A scientific note on the first report of honeybee venom inhibiting Paenibacillus larvae growth

FERNÁNDEZ NATALIA JORGELINA; PORRINI M.P; GIOVANNI FORMATO MARTÍN J. EGUARAS ; ENRIQUE A. PODAZA ; DAMIANI, NATALIA; LIESEL B. GENDE; EGUARAS, MARTÍN JAVIER

Roma

Simposio; 6th Apimedica & 5th Apiquality International Symposium; 2016

In the highly eusocialhoneybee Apis mellifera, worker beesuse a stinging apparatus for defense. The sting is supplied with venom from theabdomen glands. Honeybee venom (BV) extraction has become a standardizedpractice, characterized for being safe, simple, and causing no harm to bees. BVis composed of at least 18 bioactive molecules, ranging from biogenic amines toproteins. Melittin and PLA2 are the most predominant proteins in bee venom,representing 50 and 10?12% of its dry weight, respectively.Furthermore, venom gland has been recently reportedas an important source of antimicrobial substances with proven antibacterialand antifungal action. Despite this, antimicrobial broad spectrum data aboutthe effects of BV on honeybees infectious pathogens is previously absent fromthe literature. This paper is the first report on honeybee venom antimicrobialactivity against Paenibacillus larvaeand on its effect on the fed bees survival. Results hold particular promise,with a minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) from 3.12 to 6.25 µg/ml and minimalbactericidal concentration (MBC) ranging from 4.16 a 10.42 μg/ml against thismicroorganism. This research also constitutes the first record of oraladministration of BV to an invertebrate biological model. No lethal orbehavioral effects on bees after a week of BV ingesting were revealed. Highdoses of BV resulted much less toxic for bees than some botanical extracts.Further studies should be conducted to address the effects of higherconcentrations of BV and determine the toxicological risks and the optimumdosage in field assays.