Neonicotinoid metabolism in honey bees

Honey bee colonies are used for various reasons, e.g. for the production of honey, wax, propolis, royal jelly, etc. However, the most important contribution of honey bees is their pollination service. Foods that benefit directly and indirectly from pollination account for 35% of the human diet. The estimated value of pollination by insects is 153 billion euros. In recent decades, there have been reports of a global decline in managed honey bee colonies and wild bees around the world. The decline has been linked to various factors. One of the factors is new types of insecticides called neonicotinoids. Their toxicity to honey bees is well known. When these insecticides are ingested, they transform into various compounds in the honeybee`s body. These transformation compounds can be more toxic to honey bees than the original insecticides. Although this is known, the transformation of neonicotinoids in honey bees has not yet been studied in detail. In order to investigate whether these compounds are toxic to bees, we first need to know what they are In this project, we will feed honey bees in the laboratory with different neonicotinoids and try to find all possible compounds into which these insecticides are converted using a new chemical analysis method. After we have found all possible transformation compounds, we will collect samples from beekeepers all over Austria and test whether they contain these toxic neonicotinoids and their transformation products.