Year: 2015
Type: review
Abstract: Honey bees play an important agricultural and ecological role as pollinators of numerous agricultural crops and other plant species. Therefore, investigating the factors associated with high annual losses of honey bee colonies in the US is an important and active area of research. Pathogen incidence and abundance correlate with Colony Collapse Disorder- (CCD-) affected colonies in the US and colony losses in the US and in some European countries. Honey bees are readily infected by single-stranded positive sense RNA viruses. Largely dependent on the host immune response, virus infections can either remain asymptomatic or result in deformities, paralysis, or death of adults or larvae. RNA interference (RNAi) is an important antiviral defense mechanism in insects, including honey bees. Herein, we review the role of RNAi in honey bee antiviral defense and highlight some parallels between insect and mammalian immune systems. A more thorough understanding of the role of pathogens on honey bee health and the immune mechanisms bees utilize to combat infectious agents may lead to the development of strategies that enhance honey bee health and result in the discovery of additional mechanisms of immunity in metazoans.
Source: Journal of Immunology Research
DOI: 10.1155/2015/941897
Authors: Laura M. Brutscher, Michelle L. Flenniken
Institution: Montana State University
Language: English
Subfield: Immunology
Field: Immunology and Microbiology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,830
Funders: National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Montana State University, Project Apis m., Montana Department of Agriculture, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, National Institute of General Medical Sciences, Office of Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research
OpenAlex ID: W2214659665