Influence of chronic exposure to thiamethoxam and chronic bee paralysis virus on winter honey bees

PLoS One. 2019 Aug 15;14(8):e0220703. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0220703. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

Co-exposure to pesticides and viruses is likely to occur in honey bee colonies. Pesticides can be present in pollen, nectar, and persist in stored food (honey and bee bread), and viruses can be highly prevalent in honey bee colonies. Therefore, the present study describes the influence of chronic co-exposure to thiamethoxam and Chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV) on bee survival, virus loads, expression level of immune and detoxication genes, and pesticide metabolism Experiments were performed on honey bees collected from a winter apiary with reduced viral contaminations. No synergistic effect of co-exposure was observed on bee survival, nor on the ability of bees to metabolise the pesticide into clothianidin. However, we found that co-exposure caused an increase in CBPV loads that reached the viral levels usually found in overt infections. The effect of co-exposure on CBPV replication was associated with down-regulation of vitellogenin and dorsal-1a gene transcription. Nevertheless, the observed effects might be different to those occurring in spring or summer bees, which are more likelyco-exposed to thiamethoxam and CBPV and exhibit a different physiology.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Bees / drug effects*
  • Bees / virology
  • Insecticides / pharmacology*
  • Thiamethoxam / pharmacology*
  • Virus Diseases / veterinary*

Substances

  • Insecticides
  • Thiamethoxam

Grants and funding

This project was funded and supported by ANSES via the tax on sales of plant protection products. The proceeds of this tax are assigned to ANSES to finance the establishment of the system for monitoring the adverse effects of plant protection products, called ‘phytopharmacovigilance’ (PPV), established by the French Act on the future of agriculture of 13 October 2014. MC was co-funded by an INRA/ANSES scholarship. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.