(Press-News.org) Researchers in Hawaii and the UK report that the parasitic 'Varroa' mite has caused the Deformed Wing Virus (DWV) to proliferate in honey bee colonies. This association is now thought to contribute to the world-wide spread and probable death of millions of honey bee colonies. The current monetary value of honey bees as commercial pollinators in the United States alone is estimated at about $15-$20 billion annually
The research conducted in Hawaii by researchers at Sheffield University, the Marine Biological Association, FERA and University of Hawaii, and reported in the journal Science (8 June 2012), showed how Varroa caused DWV – a known viral pathogen – to increase its frequency among honey bee colonies from 10% to 100%. This change was accompanied by a million-fold increase in the number of virus particles infecting each honey bee and a massive reduction in viral strain diversity leading to the emergence of a single 'virulent' DWV strain. As the mite and new virulent strain of virus becomes established across the Hawaiian islands the new emerging viral landscape will mirror that found across the rest of the world where Varroa is now established.
This ability of a mite to permanently alter the honey bee viral landscape may by a key factor in the recent colony collapse disorder (CCD) and over-wintering colony losses (OCL) as the virulent pathogen strain remains even after the mites are removed.
###
Notes for editors
Honey bee populations can experience spectacular crashes. The most recent being the well publicized colony collapse disorder (CCD), but its cause remains a mystery.
Varroa is a large mite (~1.5mm x1mm) that lives on the surface of honeybees, feeding off their blood and reproducing on their developing brood.
The arrival and spread of Varroa across the Hawaiian Islands offered a unique opportunity during 2009 and 2010 to track the evolutionary change in the honey bee virus landscape.
The mite facilitates the spread of viruses by acting as a viral reservoir and incubator, although four bee viruses often associated with CCD (Kashmir bee, Slow paralysis, Acute bee paralysis and Israeli acute paralysis virus) were not influenced by Varroa in Hawaii.
One bee virus, the Deformed Wing Virus (DWV), has been implicated in colony losses, for example over wintering colony losses (OCL), as it appears to become ubiquitous wherever Varroa occurs.
DWV is naturally transmitted between bees via feeding or during mating. However, the mites introduce DWV directly into the bee's blood while feeding so creating a new viral transmission route that bypasses many of the bees' natural defensive barriers.
DWV is a tiny virus similar in structure to polio or foot and mouth virus and has only 9 genes.
DWV infected bees may display the classic wing deformity, but the vast majority of infected bees do not show any morphological signs of infection.
The dominant strain found on Oahu and now Big Island is identical to that found in other areas of the world indicating that the situation on Hawaii is a mirror to what has happened right across the globe.
Based on comparisons between the 2009 and 2010 the changes in viral diversity associated with Varroa appear stable and persist even after the parasite levels are reduced via mite treatments.
Highly contagious honey bee virus transmitted by mites
2012-06-08
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
New property of flames sparks advances in technology
2012-06-08
Chemists at UCL have discovered a new property of flames, which allows them to control reactions at a solid surface in a flame and opens up a whole new field of chemical innovation.
Published in the journal Angewandte Chemie, authors of the new study have discovered their previous understanding of how flames interact with a solid surface was mistaken. For the first time, they have demonstrated that a particular type of chemistry, called redox chemistry, can be accurately controlled at the surface.
This finding has wide implications for future technology, for example ...
Will Massachusetts Tax Marijuana?
2012-06-08
A controversial bill before the legislature has reignited the debate about marijuana use and the nature of its availability in communities. As written, the bill would legalize, regulate and tax the production and sale of marijuana in Massachusetts. House Bill 1371 goes beyond the bill recycled from previous sessions to legalize marijuana for medical purposes. Instead, it would allow citizens to legally grow and smoke marijuana, but would authorize the Commonwealth to tax it as it does tobacco.
HB 1371 also provides for the creation of a seven-member "Cannabis Control ...
