A Field Trial to Demonstrate the Potential of a Vitamin B Diet Supplement in Reducing Oxidative Stress and Improving Hygienic and Grooming Behaviors in Honey Bees
The honey bee is an important insect pollinator that provides critical pollination services for natural and agricultural systems worldwide. However, inadequate food weakens honey bee colonies, making them vulnerable to various biotic and abiotic factors. In this study, we examined the impact of supp...
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2025-01-01
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| Series: | Insects |
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| author | Nemanja M. Jovanovic Uros Glavinic Jevrosima Stevanovic Marko Ristanic Branislav Vejnovic Slobodan Dolasevic Zoran Stanimirovic |
| author_facet | Nemanja M. Jovanovic Uros Glavinic Jevrosima Stevanovic Marko Ristanic Branislav Vejnovic Slobodan Dolasevic Zoran Stanimirovic |
| author_sort | Nemanja M. Jovanovic |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The honey bee is an important insect pollinator that provides critical pollination services for natural and agricultural systems worldwide. However, inadequate food weakens honey bee colonies, making them vulnerable to various biotic and abiotic factors. In this study, we examined the impact of supplementary feeding on bees’ genes for antioxidative enzymes and vitellogenin, oxidative stress parameters, and the hygienic and grooming behavior. The colonies were divided into two experimental groups (with ten hives each): a treatment group that received the plant-based supplement and a control group. The experiment was conducted in two seasons, spring and summer. After the treatment, in both seasons, all the monitored parameters in the treatment group differed from those in the control group. The expression levels of genes for antioxidative enzymes were significantly lower, but the vitellogenin gene transcript level was significantly higher. Values of oxidative stress parameters were significantly lower. The levels of hygienic and grooming behavior were significantly higher. Therefore, our field study indicates that the tested supplement exerted beneficial effects on bees, reflected in reduced oxidative stress and enhanced hygienic and grooming behavior. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c48630c4298249558beffea2d85f70ad |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2075-4450 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Insects |
| spelling | doaj-art-c48630c4298249558beffea2d85f70ad2025-01-24T13:35:40ZengMDPI AGInsects2075-44502025-01-011613610.3390/insects16010036A Field Trial to Demonstrate the Potential of a Vitamin B Diet Supplement in Reducing Oxidative Stress and Improving Hygienic and Grooming Behaviors in Honey BeesNemanja M. Jovanovic0Uros Glavinic1Jevrosima Stevanovic2Marko Ristanic3Branislav Vejnovic4Slobodan Dolasevic5Zoran Stanimirovic6Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bul. oslobodjenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, SerbiaDepartment of Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bul. oslobodjenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, SerbiaDepartment of Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bul. oslobodjenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, SerbiaDepartment of Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bul. oslobodjenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, SerbiaDepartment of Economics and Statistics, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bul. oslobodjenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, SerbiaInstitute for Animal Husbandry, Zemun, 11080 Belgrade, SerbiaDepartment of Biology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade, Bul. oslobodjenja 18, 11000 Belgrade, SerbiaThe honey bee is an important insect pollinator that provides critical pollination services for natural and agricultural systems worldwide. However, inadequate food weakens honey bee colonies, making them vulnerable to various biotic and abiotic factors. In this study, we examined the impact of supplementary feeding on bees’ genes for antioxidative enzymes and vitellogenin, oxidative stress parameters, and the hygienic and grooming behavior. The colonies were divided into two experimental groups (with ten hives each): a treatment group that received the plant-based supplement and a control group. The experiment was conducted in two seasons, spring and summer. After the treatment, in both seasons, all the monitored parameters in the treatment group differed from those in the control group. The expression levels of genes for antioxidative enzymes were significantly lower, but the vitellogenin gene transcript level was significantly higher. Values of oxidative stress parameters were significantly lower. The levels of hygienic and grooming behavior were significantly higher. Therefore, our field study indicates that the tested supplement exerted beneficial effects on bees, reflected in reduced oxidative stress and enhanced hygienic and grooming behavior.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/16/1/36diet supplementhygienic behaviorhoney beegrooming behavioroxidative stress |
| spellingShingle | Nemanja M. Jovanovic Uros Glavinic Jevrosima Stevanovic Marko Ristanic Branislav Vejnovic Slobodan Dolasevic Zoran Stanimirovic A Field Trial to Demonstrate the Potential of a Vitamin B Diet Supplement in Reducing Oxidative Stress and Improving Hygienic and Grooming Behaviors in Honey Bees Insects diet supplement hygienic behavior honey bee grooming behavior oxidative stress |
| title | A Field Trial to Demonstrate the Potential of a Vitamin B Diet Supplement in Reducing Oxidative Stress and Improving Hygienic and Grooming Behaviors in Honey Bees |
| title_full | A Field Trial to Demonstrate the Potential of a Vitamin B Diet Supplement in Reducing Oxidative Stress and Improving Hygienic and Grooming Behaviors in Honey Bees |
| title_fullStr | A Field Trial to Demonstrate the Potential of a Vitamin B Diet Supplement in Reducing Oxidative Stress and Improving Hygienic and Grooming Behaviors in Honey Bees |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Field Trial to Demonstrate the Potential of a Vitamin B Diet Supplement in Reducing Oxidative Stress and Improving Hygienic and Grooming Behaviors in Honey Bees |
| title_short | A Field Trial to Demonstrate the Potential of a Vitamin B Diet Supplement in Reducing Oxidative Stress and Improving Hygienic and Grooming Behaviors in Honey Bees |
| title_sort | field trial to demonstrate the potential of a vitamin b diet supplement in reducing oxidative stress and improving hygienic and grooming behaviors in honey bees |
| topic | diet supplement hygienic behavior honey bee grooming behavior oxidative stress |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/16/1/36 |
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