Social microbiota and social gland gene expression of worker honey bees by age and climate.

ABSTRACT: Winter forage dearth is a major contributor to honey bee colony loss and can influence disease susceptibility. Honey bees possess a secretory head gland that interfaces with the social environment on many levels. During winter or forage dearth, colonies produce a long-lived (diutinus) worker phenotype that survives until environmental conditions improve. We used a known-age worker cohort to investigate microbiome integrity and social gene expression of workers in early and late winter. We provide additional context by contrasting host-microbial interactions from warm outdoor and cold indoor environments. Our results provide novel evidence that social immune gene expression is associated with worker longevity, and highlight the midgut as a target of opportunistic disease during winter. Host

SUBMITTER: Anderson KE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9226125 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature