Suchergebnisse

Honey bee hives are moved yearly mainly for pollination, but also to take advantage of consecutive flowering events to get as many harvests of honey as possible and/or to find favorable sites for food sources and summer temperatures. Such movements may lead to pathogen spill-over with consequences on the honey bee health and finally on population decline. Ascosphaera apis is the causative agent of the chalkbrood disease, a pathology affecting honey bee larvae that significantly harms population growth and colony productivity. In this study, we detected the presence of A. apis in adult worker honey bees by PCR-amplification of the intergenic transcribed spacer (ITS1) of the ribosomal gene (rDNA). We first optimized the DNA extraction by testing different protocols in individual and pooled (colony level) adult honey bee samples. Subsequently, the presence of the fungus A. apis was assessed in both stationary and migratory colonies (subjected to small scale regional level movements) to determine the effect of migratory practices on the dispersal of this pathogen. Results confirmed a higher prevalence of A. apis in migratory apiaries when compared to stationary ones, indicating that migratory colonies are more likely to develop chalkbrood disease. Given these results, we suggest that beekeepers should be aware of the risks of pathogens spreading while moving beehives, even within a reduced geographic range.

Open data on the internet is often made available, through Web service Application Programming Interfaces or APIs, by governments and other organisations. This workshop, will help you gain hands-on experience in requesting data from these different Web service APIs using R. Specifically, we will look into fetching weather and events data for Auckland region.

