Ternary Mixture of Azoxystrobin, Boscalid and Pyraclostrobin Disrupts the Gut Microbiota and Metabolic Balance of Honeybees ( Apis cerana cerana )

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 24; no. 6; p. 5354
• Main Authors: Dong, Jie, Huang, Minjie, Guo, Haikun, Zhang, Jiawen, Tan, Xiaodong, Wang, Deqian
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 10.03.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Agricultural production; Animals; Apis cerana; Apis cerana cerana; Azoxystrobin; Bees; boscalid; Detoxification; Ecological risk assessment; Exposure; Fungicides; Fungicides, Industrial - toxicity; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; Genes; gut microbiota; Honeybee; Intestinal microflora; Intestine; Metabolism; Metabolites; metabolome; Microbiota; Microbiota (Symbiotic organisms); Microorganisms; Midgut; Mixtures; Morphology; Pesticides; Physiology; Plant protection; Pollinators; pyraclostrobin; Respiration; Risk assessment; Toxicity; China; pyraclostrobin; azoxystrobin; Apis cerana; gut microbiota; metabolome; boscalid
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms24065354

There is a growing risk of pollinators being exposed to multiple fungicides due to the widespread use of fungicides for plant protection. A safety assessment of honeybees exposed to multiple commonly used fungicides is urgently required. Therefore, the acute oral toxicity of the ternary mixed fungicide of ABP (azoxystrobin: boscalid: pyraclostrobin = 1:1:1, m/m/m) was tested on honeybees ( ), and its sublethal effect on foragers' guts was evaluated. The results showed that the acute oral median lethal concentration (LD ) of ABP for foragers was 12.6 μg a.i./bee. ABP caused disorder of the morphological structure of midgut tissue and affected the intestinal metabolism; the composition and structure of the intestinal microbial community was perturbed, which altered its function. Moreover, the transcripts of genes involved in detoxification and immunity were strongly upregulated with ABP treatment. The study implies that exposure to a fungicide mixture of ABP can cause a series of negative effects on the health of foragers. This work provides a comprehensive understanding of the comprehensive effects of common fungicides on non-target pollinators in the context of ecological risk assessment and the future use of fungicides in agriculture.