Members of the bee microbiome (Bacteria)
Corbiculate Apid 'core' microbiome
There are many citations for these bacteria, here we present important early records and species descriptions.
| Bacterium | Taxonomy | Known hosts | Effect on host | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bifidobacterium sp. | Bacteria; Actinobacteria; Bifidobacteriales; Bifidobacteriaceae; Bifidobacterium | Apis spp. Bombus spp., Meliponini | unknown | Jeyaprakash et al. 2003, Martinson et al. 2011, Koch et al. 2011, Vasquez et al. 2012, Anderson et al. 2103 |
| Frischella perrara | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Gammaproteobacteria; Orbales; Orbaceae; Frischella | Apis spp. | causes scab on gut epithelium | Babendreier et al. 2007, Martinson et al. 2011,Engel et al. 2012, Engel et al. 2015 |
| Gilliamella apicola | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Gammaproteobacteria; Orbales; Orbaceae; Gilliamella | Apis spp. Bombus spp. | possible mutualist | Jeyaprakash et al. 2003, Mohr and Tebbe 2006, Babendreier et al. 2007, Martinson et al. 2011, Martinson et al. 2012, Kwong and Moran 2013 |
| Snodgrasella alvi | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Betaproteobacteria; Neisseriales; Neisseriaceae, Snodgrassella | Apis spp. Bombus spp. | possible mutualist | Jeyaprakash et al. 2003, Mohr and Tebbe 2006, Babendreier et al. 2007, Martinson et al. 2011, Koch et al. 2011, Martinson et al. 2012, Kwong and Moran 2013 |
| Lactobacillus Firm5 (L. kimbladii, L. kullabergensis, L. melliventris, L. helsingborgensis) | Bacteria; Firmicutes; Bacilli; Lactobacillales; Lactobacillaceae; Lactobacillus | Apis spp. Bombus spp., Meliponini | unknown | Jeyaprakash et al. 2003, Mohr and Tebbe 2006, Babendreier et al. 2007, Martinson et al. 2011, Vasquez et al. 2012, Kwong et al. 2014, Oloffsson et al. 2014 |
| Lactobacillus Firm4 (L. mellifer, L. mellis) | Bacteria; Firmicutes; Bacilli; Lactobacillales; Lactobacillaceae; Lactobacillus | Apis spp. Bombus spp., Meliponini | unknown | Mohr and Tebbe 2006, Babendreier et al. 2007, Martinson et al. 2011, Vasquez et al. 2012, Oloffsson et al. 2014 |
| Bartonella apis | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Alphaproteobacteria; Rhizobiales; Bartonellaceae; Bartonella | Apis spp. | Jeyaprakash 2003, Mohr and Tebbe 2006, Babendreier et al. 2007, Martinson et al. 2011, Engel et al. 2012, Kesnerova et al. 2015 |
Apis colony bacteria (i.e. not core bacteria in the worker gut but commonly found in other parts of the colony)
| Bacterium | Taxonomy | Known hosts | Effect on host | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parasaccharibacter apium | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Alphaproteobacteria; Rhodospirillales;Acetobacteraceae; Parasaccharibacter | Apis mellifera larvae hypopharyngeal glands, royal jelly | increased larval fitness | Jeyaprakash et al. 2003, Mohr and Tebbe 2006, Babendreier et al. 2007, Corby-Harris et al. 2014A |
| Alpha 2.1 | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Alphaproteobacteria; Rhodospirillales; Acetobacteraceae; unclassified Acetobacteraceae | Apis mellifera, Bombus spp. | unknown | Koch et al. 2011 |
| Lactobacillus kunkeei | Bacteria; Firmicutes; Bacilli; Lactobacillales; Lactobacillaceae; Lactobacillus | Apis mellifera | unknown | Anderson et al. 2013, Corby-Harris 2014B |
| Fructobacillus fructosus | Bacteria; Firmicutes; Bacilli; Lactobacillales; Leuconostocaceae; Fructobacillus | Apis mellifera, Bombus spp. | Koch et al. 2011, Anderson et al. 2013, Vojvodic et al. 2013 |
Apis incidental bacteria
Many other bacteria have been found associated with honey bees, but in low numbers. We include Arsenophonus as it has possibly interesting biology.
| Bacterium | Taxonomy | