Although the molecular mechanisms involved in learning and memory in insects have been studied intensively, the intracellular signaling mechanisms involved in early memory formation are not fully understood. We previously demonstrated that phospholipase C epsilon (PLCe), whose product is involved in calcium signaling, is almost selectively expressed in the mushroom bodies, a brain structure imp...

The health and vigour of honeybee colonies are threatened by numerous parasites (such as Varroa destructor and Nosema spp.) and pathogens, including viruses, bacteria, protozoa. Among honeybee pathogens, viruses are one of the major threats to the health and well-being of honeybees and cause serious concern for researchers and beekeepers. To tone down the threats posed by these invasive organis...

Contrary to native predators, which have co-evolved with their prey, alien predators often benefit from native prey naïveté. Vespa velutina, a honeybee predator originating from Eastern China, was introduced into France just before 2004. The present study, based on video recordings of two beehives at an early stage of the invasion process, intends to analyse the alien hornet hunting behaviour o...

2.1: Abstract The NR1 subunit homologue of the NMDA glutamate receptor was characterized in the honeybee. Sequence analysis suggests that the honeybee NMDA receptor may be act as a coincidence detector molecule similar to its counterpart in the mammalian nervous system. The localization of the expression sites at the mRNA and the protein levels indicates that the receptor is expressed throughou...

Although pollinator declines are a global biodiversity threat, the demography of the western honeybee (Apis mellifera) has not been considered by conservationists because it is biased by the activity of beekeepers. To fill this gap in pollinator decline censuses and to provide a broad picture of the current status of honeybees across their natural range, we used microsatellite genetic markers t...

Propolis is known as honeybee chemical defence against infections and parasites. Its chemical composition is variable and depends on the specificity of the local flora. However, there are no data concerning the relationship between propolis chemical composition and honeybee colony health. We tried to answer this question, studying the chemical composition of propolis of bee colonies from an api...

We present a gridded genomic library of the honey-bee (Apis mellifera) for comparative and basic genetic study of the honeybee genome. The library will be established as a "Reference Library" system, and clones as well as data will be shared with the entire scientific community. This will accelerate the molecular level of honeybee genetics, combining the efforts of different laboratories. Becau...

Honeybee males produce ejaculates consisting of large numbers of high quality sperm. Because queens never re-mate after a single mating episode early in life, sperm are stored in a specialised organ for years but the proximate mechanisms underlying this key physiological adaptation are unknown. We quantified energy metabolism in honeybee sperm and show that the glycolytic metabolite glyceraldeh...

Age structure is an important feature of the division of labour within honeybee colonies, but its effects on colony dynamics have rarely been explored. We present a model of a honeybee colony that incorporates this key feature, and use this model to explore the effects of both winter and disease on the fate of the colony. The model offers a novel explanation for the frequently observed phenomen...