TY - JOUR A1 - McMahon, Dino Peter A1 - Natsopoulou, M. E. A1 - Doublet, V. A1 - Fürst, M. A1 - Weging, S. A1 - Brown, M. J. F. A1 - Gogol-Döring, A. A1 - Paxton, R. J. T1 - Elevated virulence of an emerging viral genotype as a driver of honeybee loss N2 - Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) have contributed significantly to the current biodiversity crisis, leading to widespread epidemics and population loss. Owing to genetic variation in pathogen virulence, a complete understanding of species decline requires the accurate identification and characterization of EIDs. We explore this issue in the Western honeybee, where increasing mortality of populations in the Northern Hemisphere has caused major concern. Specifically, we investigate the importance of genetic identity of the main suspect in mortality, deformed wing virus (DWV), in driving honeybee loss. Using laboratory experiments and a systematic field survey, we demonstrate that an emerging DWV genotype (DWV-B) is more virulent than the established DWV genotype (DWV-A) and is widespread in the landscape. Furthermore, we show in a simple model that colonies infected with DWV-B collapse sooner than colonies infected with DWV-A. We also identify potential for rapid DWV evolution by revealing extensive genome-wide recombination in vivo. The emergence of DWV-B in naive honeybee populations, including via recombination with DWV-A, could be of significant ecological and economic importance. Our findings emphasize that knowledge of pathogen genetic identity and diversity is critical to understanding drivers of species decline. KW - Virulence KW - Emerging infectious disease KW - Pollinator KW - Decline PY - 2016 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-368030 DO - https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2016.0811 SN - 0962-8452 VL - 283 IS - 1833 SP - Article 0811, 1 EP - 8 AN - OPUS4-36803 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Natsopoulou, M.E. A1 - McMahon, Dino Peter A1 - Paxton, R.J. T1 - Parasites modulate within-colony activity and accelerate the temporal polyethism schedule of a social insect, the honey bee N2 - Task allocation in social insect colonies is generally organised into an age-related division of labour, termed the temporal polyethism schedule, which may in part have evolved to reduce infection of the colony's brood by pests and pathogens. The temporal polyethism schedule is sensitive to colony perturbations that may lead to adaptive changes in task allocation, maintaining colony homeostasis. Though social insects can be infected by a range of parasites, little is known of how these parasites impact within-colony behaviour and the temporal polyethism schedule. We use honey bees (Apis mellifera) experimentally infected by two of their emerging pathogens, Deformed wing virus (DWV), which is relatively understudied concerning its behavioural impact on its host, and the exotic microsporidian Nosema ceranae. We examined parasite effects on host temporal polyethism and patterns of activity within the colony. We found that pathogens accelerated the temporal polyethism schedule, but without reducing host behavioural repertoire. Infected hosts exhibited increased hyperactivity, allocating more time to self-grooming and foraging-related tasks. The strength of behavioural alterations we observed was found to be pathogen specific; behavioural modifications were more pronounced in virus-treated hosts versus N. ceranae-treated hosts, with potential benefits for the colony in terms of reducing within-colony transmission. Investigating the effects of multiple pathogens on behavioural patterns of social insects could play a crucial role in understanding pathogen spread within a colony and their effects on colony social organisation. KW - Host KW - Pathogen KW - Multiple infection KW - Apis mellifera KW - Nosema ceranae KW - Deformed wing virus PY - 2016 DO - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-015-2019-5 SN - 0340-5443 SN - 1432-0762 VL - 70 IS - 7 SP - 1019 EP - 1031 PB - Springer CY - Berlin ; Heidelberg [u.a.] AN - OPUS4-34738 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -