Date of Award

6-2019

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Biology

First Advisor

Dr. Mohammad Ali Al-Deeb

Second Advisor

Dr. Sabir Muzaffar

Third Advisor

Dr. Amgad Saleh

Abstract

Apis mellifera honeybees are the most important pollinator worldwide. Numerous diseases and parasites are causing the decreasing numbers of the A. mellifera honeybee. The main objective of this thesis was to study the A. mellifera honeybee pathogens and parasites along with the Varroa destructor mite. The study included (1) Studying bacterial communities associated with A. mellifera and A. florea in the UAE. (2) Conducting a molecular detection of A. mellifera honeybee pathogens in the UAE. (3) Studying Varroa mites and Varroa-associated pathogen in the UAE. DNA and RNA were extracted from A. mellifera honeybees and V. destructor mites. Subsequently, PCR assays were conducted. Sequencing results revealed 23 bacterial operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in both A. mellifera and A. florea honeybees. Another result, Nosema ceranae parasite was detected, while Nosema apis parasite was not found in any of the A. mellifera honeybee samples. In addition, two viral pathogens were detected in both A. mellifera honeybee and V. destructor mites. The species of the V. destructor mite was confirmed using DNA sequencing. This study is the first of its kind in the UAE. Further studies are needed to investigate the effect of these pathogens on honey production in the UAE.

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