At the end of 2019, about 4.1 billion people on earth were using the internet. Because people entrust their most intimate and private data to their devices, the European legislation has declared the protection of natural persons in relation to the processing of personal data as a fundamental right. In 2018 23 million people worldwide, having the responsibility of implementing data security and privacy, were developing software. However, the implementation of data and application security is a challenge, as evidenced by over 41 thousand documented security incidents in 2019. Probably the most basic, powerful, and frequently used tools software developers work with are Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). Security APIs are essential tools to bring data and application security into software products. However, research results have revealed that usability problems of security APIs lead to insecure API use during development. Basic security requirements such as securely stored passwords, encrypted files or secure network connections can become an error-prone challenge and in consequence lead to unreliable or missing security and privacy. Because software developers hold a key position in the development processes of software, not properly operating security tools pose a risk to all people using software. However, little is known about the requirements of developers to address the problem and improve the usability of security APIs. This thesis is one of the first to examine the usability of security APIs. To this end, the author examines to what extent information flows can support software developers in using security APIs to implement secure software by conducting empirical studies with software developers. This thesis has contributed fundamental results that can be used in future work to identify and improve important information flows in software development. The studies have clearly shown that developer-tailored information flows with adapted security-relevant content have a positive influence on the correct implementation of security. However, the results have also led to the conclusion that API producers need to pay special attention to the channels through which they direct information flows to API users and how the information is designed to be useful for them. In many cases, it is not enough to provide security-relevant information via the documentation only. Here, proactive methods like the API security advice proposed by this thesis achieve significantly better results in terms of findability and actionable support. To further increase the effectiveness of the API security advice, this thesis developed a cryptographic API warning design for the terminal by adopting a participatory design approach with experienced software developers. However, it also became clear that a single information flow can only support up to a certain extent. As observed from two studies conducted in complex API environments in web development, multiple complementary information flows have to meet the extensive information needs of developers to be able to develop secure software. Some evaluated new approaches provided promising insights towards more API consumer-focused documentation designs as a complement to API warnings. ; Ende 2019 nutzten rund 4,1 Milliarden Menschen auf der Erde das Internet. Da die Menschen ihre intimsten und privatesten Daten ihren Geräten anvertrauen, hat die europäische Gesetzgebung den Schutz natürlicher Personen bei der Verarbeitung personenbezogener Daten zu einem Grundrecht erklärt. Im Jahr 2018 haben weltweit 23 Millionen Menschen Software entwickelt. Diese tragen die Verantwortung, die Datensicherheit und den Datenschutz zu gewährleisten. Die Umsetzung von Daten- und Anwendungssicherheit ist allerdings eine Herausforderung, wie über 41 Tausend dokumentierte Sicherheitsvorfälle im Jahr 2019 belegen. Die wohl grundlegendsten, leistungsfähigsten und am häufigsten verwendeten Werkzeuge, mit denen Software-Entwickler arbeiten, sind Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). Security-APIs sind elementare Werkzeuge, um Daten- und Anwendungssicherheit in Softwareprodukte zu integrieren. Forschungsergebnisse haben jedoch gezeigt, dass Usability Probleme von Security-APIs zu einer unsicheren Nutzung bei der Entwicklung führen. Grundlegende Sicherheitsanforderungen, wie sicher gespeicherte Passwörter, verschlüsselte Dateien oder sichere Netzwerkverbindungen, können dadurch zu einer fehleranfälligen Herausforderung werden und in der Konsequenz zu unzuverlässiger oder fehlender Sicherheit und Privatsphäre führen. Da Softwareentwickler eine Schlüsselrolle in den Entwicklungsprozessen von Software spielen, stellen nicht ordnungsgemäß funktionierende Sicherheitswerkzeuge ein Risiko für alle Personen dar, die Software verwenden. Es ist jedoch nur wenig über die existierenden Anforderungen von Entwicklern bekannt, um dieses Problem anzugehen und die Nutzbarkeit von Security-APIs zu verbessern. Diese Arbeit ist eine der ersten, die zu der Gebrauchstauglichkeit von Security-APIs forscht. Zu diesem Zweck untersucht der Autor, inwieweit Informationsflüsse Softwareentwickler bei der Nutzung von Security-APIs zur Implementierung sicherer Software unterstützen können, indem er empirische Studien mit Softwareentwicklern durchführt. Diese Thesis hat grundlegende Ergebnisse erbracht, die in zukünftigen Arbeiten zur Identifizierung und Verbesserung wichtiger Informationsflüsse in der Softwareentwicklung genutzt werden können. Die Studien haben deutlich gezeigt, dass auf den Entwickler zugeschnittene Informationsflüsse mit abgestimmten sicherheitsrelevanten Inhalten einen positiven Einfluss auf die korrekte Implementierung von Sicherheit haben. Die Ergebnisse haben jedoch auch zu der Schlussfolgerung geführt, dass API-Produzenten besonders darauf achten müssen, über welche Kanäle sie Informationsflüsse zu API-Benutzern leiten und wie die Informationen gestaltet sein müssen, damit sie für die Zielgruppe gebrauchstauglich sind. In vielen Fällen reicht es nicht aus, sicherheitsrelevante Informationen nur über die Dokumentation zur Verfügung zu stellen. Hier erzielen pro-aktive Methoden, wie die in dieser Arbeit vorgeschlagenen API-Sicherheitsempfehlungen, deutlich bessere Ergebnisse in Bezug auf die Auffindbarkeit und eine direkt anwendbare Unterstützung. Um die Wirksamkeit von API-Sicherheitsempfehlungen weiter zu verbessern, wurde in dieser Arbeit ein Design für kryptographische API-Warnungen in der Konsole entwickelt. Dazu wurde ein partizipativer Designansatz mit erfahrenen Softwareentwicklern gewählt. Es wurde jedoch auch deutlich, dass ein einzelner Informationsfluss nur bis zu einem gewissen Grad Unterstützung leisten kann. In zwei Studien, die in komplexen API-Umgebungen für die Webentwicklung durchgeführt wurden, konnte beobachtet werden, dass mehrere sich ergänzende Informationsflüsse den umfangreichen Informationsbedarf der Entwickler decken müssen, damit diese in die Lage versetzt werden, sichere Software zu entwickeln. Ergänzend zu API-Warnungen, lieferten einige der neuen evaluierten Ansätze vielversprechende Erkenntnisse über mehr benutzerorientierte API Dokumentationsdesigns. ; BMBF, 13FH016IX6, IngenieurNachwuchs 2016: ULS3 - Ultra-Large Scale System Security ; BMWi, 01MU14002, Einfach intuitiv – Usability für den Mittelstand

