The effect of soluble sugars in stored royal jelly on the differentiation of female honeybee ( Apis mellifera L.) larvae to queens

The composition of sugars and their level in fresh royal jelly (RJ), worker jelly (WJ) and stored royal jelly (SRJ) were established. The effect of SRJ soluble sugars on the differentiation of female larvae was studied. The sugar level of RJ removed from cells with 1- to 3-day-old larvae (RJ 1–3) wa...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inInsect biochemistry Vol. 18; no. 2; pp. 127 - 133
Main Authors Asencot, Moshe, Lensky, Yaacov
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Oxford Elsevier B.V 1988
New York, NY Pergamon Press
Subjects
Apis mellifera
Biochemistry. Physiology. Immunology
Biological and medical sciences
females
fructose
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
glucose
Insecta
Invertebrates
larvae
Physiology. Development
royal jelly
sucrose
Apis mellifera
queenliness
determination
sugars
stored royal jelly
Royal jelly
Apis mellifica
Insecta
Apidae
Social insect
Caste differentiation
Larva
Apoidea
Arthropoda
Development
Chemical composition
Carbohydrate
Hymenoptera
Invertebrata
Gas liquid chromatography
Aculeata
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:The composition of sugars and their level in fresh royal jelly (RJ), worker jelly (WJ) and stored royal jelly (SRJ) were established. The effect of SRJ soluble sugars on the differentiation of female larvae was studied. The sugar level of RJ removed from cells with 1- to 3-day-old larvae (RJ 1–3) was about 4 times higher than that of WJ of corresponding age (WJ 1–3) (12.4 vs 3.1%), when calculated on the basis of fresh matter. The ratio fructose: glucose (F:G) in RJ 1–3 (1.43) and in WJ 1–3 (1.37) was almost equal. The crystals formed in SRJ and analyzed by GLC, as well as by optical, polarizing and scanning microscope, were composed of fructose (F), glucose (G) and sucrose (S). The level of F was 83.7% of the total sugar content of crystals. Female honeybee larvae reared on SRJ supplemented with 198 mg F + 38 mg G/g food, an amount similar to that of SRJ crystals, resulted in the emergence of adults as queens: (40%), intercastes (23%) and workers (37%). The importance of availability of soluble sugars vs solid crystals in the larval food on the induction of “queenlines” is discussed.
ISSN:0020-1790
DOI:10.1016/0020-1790(88)90016-9