Vitellogenins (Vgs) are precursors of the major egg storage protein, vitellin (Vn), in many
oviparous animals. Insects Vgs are large molecules (∼ 200-kD) synthesized in the fat body …

The increasing availability of insect genomes has revealed a large number of genes with
unknown functions and the resulting problem of how to discover these functions. The RNA …

Life history theory seeks to explain the evolution of the major features of life cycles by
analyzing the ecological factors that shape age-specific schedules of growth, reproduction …

In most animals, longevity is achieved at the expense of fertility, but queen honey bees do
not show this tradeoff. Queens are both long-lived and fertile, whereas workers, derived from …

Persistent exposure to mite pests, poor nutrition, pesticides, and pathogens threaten honey
bee survival. In healthy colonies, the interaction of the yolk precursor protein, vitellogenin …

Temporal division of labor and foraging specialization are key characteristics of honeybee
social organization. Worker honeybees (Apis mellifera) initiate foraging for food around their …

In this review, relevant data is presented on an emerging disease of the 21th century in
European countries, caused by Nosema ceranae. Within a few years after it was detected in …

The effect of using acaricides to control varroa mites has long been a concern to the
beekeeping industry due to unintended negative impacts on honey bee health. Irregular …

Social insect are profoundly influenced by primer pheromones (PPhs), which are efficient
means for maintaining social harmony in the colony. PPhs act by affecting the physiology of …

Honeybees exhibit two patterns of organization of work. In the spring and summer, division
of labor is used to maximize growth rate and resource accumulation, while during the winter …