Honeybees have evolved a social immunity consisting of the cooperation of individuals to decrease disease in the hive. We identified a set of genes involved in this social immunity by analysing the brain transcriptome of highly varroa-hygienic bees, who efficiently detect and remove brood infected with the Varroa destructor mite. The function of these candidate genes does not seem to support a ...

Varroa destructor, the introduced parasite of European honey bees associated with massive colony deaths, spreads readily through populations of honey bee colonies, both managed colonies living crowded together in apiaries and wild colonies living widely dispersed in natural settings. Mites are hypothesized to spread between most managed colonies via phoretically riding forager bees when they en...

Four essential oils in two concentrations (50 and 100%) of thyme, Thymus vulgaris; Cinnamon, Cinnamomum zeylanicum; Lemon grass, Cymbopagon flexuosus; Anise, Pimpinella anisum and formic acid (65%) were used against varroa mite, Varroa destructor infesting honey bee colonies. Results show that, formic acid and the highest concentration (100%) of tested essential oils caused effective control of...

Four essential oils of Thyme (Thymus linearis), Lemon grass (Cymbopogon citratus), Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis), Mint (Mentha longifolia) and Formic Acid (65%) used at three concentrations (25, 50 and 100%) against Varroa destructor damaging honey bee Apis mellifera colonies in Honeybee Research Institute, National Agricultural Research Centre, Islamabad, Pakistan. The percentage of infest...

Varroa destructor is the most economically damaging honey bee pest, weakening colonies by simultaneously parasitizing bees and transmitting harmful viruses. Despite these impacts on honey bee health, surprisingly little is known about its fundamental molecular biology. Here, we present a Varroa protein atlas crossing all major developmental stages (egg, protonymph, deutonymph, and adult) for bo...

Varroa mites (Varroa destructor Anderson and Trueman, 2000) are becoming resistant to acaricide treatments via metabolic and/or target site desensitivity. Results of a survey of mites from the Carl Hayden AZ lab and from cooperators in five locations (Arizona, California, Florida, Maine, North Dakota) showed that some mites were susceptible to all three acaricides (Amitraz, Coumaphos, Fluvalina...

Varroa destructor is a worldwide ectoparasite of serious economic importance for beekeeping. Severe colony mortality is routine in parasitized European honey bees (EHB) colonies in Europe, Asia and North America. This study was carried out in Heredia, Costa Rica. The reproductive ability of varroa mites was determined approximately 240 h after cell sealing in worker brood from four Africanized ...

Bees are the major pollinators in natural ecosystems and agricultural production of several crops used for human consumption. However, they exposed to multiple stressors that causing a serious decline their population. We highlight one among them, Varroa destructor mite (Varroa) causes severe impacts on health honey bee colonies, transmitting variety viruses can affect survival ability individu...

In recent years the spread of the ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor has become the most serious threat to worldwide apiculture. In the model presented here we extend the bee population dynamics with mite viral epidemiology examined in an earlier paper by allowing a bee-dependent mite population size. The results of the analysis match field observations well and give a clear explanation of ho...

Social immunity forms an essential part of the defence repertoire of social insects. In response to infestation by the parasitic mite Varroa destructor and its associated viruses, honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) have developed a specific behaviour (varroa-sensitive hygiene, or VSH) that helps protect the colony from this parasite. Brood cells heavily infested with mites are uncapped, the brood k...