Pollen extracts and constituent sugars increase growth of a trypanosomatid parasite of bumble bees
Phytochemicals produced by plants, including at flowers, function in protection against plant diseases, and have a long history of use against trypanosomatid infection. Floral nectar and pollen, the sole food sources for many species of insect pollinators, contain phytochemicals that have been shown...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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PeerJ Inc.
2017-05-01
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| Series: | PeerJ |
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| Online Access: | https://peerj.com/articles/3297.pdf |
| _version_ | 1827609176022450176 |
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| author | Evan C. Palmer-Young Lucy Thursfield |
| author_facet | Evan C. Palmer-Young Lucy Thursfield |
| author_sort | Evan C. Palmer-Young |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Phytochemicals produced by plants, including at flowers, function in protection against plant diseases, and have a long history of use against trypanosomatid infection. Floral nectar and pollen, the sole food sources for many species of insect pollinators, contain phytochemicals that have been shown to reduce trypanosomatid infection in bumble and honey bees when fed as isolated compounds. Nectar and pollen, however, consist of phytochemical mixtures, which can have greater antimicrobial activity than do single compounds. This study tested the hypothesis that pollen extracts would inhibit parasite growth. Extracts of six different pollens were tested for direct inhibitory activity against cell cultures of the bumble bee trypanosomatid gut parasite Crithidia bombi. Surprisingly, pollen extracts increased parasite growth rather than inhibiting it. Pollen extracts contained high concentrations of sugars, mainly the monosaccharides glucose and fructose. Experimental manipulations of growth media showed that supplemental monosaccharides (glucose and fructose) increased maximum cell density, while a common floral phytochemical (caffeic acid) with inhibitory activity against other trypanosomatids had only weak inhibitory effects on Crithidia bombi. These results indicate that, although pollen is essential for bees and other pollinators, pollen may promote growth of intestinal parasites that are uninhibited by pollen phytochemicals and, as a result, can benefit from the nutrients that pollen provides. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T07:27:35Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c0791759efa744b98fe80cfe30f4d135 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2167-8359 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T07:27:35Z |
| publishDate | 2017-05-01 |
| publisher | PeerJ Inc. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PeerJ |
| spelling | doaj.art-c0791759efa744b98fe80cfe30f4d1352023-12-03T06:52:21ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592017-05-015e329710.7717/peerj.3297Pollen extracts and constituent sugars increase growth of a trypanosomatid parasite of bumble beesEvan C. Palmer-Young0Lucy Thursfield1Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Amherst, MA, United States of AmericaRoyal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, United KingdomPhytochemicals produced by plants, including at flowers, function in protection against plant diseases, and have a long history of use against trypanosomatid infection. Floral nectar and pollen, the sole food sources for many species of insect pollinators, contain phytochemicals that have been shown to reduce trypanosomatid infection in bumble and honey bees when fed as isolated compounds. Nectar and pollen, however, consist of phytochemical mixtures, which can have greater antimicrobial activity than do single compounds. This study tested the hypothesis that pollen extracts would inhibit parasite growth. Extracts of six different pollens were tested for direct inhibitory activity against cell cultures of the bumble bee trypanosomatid gut parasite Crithidia bombi. Surprisingly, pollen extracts increased parasite growth rather than inhibiting it. Pollen extracts contained high concentrations of sugars, mainly the monosaccharides glucose and fructose. Experimental manipulations of growth media showed that supplemental monosaccharides (glucose and fructose) increased maximum cell density, while a common floral phytochemical (caffeic acid) with inhibitory activity against other trypanosomatids had only weak inhibitory effects on Crithidia bombi. These results indicate that, although pollen is essential for bees and other pollinators, pollen may promote growth of intestinal parasites that are uninhibited by pollen phytochemicals and, as a result, can benefit from the nutrients that pollen provides.https://peerj.com/articles/3297.pdfBombusPlant secondary metabolitesParasitePollinator declineCrithidiaNutrient limitation |
| spellingShingle | Evan C. Palmer-Young Lucy Thursfield Pollen extracts and constituent sugars increase growth of a trypanosomatid parasite of bumble bees PeerJ Bombus Plant secondary metabolites Parasite Pollinator decline Crithidia Nutrient limitation |
| title | Pollen extracts and constituent sugars increase growth of a trypanosomatid parasite of bumble bees |
| title_full | Pollen extracts and constituent sugars increase growth of a trypanosomatid parasite of bumble bees |
| title_fullStr | Pollen extracts and constituent sugars increase growth of a trypanosomatid parasite of bumble bees |
| title_full_unstemmed | Pollen extracts and constituent sugars increase growth of a trypanosomatid parasite of bumble bees |
| title_short | Pollen extracts and constituent sugars increase growth of a trypanosomatid parasite of bumble bees |
| title_sort | pollen extracts and constituent sugars increase growth of a trypanosomatid parasite of bumble bees |
| topic | Bombus Plant secondary metabolites Parasite Pollinator decline Crithidia Nutrient limitation |
| url | https://peerj.com/articles/3297.pdf |
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