We assembled the mitogenome of Apis mellifera siciliana, which was previously identified as African by the tRNA-leu-cox2 intergenic region. The mitogenome is 16,590 bp long. The gene content and organization are identical to other A. mellifera mitogenomes, containing 13 protein-coding genes, 22 transfer RNA genes, and 2 ribosomal RNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis showed a close mitochondrial relationship between A. m. siciliana and other African subspecies such as Apis mellifera sahariensis, Apis mellifera intermissa, and Apis mellifera ruttneri. ; This work was supported by MEDIBEES - Monitoring the Mediterranean Honey Bee Subspecies and their Resilience to Climate Change for the Improvement of Sustainable Agro-Ecosystems; BEEHAPPY ([POCI-01-0145- FEDER-029871]; FCT and COMPETE/QREN/EU). MEDIBEES is part of the PRIMA program supported by the European Union. Fundac¸~ao para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) provided financial support by national funds (FCT/MCTES) to CIMO [UIDB/00690/2020]. Dora Henriques is supported by the project BEEHAPPY ([POCI-01-0145-FEDER-029871]; FCT and COMPETE/QREN/EU). ; info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

The present study reports results of qualitative melittopalynological analyses of 34 honey samples of Apis cerana and Apis mellifera between 2011 and 2012 in Mengzi (China Yunnan) and the trophic niche analysis of two bee species on pollen food resources. A diverse spectrum of 17 pollen types from 14 families was identified with the Asteraceae and Myrtaceae being most frequent at non-nectar flow and the Lythraceae being most frequent at main nectar flow of pomegranate. The results of trophic niche analysis to Apis cerana and Apis mellifera are these, at non-nectar flow, the Niche breadth are 0.65 and 0.57, respectively; at nectar flow, the values are 0.41 and 0.24, respectively. Trophic niche overlap index, the value of nectar flow(0.68) is greater than non-nectar flow(0.61). Interspecific competition index, the value of nectar flow(0.92) is also greater than non-nectar flow(0.77). These results may promote the development of local beekeeping and help scholars assessing the impact of introduced bees on native bees in China.

The yearlong association of two native honey bee species (Apis dorsata and A. florea) with 49 plant species was recorded in a planted forest and adjacent agricultural landscape at Multan, Pakistan. The study resulted in 588 interactions of A. dorsata with 40 plant species and 454 interactions of A. florea on 38 plant species. The most visited plants species by A. dorsata included Helianthus annuus, Citrus reticulata, Trifolium alexandrinum, Moringa oleifera and Calotropis procera, while the most visited plant species by A. florea included C. procera, Mangifera indica, T. alexandrinum, Coriandrum sativum and H. annuus. The peak abundance of bees and floral resources (i.e. number of plant species in flowering and abundance of floral units) was recorded during early March to late May followed by a gradual decline until December. Monthly abundance of both bee species was positively related to the floral resources, negatively related to relative humidity while it was not significantly related to temperature. The current study may serve as a baseline to track the degradation in ecosystem service of cross pollination and making new conservation strategies at local scale while future research should focus on tempo-spatial variations in foraging preferences, floral constancy and effect of foraging competition on crop pollination in different ecological regions of Pakistan.

