Bt Cry1Ie Toxin Does Not Impact the Survival and Pollen Consumption of Chinese Honey Bees, Apis cerana cerana (Hymenoptera, Apidae).
The cry1Ie gene may be a good candidate for the development of Bt maize because over-expression of Cry1Ie is highly toxic to Lepidopteran pests such as Heliothis armigera Hübner and Ostrinia furnacalis Guenée. The Bt cry1Ie gene also has no cross resistance with other insecticidal proteins such as Cry1Ab, Cry1Ac, Cry1Ah, or Cry1F. Chinese honey bees (Apis cerana cerana) are potentially exposed to insect-resistant genetically modified (IRGM) crops expressing Cry1Ie toxin via the collection of IRGM crop pollen. In this study, we tested whether Chinese honey bee workers are negatively affected by sugar syrup containing 20, 200, or 20,000 ng/ml Cry1Ie toxin and 48 ng/ml imidacloprid under controlled laboratory conditions. Our results demonstrated that the Cry1Ie toxin does not adversely impact survival and pollen consumption of Chinese honey bees. However, imidacloprid decreases Chinese honey bee survival and the total pollen consumption on the 5th, 6th, and 18th d of exposure. The described bioassay is suitable to assess the effects of GM expressed toxins against honey bee.
Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Institute of Apicultural Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100093, China (daipingli@caas.cn; 1507809489@qq.com; dqyun1@126.com).
Ping-Li
PL
Dai
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, China (jhuiru@163.com; genglili_1983@163.com).
Hui-Ru
HR
Jia
Honey Bee Research and Extension Laboratory, Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA (cjack@ufl.edu; jdellis@ufl.edu).
Cameron J
CJ
Jack
State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, China (jhuiru@163.com; genglili_1983@163.com).
Li-Li
LL
Geng
Apiculture Institute of Jiangxi Province, Nanchang 330052, China (liufeng801012@163.com).
Feng
F
Liu
Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Institute of Apicultural Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100093, China (daipingli@caas.cn; 1507809489@qq.com; dqyun1@126.com).
Chun-Sheng
CS
Hou
Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Institute of Apicultural Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100093, China (daipingli@caas.cn; 1507809489@qq.com; dqyun1@126.com).
Qing-Yun
QY
Diao
Honey Bee Research and Extension Laboratory, Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA (cjack@ufl.edu; jdellis@ufl.edu).
James D
JD
Ellis
D000818:Animals; D000083722:Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000633:toxicity*; D001516:Bees / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D004032:Diet; D004731:Endotoxins / Q000633:toxicity*; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000187:drug effects; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins / Q000633:toxicity*; D007093:Imidazoles / Q000633:toxicity; D007306:Insecticides / Q000633:toxicity*; D008136:Longevity / Q000187:drug effects; D000073943:Neonicotinoids; D009574:Nitro Compounds / Q000633:toxicity; D011058:Pollen
D000083722:Bacillus thuringiensis Toxins; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D004731:Endotoxins; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins; D007093:Imidazoles; D007306:Insecticides; D000073943:Neonicotinoids; D009574:Nitro Compounds; C030956:insecticidal crystal protein, Bacillus Thuringiensis; C082359:imidacloprid
Apis cerana cerana; Cry1Ie; imidacloprid; risk assessment