0F9WEU7.1.A之间的序列同源性为100%;在东方蜜蜂微孢子虫、东方赤孢子虫Hamiltosporidium tvaerminnensis、肠脑炎微孢子虫Encephalitozoon intestinalis、按蚊微孢子虫Anncaliia algerae和角膜条孢虫Vittaforma corneae ADK中均鉴定到1个相同的结构域和5个相同的保守基序;东方蜜蜂微孢子虫与蜜蜂微孢子虫Nosema apis的ADK在进化树上聚为一支。相较于接种后1 d（1 day post inoculation, 1 dpi）,NcADK的表达量在2 dpi上调但无显著差异(P>0.05）,在3 dpi 和4 dpi均显著上调（P>0.05）。研究结果明确了NcADK的理化性质和分子特性,并揭示NcADK是潜在的亲水性蛋白和胞内蛋白,不同微孢子虫的ADK具有较强的保守性,东方蜜蜂微孢子虫及其姐妹种蜜蜂微孢子虫的ADK具有高同源性,NcADK在3 dpi和4 dpi被激活表达。