title: Hydroxymethylfurfural: a possible emergent cause of honey bee mortality?
abstract: Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), a common product of hexose degradation occurring during the Maillard reaction and caramelization, has been found toxic for rats and mice. It could cause a potential health risk for humans due to its presence in many foods, sometimes exceeding 1 g/kg (in certain dried fruits and caramel products), although the latter still is controversial. HMF can also be consumed by honey bees through bad production batches of sugar syrups that are offered as winter feeding. In Belgium, abnormal losses of honey bee colonies were observed in colonies that were fed with syrup of inverted beet sugar containing high concentrations of HMF (up to 475 mg/kg). These losses suggest that HMF could be implicated in bee mortality, a topic that so far has received only little attention. This paper reviews the current knowledge of the presence of HMF in honey bee environment and possible consequences on bee mortality. Some lines of inquiry for further toxicological analysis are likewise proposed.
authors.affiliation: Unit of Functional and Evolutionary Entomology, University of Liege, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech , Passage des déportés 2, 5030 Gembloux, Belgium.
authors.forename: Lara
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zirbes
authors.forename: Bach Kim
authors.initials: BK
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: Dirk C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: de Graaf
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: De Meulenaer
authors.forename: Wim
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Reybroeck
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Haubruge
authors.forename: Claude
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Saegerman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001516:Bees / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*; D005662:Furaldehyde / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000633:toxicity; D006801:Humans; D012621:Seasons
chemical_list: C008046:5-hydroxymethylfurfural; D005662:Furaldehyde