This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Martín-Hernández, R.
Right arrow Articles by Higes, M.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Martín-Hernández, R.
Right arrow Articles by Higes, M.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Martín-Hernández, R.
Right arrow Articles by Higes, M.

Next Article 

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, October 2007, p. 6331-6338, Vol. 73, No. 20
0099-2240/07/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.00270-07
Copyright © 2007, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Outcome of Colonization of Apis mellifera by Nosema ceranae{triangledown}

Raquel Martín-Hernández,1* Aránzazu Meana,2 Lourdes Prieto,3 Amparo Martínez Salvador,4 Encarna Garrido-Bailón,1 and Mariano Higes1

Centro Apicola Regional, Dirección General de la Producción Agropecuaria, Consejería de Agricultura, Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha, 19180 Marchamalo, Spain,1 Departamento de Sanidad Animal, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain,2 Comisaría General de la Policía Científica, DNA Laboratory, Madrid, Spain,3 Departamento de Epidemiología, Salud Animal y Ganadería (Tragsega), 28006 Madrid, Spain4

Received 2 February 2007/ Accepted 27 July 2007

A multiplex PCR-based method, in which two small-subunit rRNA regions are simultaneously amplified in a single reaction, was designed for parallel detection of honeybee microsporidians (Nosema apis and Nosema ceranae). Each of two pairs of primers exclusively amplified the 16S rRNA targeted gene of a specific microsporidian. The multiplex PCR assay was useful for specific detection of the two species of microsporidians related to bee nosemosis, not only in purified spores but also in honeybee homogenates and in naturally infected bees. The multiplex PCR assay was also able to detect coinfections by the two species. Screening of bee samples from Spain, Switzerland, France, and Germany using the PCR technique revealed a greater presence of N. ceranae than of N. apis in Europe, although both species are widely distributed. From the year 2000 onward, statistically significant differences have been found in the proportions of Nosema spp. spore-positive samples collected between and within years. In the first period examined (1999 to 2002), the smallest number of samples diagnosed as Nosema positive was found during the summer months, showing clear seasonality in the diagnosis, which is characteristic of N. apis. From 2003 onward a change in the tendency resulted in an increase in Nosema-positive samples in all months until 2005, when a total absence of seasonality was detected. A significant causative association between the presence of N. ceranae and hive depopulation clearly indicates that the colonization of Apis mellifera by N. ceranae is related to bee losses.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Regional Apicultural Center, Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha, 19180 Marchamalo, Spain. Phone: 34 949 250 026. Fax: 34 949 250 176. E-mail: rmhernandez{at}jccm.es

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 3 August 2007.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, October 2007, p. 6331-6338, Vol. 73, No. 20
0099-2240/07/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.00270-07
Copyright © 2007, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Fenoy, S., Rueda, C., Higes, M., Martin-Hernandez, R., del Aguila, C. (2009). High-Level Resistance of Nosema ceranae, a Parasite of the Honeybee, to Temperature and Desiccation. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75: 6886-6889 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Martin-Hernandez, R., Meana, A., Garcia-Palencia, P., Marin, P., Botias, C., Garrido-Bailon, E., Barrios, L., Higes, M. (2009). Effect of Temperature on the Biotic Potential of Honeybee Microsporidia. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 75: 2554-2557 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology.   For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»