Musila Jan, Přidal Antonín
Department of Zoology, Fishery, Hydrobiology and Apidology, Faculty of AgriSciences, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1, 613 00 Brno, Czech Republic.
Animals (Basel). 2024 Feb 4;14(3):512. doi: 10.3390/ani14030512.
A honeybee colony, as a super-organism, is regulated through age-polyethism. A honeybee worker's age is considered by means of a chronological and biological approach. The biological age is estimated with physiologically related biological markers, e.g., total hemolymph protein content (THP) and hypopharyngeal gland size (HGs), which also vary seasonally. Contemporary insights into the age-related spatial workers' distribution within the hive nest space regarding biological age are insufficiently clarified. This study aimed to monitor changes in selected physiological markers during the entire season in relation to worker age and their spatial position in the hive nest. THP content and HG size analysis was performed in nine colonies for the entire season to compare the physiological markers within and among the groups of the workers whose ages were known and sampled in different hive parts. Seasonal impact on the biomarkers' development was confirmed in known-age workers. In the case of HGs, this impact was the most apparent in 4- and 5-week-old workers. For THP, the seasonal impact was the most obvious in 2-week-old workers. The highest THP was found in 1- and 2-week-old workers during the entire season. Biologically younger workers of the same age were located predominantly in upper hive parts consistently throughout the year and vice versa. These workers showed significantly higher THP in comparison with those sampled below. Regarding the chronological age, the downwards, spatially shifting mechanism of workers within the hive nest while they aged was characterized. We recommend storage of diluted hemolymph samples up to one month before performing an assay if necessary. The physiological context, relation to division of labor and benefits for beekeeping practices are discussed.
作为一个超级有机体，蜂群是通过年龄多型性来调节的。蜜蜂工蜂的年龄是通过时间顺序和生物学方法来确定的。生物学年龄是通过与生理相关的生物学标记来估计的，例如全血淋巴蛋白含量（THP）和下咽腺大小（HGs），这些标记也会随季节变化。关于生物学年龄，目前对蜂巢巢内与年龄相关的工蜂空间分布的当代见解还不够清晰。本研究旨在监测整个季节中选定生理标记的变化，这些变化与工蜂年龄及其在蜂巢巢内的空间位置有关。在九个蜂群中对整个季节的THP含量和HG大小进行了分析，以比较已知年龄且在蜂巢不同部位采样的工蜂组内和组间的生理标记。在已知年龄的工蜂中证实了季节对生物标志物发育的影响。对于下咽腺，这种影响在4周龄和5周龄的工蜂中最为明显。对于全血淋巴蛋白，季节影响在2周龄的工蜂中最为明显。在整个季节中，1周龄和2周龄的工蜂全血淋巴蛋白含量最高。同一年龄的生物学上较年轻的工蜂全年主要位于蜂巢上部，反之亦然。与在下部采样的工蜂相比，这些工蜂的全血淋巴蛋白含量显著更高。关于时间年龄，描述了工蜂在蜂巢巢内随着年龄增长而向下的空间转移机制。我们建议，如果有必要，在进行检测前，稀释的血淋巴样本可保存长达一个月。文中还讨论了生理背景、与劳动分工的关系以及对养蜂实践的益处。
