Identificação de Vírus que Afetam Apis Mellifera Associados ao Ácaro Ectoparasita Varroa Destructor em Apiários do Rio Grande do Sul

Abstract

Beekeeping is an activity that has both economic and environmental importance. Brazil has excellent climate and flora for beekeeping, and alongside the presence of Africanized bee populations, it has great potential for apiculture. However, Apis mellifera bees are susceptible to a variety of diseases. There are several pathogens that can affect honeybees and the focus of this work is to assess the relationship between the Varroa destructor mite and viruses that affect bees in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. V. destructor is an ectoparasite and the disease caused by this mite may be responsible for the death of thousands of colonies of A. mellifera in several parts of the world. However, the damage caused by the varroa mite vary according to the race of the affected bees and weather conditions. Although the varroa mite cause little damage in colonies of Africanized bees in Brazil, the coexistence of this ectoparasite with certain types of viruses can seriously compromise the health of the colony, since many of these viruses use the mite for transmission, pointing this as a probable vector. Therefore, it is necessary to identify which viruses are associated with the mite and that possibly use it as vector. Within this context, the objective of this work is to verify the presence of viruses associated with the V. destructor mite in specimens collected in apiaries in different regions of Rio Grande do Sul. Mite collections were made in apiaries located in eight different cities in the state. Collected samples were subjected to total RNA extrection and cDNA synthesis was performed. The synthesized cDNA was subjected to PCR using nine primer pairs fordetection of viruses affecting bee and one pair of primers for endogenous control. Amplified samples were subjected to electrophoresis on agarose gel. With this work, we have been able to identify in the presence of SBV and VDV-1 virus associated with V. destructor mite in three different apiaries. The obtained data are novel, since similar studies have never been conducted before in Brazil or using Africanized bee colonies, and could be used as basis in development of control strategies of this parasite.