Population numbers of bumblebees has been on a steady decline leading to the endangerment of several species that are critical to the growth and pollination of crops and plants. Varying factors have contributed to this situation, one key factor being pathogens wiping out colonies. Studying pathogens that diminish bumblebee populations is vital to understanding how to combat the decline of these important species effectively. The aim of this study was to analyse five of the most common pathogens that exist in the abdomen of five different species of bumblebees. This was achieved by extracting DNA, from 176 previously acquired frozen samples, through homogenisation and varying washing steps before an analysis of the resulting nucleic acids. The analysis was done with quantitative polymerase chain reactions to quantify the amounts of each pathogen, as well as a passive reference nucleic acid, to then be able to calculate the absolute total -amount of pathogen carried by each individual bumblebee. The results showed that almost half of the bumblebees were infected by Nosema, one sixth were infected by Crithidia and Apicystis while only a small number of individuals had been infected by Bombus Densovirus and the Apis Mellifera Filamentous Virus. Bombus Lapponicus was the most infected species. The conclusion based on the results is that future research could put a focus on the more commonly found parasites Nosema, Crithidia and Apicystis. Additional research should also be undertaken into the factors contributing to the less common pathogens Bombus Densovirus and the Apis Mellifera Filamentous Virus.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-532305 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Hagström, Anton |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för medicinsk cellbiologi |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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