Kentucky tobacco farmers provide model for deregulation, increased production and profit
2012-06-08
URBANA – If someone agreed to buy your home as is a year from now, you'd likely cancel the kitchen remodel. According to a study at the University of Illinois, Kentucky tobacco farmers adopted that same logic when the tobacco companies announced the buyout – also known as the Tobacco Transition Act of 2004 that ended a 66-year-old federal farm program. However, the immediate drop in productivity was followed by startling changes. Over the 10-year period of the study, the number of farms declined from just over 40,000 farms to just over 8,500 farms – but productivity increased ...
New discovery provides insight on long-standing pregnancy mystery
2012-06-08
NEW YORK, June 7, 2012 – Researchers at NYU School of Medicine have made an important discovery that partially answers the long-standing question of why a mother's immune system does not reject a developing fetus as foreign tissue.
"Our manuscript addresses a fundamental question in the fields of transplantation immunology and reproductive biology, namely, how do the fetus and placenta, which express antigens that are disparate from the mother, avoid being rejected by the maternal immune system during pregnancy?" explained lead investigator Adrian Erlebacher, MD, PhD, ...
Widow of Active-Duty Marine Killed by Police Officers Will Go to Trial
2012-06-08
On November 16, 2006, Robert Medina, a 22-year-old, active-duty marine got into an argument with his wife, left his house and started driving down the I-5 freeway.
Police officers from the California Highway Patrol noticed Medina driving slowly and weaving in his own lane. What followed was a slow-speed chase involving 18 officers and 13 police cars that ended in Medina's untimely death, after police officers shot him 37 times.
Medina suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and had recently come home from a tour of duty in Iraq. Post-traumatic stress disorder, ...
Steel-strength plastics -- and green, too!
2012-06-08
As landfills overflow with discarded plastics, scientists have been working to produce a biodegradable alternative that will reduce pollution. Now a Tel Aviv University researcher is giving the quest for environmentally friendly plastics an entirely new dimension — by making them tougher than ever before.
Prof. Moshe Kol of TAU's School of Chemistry is developing a super-strength polypropylene — one of the world's most commonly used plastics — that has the potential to replace steel and other materials used in everyday products. This could have a long-term impact on ...
Surprising Correlation Between Fatal and Nonfatal Workplace Injury Rates
2012-06-08
A new RAND Corporation study found an unexpected link between the reported numbers of nonfatal and fatal injuries among construction workers. The findings show that states with low fatality rates seem to report higher numbers of nonfatal injuries. Conversely, states with higher rates of fatal injuries report lower numbers of nonfatal injuries.
The study compared fatal and nonfatal construction-site injury reports across all 50 states.
Researchers chose to focus on the construction industry because it typically accounts for more fatal work accidents than any other ...
Inside a child's mind -- Research findings from Psychological Science
2012-06-08
Developmental psychology researchers have long known that children aren't simply mini-adults – their minds and brains work in fundamentally different ways. Exploring those differences can help us understand how kids think and behave and can provide insights into how the mind and brain develop and change over time. Here is some of the latest research involving children from Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
Who is Good At This Game? Linking an Activity to a Social Category Undermines Children's Achievement
Can linking an activity ...
Scientists identify first gene in programmed axon degeneration
2012-06-08
WORCESTER, MA – Degeneration of the axon and synapse, the slender projection through which neurons transmit electrical impulses to neighboring cells, is a hallmark of some of the most crippling neurodegenerative and brain diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Huntington's disease and peripheral neuropathy. Scientists have worked for decades to understand axonal degeneration and its relation to these diseases. Now, researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School are the first to describe a gene – dSarm/Sarm1 – responsible for actively promoting ...
Coal Ash Debate Fires Up Lawmakers in Washington
2012-06-08
Every year, power plants in the U.S. produce about 140 million tons of coal ash. The substance, otherwise known as "fly ash," is an inorganic byproduct of burning coal, and is usually disposed of in landfills and settlement ponds.
West Virginia is home to more than 20 coal ash storage sites; all of them pose a risk of exposure to hazardous substances. Yet, the debate over what to do with fly ash is not as open and closed as it may appear at first glance, and lawmakers in Washington are struggling to find common ground on the issue.
Benefits and Risks of ...