According to the European Union legislation, honey is the natural sweet substance produced by Apis mellifera, also known as European honeybee. However, in other regions of the world, honey is traditionally obtained from other bee species. Among those, A. cerana (also known as Asian honeybee) is also of economic importance since it is used in apiculture. Due to the decline of the wild populations of the A. cerana in some countries, such as Japan and parts of China, there is an increasingly interest in preserving the native Asian honeybee, being its honey increasingly valued. Owing to the growing demand for this traditional product, the honey produced by A. cerana attains a much higher market value compared to that of A. mellifera, thus being prone to adulteration. So far, only a few protein-based methods have been proposed to assess honey entomological origin [1], which in fact is related to its geographical origin since bee species generally occupy different geographical ranges according to their evolutionary lineages [2]. In this work, DNA methods were developed for the specific identification of A. mellifera and A. cerana DNA in honey. For this purpose, bees of A. cerana from Thailand, China and Vietnam and honeybees of 4 different subspecies of A. mellifera (iberiensis, mellifera, ligustica and carnica) from EU countries were used. Different sets of primers were designed targeting the tRNAleu - COII intergenic region and the 16S rRNA gene. For both cases, the specificity and sensitivity of the designed primers were assayed by qualitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR). DNA was extracted from honey samples as previously described [3]. PCR with primers targeting the tRNAleu - COII intergenic region allowed the specific detection of A. cerana. The applicability of the proposed new PCR method was assayed with authentic A. cerana and A. mellifera honey samples, which enabled the identification of A. cerana honey. PCR targeting the 16S rRNA gene successfully amplified both honeybee species, but without being able to differentiate them. However, the use of real-time PCR with 16S rRNA primers coupled with High Resolution Melting (HRM) analysis allowed the differentiation of both species in distinct clusters (Fig. 1). The developed new HRM methodology was further applied to the analysis of authentic honey samples from Vietnam (produced from A. cerana and A. mellifera honeybees) and from Portugal (produced from A. mellifera honeybees), as well as commercial samples of honey labelled as produced in the EU, allowing its successful entomological origin identification [4]. Both developed techniques proved their effectiveness for establishing the entomological origin of honey and can be considered as useful tools for authentication/control purposes. ; This work was supported by FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia) through project UID/QUI/50006/2013 - POCI/01/0145/ FEDER/007265 with financial support from FCT/MEC through notional funds and eo-financed by FEDER, under the Partnership Agreement PT2020, and project NORTE- 01- 0145- FEDER- 0 00011. S. Soores, L. Grozino and J. Costa ore grateful to FCT grants (SFRH/BPD/102404/2014, SFRH/BD/132462/2017 and SFRH/ BD/75091/2010) financed by POPH-QREN (subsidized by FSE and MCTES). ; info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Based on the analysis of 94 sequences of the mtDNA CO1 gene, the intrabreed diversity and evolutionary relationships of bees from Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Poland were studied. We revealed two main haplotypes corresponding to the races A. m. carpathica and A. m. caucasica, common in the studied regions. However, in Armenia bees of the Caucasian race predominate, and in Poland – Carpathian. A. m. caucasica has higher haplotype diversity: one of its haplotypes is formed by samples of bees from the Crimean mountain breed, possibly an independent race A. m. taurica. There are 2 clusters on the phylogenetic tree: one cluster includes A. m. mellifera and A. m. iberica (evolutionary line M), the other (line C) ‒ A. m. ligustica, A. m. carpathica, A. m. caucasica. Haplotypes of A. m. caucasica have more substitutions per site, indicating their earlier origin compared to A. m. ligustica and A. m. carpathica. According to the time of divergence of A. mellifera and A. cerana at 6 Ma, the divergence of all races of line C is estimated from 1.3 to 0.6 Ma; races A. m. caucasica 0.35–0.25 million, A. m. carpathica – 0.2–0.04 million. When using universal primers with optimization of amplification conditions for the mtDNA CO1 gene region, a nonsynonymous G/A SNP was detected in position 4 (680 bp) which can be used to identify A. m. carpathica from A. m. ligustica.

The decline of honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) populations is of great concern around the world. Among the several key drivers, dissemination of pests and pathogens is potential one. Chalkbrood is very common fungal disease of honey bee, caused due to Ascosphaera apis. In the present study, survey was conducted regarding the prevalence of diseases in A. mellifera beekeeping in Gangetic plains of West Bengal, India. Results confirmed the occurrence of chalkbrood disease in different apiaries, where dead and mummified bee larvae with cotton like chalky white or greyish-black covering were found as physical symptoms of the disease. From three surveyed apiaries, a total of 16 hives out of 113 hives were found to be infected with the diseases; and 46 frames out of 132 frames from the infected 16 hives were found to be affected by the pathogen. Microscopic examination reflected that nearly 87% of the samples collected from the infected frame were found to be positive for the spore of Ascosphaera. The fungus associated with the disease was isolated on Potato Dextrose Agar medium, pure cultured and its genomic DNA was isolated to perform PCR and based on 18s rDNA sequencing by using specific primer pair of ITS-1 and ITS-4, the fungus was identified as Ascosphaera apis.
Keywords: 18s rDNA, Bees, Necrotrophs, Phylogeny

Indigenous and exotic honey bee species were evaluated for their hygienic behavior in the climatic condition of Peshawar Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Colonies of equal strength from indigenous (Apis cerana) and exotic (Apis mellifera) species were selected for the study. The same colonies were tested in two seasons. Sealed brood were killed with different methods i.e pin killed and freeze killed. The uncapping of cells and brood removal was recorded at different intervals. Significant differences were recorded between hygienic behavior of both species of honey bees. Apis cerana showed significantly superior hygienic behavior than Apis mellifera in both seasons. At different intervals in both species significant differences were recorded. A significant difference was recorded after 12 and 24 hours between the species in both seasons. No significant differences were recorded after 48hours in both species. From the study it is concluded that indigenous honey bee species has superior hygienic behavior than exotic species.