title: A neonicotinoid impairs olfactory learning in Asian honey bees (Apis cerana) exposed as larvae or as adults.
abstract: Xenobiotics such as the neonicotinoid pesticide, imidacloprid, are used globally, but their effects on native bee species are poorly understood. We studied the effects of sublethal doses of imidacloprid on olfactory learning in the native honey bee species, Apis cerana, an important pollinator of agricultural and native plants throughout Asia. We provide the first evidence that imidacloprid can impair learning in A. cerana workers exposed as adults or as larvae. Adults that ingested a single imidacloprid dose as low as 0.1 ng/bee had significantly reduced olfactory learning acquisition, which was 1.6-fold higher in control bees. Longer-term learning (1-17 h after the last learning trial) was also impaired. Bees exposed as larvae to a total dose of 0.24 ng/bee did not have reduced survival to adulthood. However, these larval-treated bees had significantly impaired olfactory learning when tested as adults: control bees exhibited up to 4.8-fold better short-term learning acquisition, though longer-term learning was not affected. Thus, sublethal cognitive deficits elicited by neonicotinoids on a broad range of native bee species deserve further study.
authors.affiliation: 1] Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Science, Kunming, Yunnan Province, 650223 China [2] Eastern Bee Research Institute, Yunnan Agricultural University, Heilongtan, Kunming, Yunnan Province, 650223 China.
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Science, Kunming, Yunnan Province, 650223 China.
authors.forename: Weiwen
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Science, Kunming, Yunnan Province, 650223 China.
authors.forename: Shihao
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Science, Kunming, Yunnan Province, 650223 China.
authors.forename: Xiwen
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Tropical Forest Ecology, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Science, Kunming, Yunnan Province, 650223 China.
authors.forename: Yuchong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Division of Biological Sciences, Section of Ecology, Behavior, and Evolution, University of California, San Diego La Jolla, California, USA.
authors.forename: James C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Nieh
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001516:Bees; D007093:Imidazoles / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007858:Learning / Q000187:drug effects*; D000073943:Neonicotinoids; D009574:Nitro Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology*; D055696:Olfactory Perception / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D007093:Imidazoles; D000073943:Neonicotinoids; D009574:Nitro Compounds; C082359:imidacloprid