Hemocytes and the (prophenol-) phenoloxidase system constitute the immediate innate immune system in insects. These components of insect immunity are present at any post-embryonic life stage without previous infection. ...

SIGNIFICANCE: • The laying workers of the Cape honey bee continue to negatively affect the South African beekeeping industry, with more losses suffered in the northern regions of the country. • The reproductive parasites ...

Over-consuming amino acids is associated with reduced survival in many species, including honeybees. The mechanisms responsible for this are unclear but one possibility is that excessive intake of amino acids increases ...

Apiculture has a well-recognized role in enhancing food security by pollination services around the globe. Besides, apiculture is an extremely valuable income-generating and job-creating activity for millions of men, women, ...

Cohesion in social insect colonies is maintained by use of chemical signals produced by the queen, workers, and brood. In honey bees in particular, signals from the queen and brood are crucial for the regulation of ...

It was determined that 300 Cape workers, Apis mellifera capensis (collected from each of 6 colonies at each of 5 localities about 200 km apart along an 800 km transect in the Western and Eastern Cape Provinces, South ...

Secretions from mandibular glands (MGs) have important caste-specific functions that are associated with the social evolution of honey bees. To gain insights into the molecular architecture underlying these caste ...

Recent studies have emphasized the role of the western honey bee, Apis mellifera, as a managed agricultural species worldwide, but also as a potential threat to endangered wild pollinators. This has resulted in the suggestion ...

The nutritional needs of bees are supplied by nectar carbohydrates and by protein and other nutrients in pollen but little is known of how bees achieve nutritional balance. Using newly emerged caged worker honeybees (Apis ...

Insecticides are thought to be among the major factors contributing to current declines in bee populations. However, detoxification mechanisms in healthy, unstressed honey bees are poorly characterised. Alkaloids are ...