Honeybees Exposure to Natural Feed Additives: How Is the Gut Microbiota Affected?
The role of a balanced gut microbiota to maintain health and prevent diseases is largely established in humans and livestock. Conversely, in honeybees, studies on gut microbiota perturbations by external factors have started only recently. Natural methods alternative to chemical products to preserve...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-05-01
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| Series: | Microorganisms |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/9/5/1009 |
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| author | Daniele Alberoni Loredana Baffoni Chiara Braglia Francesca Gaggìa Diana Di Gioia |
| author_facet | Daniele Alberoni Loredana Baffoni Chiara Braglia Francesca Gaggìa Diana Di Gioia |
| author_sort | Daniele Alberoni |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The role of a balanced gut microbiota to maintain health and prevent diseases is largely established in humans and livestock. Conversely, in honeybees, studies on gut microbiota perturbations by external factors have started only recently. Natural methods alternative to chemical products to preserve honeybee health have been proposed, but their effect on the gut microbiota has not been examined in detail. This study aims to investigate the effect of the administration of a bacterial mixture of bifidobacteria and Lactobacillaceae and a commercial product HiveAlive<sup>TM</sup> on honeybee gut microbiota. The study was developed in 18 hives of about 2500 bees, with six replicates for each experimental condition for a total of three experimental groups. The absolute abundance of main microbial taxa was studied using qPCR and NGS. The results showed that the majority of the administered strains were detected in the gut. On the whole, great perturbations upon the administration of the bacterial mixture and the plant-based commercial product were not observed in the gut microbiota. Significant variations with respect to the untreated control were only observed for <i>Snodgrassella</i> sp. for the bacterial mixture, <i>Bartonella</i> sp. in HiveAlive<sup>TM</sup> and <i>Bombilactobacillus</i> sp. for both. Therefore, the studied approaches are respectful of the honeybee microbiota composition, conceivably without compromising the bee nutritional, social and ecological functions. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:38:55Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d1600362ff1e45b1b1bb5910f3f9b09d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2607 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:38:55Z |
| publishDate | 2021-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microorganisms |
| spelling | doaj.art-d1600362ff1e45b1b1bb5910f3f9b09d2023-11-21T18:42:46ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072021-05-0195100910.3390/microorganisms9051009Honeybees Exposure to Natural Feed Additives: How Is the Gut Microbiota Affected?Daniele Alberoni0Loredana Baffoni1Chiara Braglia2Francesca Gaggìa3Diana Di Gioia4Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), University of Bologna, Viale Fanin 44, 40127 Bologna, ItalyThe role of a balanced gut microbiota to maintain health and prevent diseases is largely established in humans and livestock. Conversely, in honeybees, studies on gut microbiota perturbations by external factors have started only recently. Natural methods alternative to chemical products to preserve honeybee health have been proposed, but their effect on the gut microbiota has not been examined in detail. This study aims to investigate the effect of the administration of a bacterial mixture of bifidobacteria and Lactobacillaceae and a commercial product HiveAlive<sup>TM</sup> on honeybee gut microbiota. The study was developed in 18 hives of about 2500 bees, with six replicates for each experimental condition for a total of three experimental groups. The absolute abundance of main microbial taxa was studied using qPCR and NGS. The results showed that the majority of the administered strains were detected in the gut. On the whole, great perturbations upon the administration of the bacterial mixture and the plant-based commercial product were not observed in the gut microbiota. Significant variations with respect to the untreated control were only observed for <i>Snodgrassella</i> sp. for the bacterial mixture, <i>Bartonella</i> sp. in HiveAlive<sup>TM</sup> and <i>Bombilactobacillus</i> sp. for both. Therefore, the studied approaches are respectful of the honeybee microbiota composition, conceivably without compromising the bee nutritional, social and ecological functions.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/9/5/1009honeybeegut microbiotabacteriaprobioticsthymoloceanic algae |
| spellingShingle | Daniele Alberoni Loredana Baffoni Chiara Braglia Francesca Gaggìa Diana Di Gioia Honeybees Exposure to Natural Feed Additives: How Is the Gut Microbiota Affected? Microorganisms honeybee gut microbiota bacteria probiotics thymol oceanic algae |
| title | Honeybees Exposure to Natural Feed Additives: How Is the Gut Microbiota Affected? |
| title_full | Honeybees Exposure to Natural Feed Additives: How Is the Gut Microbiota Affected? |
| title_fullStr | Honeybees Exposure to Natural Feed Additives: How Is the Gut Microbiota Affected? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Honeybees Exposure to Natural Feed Additives: How Is the Gut Microbiota Affected? |
| title_short | Honeybees Exposure to Natural Feed Additives: How Is the Gut Microbiota Affected? |
| title_sort | honeybees exposure to natural feed additives how is the gut microbiota affected |
| topic | honeybee gut microbiota bacteria probiotics thymol oceanic algae |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/9/5/1009 |
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