Resumo

MENDOZA, Yamandú; SANTOS, Estela; ANTUNEZ, Karina  e  INVERNIZZI, Ciro. Bidirectional selection of Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera: Apidae) for increased resistance and susceptibility to nosemosis. Rev. Soc. Entomol. Argent. [online]. 2014, vol.73, n.1-2, pp.65-69. ISSN 0373-5680.

Nosemosis is a disease caused by microsporidia Nosema apis and Nosema ceranae, that affects the digestive functions of honey bees. In Uruguay, the only species detected is N. ceranae. In order to determine whether the infection by N. ceranae in colonies has a genetic component, a bidirectional selection was carried out, selecting resistant and susceptible colonies without parental control. The experiment started with 130 colonies located in a Eucalyptus grandis plantation, in autumn 2009, and followed with 30 and 63 colonies during 2010 and 2011. N. ceranae infection level of the colonies was determined as 1) the percentage of infected forager bees and 2) the average number of spores per field in 10 fields. The obtained results indicated that the selection response was limited; only in the first generation, bees from resistant colonies presented fewer spore number than bees from the susceptible line (19.6 ± 5.8 and 26.8 ± 10.4, respectively, W = 41.5, P = .03). These results suggest that resistance to N. ceranae is strongly affected by the environment. Future efforts to increase the resistance of bees to N. ceranae through genetic improvement should include parental control.

Palavras-chave : Honey bees; Nosema ceranae; Diseases; Breeding; Uruguay.

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