(Press-News.org) New research suggests that the use of an omega-3 rich oil called “ahiflower oil” can prevent damage to honey bee mitochondria caused by neonicotinoid pesticides. This research is part of an ongoing project by PhD student Hichem Menail of the Université de Moncton in New Brunswick, Canada.
“Pesticides are a major threat to insect populations and as insects are at the core of ecosystem richness and balance, any loss in insect biodiversity can lead to catastrophic outcome,” says Mr Menail, adding that pesticide-related pollinator declines are also a huge concern for food crops globally.
Imidacloprid, a neonicotinoid pesticide, is one of the world’s most commonly used insecticides. Imidacloprid was banned for outdoor use by the EU in 2018, along with two other major neonicotinoids, but their use continues around the world, including the United States of America.
“Neonicotinoids are among the most toxic and the most harmful insecticides. They are used extensively and are very persistent in the environment. Thus, it is practically impossible to prevent honey bees from being exposed and eventually poisoned,” says Mr Menail. “A more convenient strategy is to boost the immune system and the metabolism of honey bees to allow them to overcome this chemical intoxication.”
To investigate the effects of an omega-3 rich oil on long-term exposure to a neonicotinoid pesticide, three groups of bees were fed sucrose syrup that contained either the pesticide alone, the ahiflower oil alone, or both combined. After 25 days of feeding on these diets, Mr Menail and his team measured the bees’ mitochondrial respiration.
“First, our results confirmed our hypothesis about the hampering effect of imidacloprid on mitochondrial respiration,” says Mr Menail. “What was exciting and somehow surprising is the immediate beneficial effect ofahiflower oil on mitochondrial respiration. Honey bees fed with imidacloprid and ahiflower oil simultaneously had some of their respiration rates recover to the same level than the controls.”
The applications for these findings include possible food supplements that could ultimately help to decrease honey bee mortalities caused by pesticides. “We believe that this strategy is promising,” says Mr Menail. “By improving their respiration through ahiflower oil supplementation, we believethat mitochondria can increase their ATP production and thus improve overall performance of honey bees, as well as their immune system.”
END
Omega-3 oil counteracts toxic effects of pesticides in pollinators
2023-07-04
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Global efforts to reduce infectious diseases must extend beyond early childhood
2023-07-04
Global efforts to reduce infectious disease rates must have a greater focus on older children and adolescents after a shift in disease burden onto this demographic, according to a new study.
The research, led by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, has found that infectious disease control has largely focused on children aged under five, with scarce attention on young people between five and 24 years old.
Published in The Lancet, the study found three million children and adolescents die from infectious diseases every year, equivalent to one death every 10 seconds. It looked at data across 204 countries ...
Korea University Medicine study highlights a new biomarker for major depressive disorder
2023-07-04
In appearance, the human brain’s outermost layer, called the cortex, is a maze of tissue folds. The peaks or raised surfaces of these folds, called gyri, play an important role in the proper functioning of the brain. Improper gyrification—or the development of gyri—has been implicated in various neurological disorders, one of them being the debilitating and widespread mental illness, major depressive disorder (MDD). Although prior studies have shown that abnormal cortical folding patterns are associated with MDD, ...
Luísa Figueiredo was elected as an EMBO member
2023-07-04
The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) has announced today that it will award the lifetime honor of EMBO Membership to Luísa Figueiredo, group leader at the Instituto de Medicina Molecular João Lobo Antunes (iMM, Lisbon, Portugal), in recognition of the excellence of her research and outstanding achievements in the life sciences. EMBO is an international organization of more than 2000 life scientists in Europe and around the world, committed to build a European research environment where scientists can achieve their best work. Aside from Luísa Figueiredo, 68 other EMBO Members have been elected this year.
Luísa ...
Fat-free mass-based dosing: A superior antibiotic regimen for newborns
2023-07-04
Gentamicin is a common antibiotic used to treat critically ill neonates. It is water soluble and is primarily eliminated from the body through urine. For this reason, total body weight, which factors in the weight of the body’s water content, is used to determine gentamicin dosage. However, the total water content of a healthy neonate differs significantly from that of a premature baby. As such, using total body weight to calculate gentamicin dose may lead to non-optimal dose prescription. Premature babies also have weaker kidneys, which means that discrepancy in ...
How mercury emissions from industry can be greatly reduced
2023-07-04
Sulphuric acid is the world’s most used chemical. It is an important reagent used in many industries and it is used in the manufacture of everything from paper, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics to batteries, detergents and fertilisers. It is therefore a worldwide challenge that sulphuric acid often contains one of the most toxic substances – mercury. Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, have now developed a method that can reduce the levels of mercury in sulphuric acid by more than 90 per cent – even from low levels.
“Until now, there has been no viable method for purifying finished sulphuric ...
Long COVID not caused by COVID-19 immune inflammatory response, new research finds
2023-07-04
Long Covid, which affects nearly two-million people in the UK1, is not caused by an immune inflammatory reaction to COVID-19, University of Bristol-led research finds. Emerging data demonstrates that immune activation may persist for months after COVID-19.
In this new study, published in eLife today [4 July], researchers wanted to find out whether persistent immune activation and ongoing inflammation response could be the underlying cause of long Covid.
To investigate this, the Bristol team collected and analysed immune responses in blood samples from 63 patients hospitalised ...
How the ear can inform the brain of whether hearing is impaired
2023-07-04
A cochlear signal, the exact role of which has been unclear since its discovery around 70 years ago, probably gives the brain information on whether the ear is functioning normally or not. This is the conclusion of a study from Linköping University, Sweden. Its findings are an important piece of the puzzle in explaining what happens in the ear in hearing impairment caused by harmful noise, and may in the long run contribute to diagnosing noise-induced hearing injury.
When the ear is exposed to loud sounds, as at a concert or when being in a noisy environment, hearing can be temporarily impaired. Being repeatedly exposed to loud sounds may cause permanent ...
Nanosheet technology developed to boost energy storage dielectric capacitors
2023-07-04
A research group led by Professor Minoru Osada at the Institute for Materials and Systems for Sustainability (IMaSS), Nagoya University in Japan, in collaboration with NIMS, has developed a nanosheet device with the highest energy storage performance yet seen. Their results were published in Nano Letters.
Innovations in energy storage technology are vital for the effective use of renewable energy and the mass production of electric vehicles. Current energy storage technology, such as lithium-ion batteries, has long charging times ...
Older adults who remain more active have a better quality of life, study finds
2023-07-04
A reduction in the amount of time spent physically active when adults are over sixty years old is linked to lower quality of life, a Cambridge study of almost 1,500 adults has shown.
The same was also true for increases in the amount of sedentary time, such as watching TV or reading. The researchers say this highlights the need to encourage older adults to remain active.
Physical activity – particularly when it is moderate-intensity and raises your heart rate – is known to reduce the risk of a number of diseases, including heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer. The NHS recommends that adults do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity activity ...
Joint research team from Korea and Germany seeks to enhance production efficiency of fuel cells with laser machining technology
2023-07-04
Fuel cells used for vessels and airplanes are becoming increasingly lighter to improve efficiency, and this is leading to a decline in the thickness of bipolar plate. In this regard, a laser machining technology for thin bipolar plate, which can help to enhance the production efficiency and quality of fuel cells, has been developed through international R&D innovative collaboration project.
Through international joint research between Korea and Germany, the joint research team consisting of the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials (President Sang-jin Park, hereinafter referred to as KIMM), an institute under the jurisdiction of the Ministry ...