Stonebrood is a disease of honey bee larvae caused by fungi from the genus Aspergillus. As
very few studies have focused on the epidemiological aspects of stonebrood and diseased
brood may be rapidly discarded by worker bees, it is possible that a high number of cases
go undetected. Aspergillus spp. fungi are ubiquitous and associated with disease in many
insects, plants, animals and man. They are regarded as opportunistic pathogens that
require immunocompromised hosts to establish infection. Microbiological studies have
shown high prevalences of Aspergillus spp. in apiaries which occur saprophytically on hive
substrates. However, the specific conditions required for pathogenicity to develop remain
unknown. In this study, an apiary was screened to determine the prevalence and diversity
of Aspergillus spp. fungi. A series of dose–response tests were then conducted using
laboratory reared larvae to determine the pathogenicity and virulence of frequently
occurring isolates. The susceptibility of adult worker bees to Aspergillus flavus was also
tested. Three isolates (A. flavus, Aspergillus nomius and Aspergillus phoenicis) of the ten
species identified were pathogenic to honey bee larvae. Moreover, adult honey bees were
also confirmed to be highly susceptible to A. flavus infection when they ingested conidia.
Neither of the two Aspergillus fumigatus strains used in dose–response tests induced
mortality in larvae and were the least pathogenic of the isolates tested. These results
confirm the ubiquity of Aspergillus spp. in the a
Stonebrood is a disease of honey bee larvae caused by fungi from the genus Aspergillus. As
very few studies have focused on the epidemiological aspects of stonebrood and diseased
brood may be rapidly discarded by worker bees, it is possible that a high number of cases
go undetected. Aspergillus spp. fungi are ubiquitous and associated with disease in many
insects, plants, animals and man. They are regarded as opportunistic pathogens that
require immunocompromised hosts to establish infection. Microbiological studies have
shown high prevalences of Aspergillus spp. in apiaries which occur saprophytically on hive
substrates. However, the specific conditions required for pathogenicity to develop remain
unknown. In this study, an apiary was screened to determine the prevalence and diversity
of Aspergillus spp. fungi. A series of dose–response tests were then conducted using
laboratory reared larvae to determine the pathogenicity and virulence of frequently
occurring isolates. The susceptibility of adult worker bees to Aspergillus flavus was also
tested. Three isolates (A. flavus, Aspergillus nomius and Aspergillus phoenicis) of the ten
species identified were pathogenic to honey bee larvae. Moreover, adult honey bees were
also confirmed to be highly susceptible to A. flavus infection when they ingested conidia.
Neither of the two Aspergillus fumigatus strains used in dose–response tests induced
mortality in larvae and were the least pathogenic of the isolates tested. These results
confirm the ubiquity of Aspergillus spp. in the a
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