Medycyna Wet. 64 (9), 1095-1097, 2008
Kasprzak S., Topolska G.
Virus infections of the honey bee Apis mellifera associated with varroosis and nosemosis
Among the viruses of the honey bee Apis mellifera there are many associated with Varroa destructor infestation and a few associated with Nosema apis infection. Those viral infections mostly occur without clinical symptoms, but under certain conditions an overt disease can appear. V. destructor is a vector and activator of the following bee viruses: acute bee paralysis virus (ABPV), deformed wing virus (DWV), Kashmir bee virus (KBV), slow paralysis virus (SPV), Kakugo virus (KV) and Varroa destructor virus-1 (VDV-1). Those viruses are the main cause of the death of brood and adult bees in bee colonies infested with V. destructor. N. apis does not transfer bee viruses actively but by damaging the gut epithelium it facilitates the invasion of viruses into the organism of the bee. With N. apis infestation are connected: black queen cell virus (BQCV), bee virus Y (BVY) and filamentous virus (FV). Those viruses worsen nosemosis, BQCV causes the death of queen bees in queen bee rearing apiaries. To date the following of the viruses mentioned above have been found in Poland: ABPV, DWV, BQCV and FV.
Keywords: honey bee, Apis mellifera, Varroa destructor, Nosema apis, viruses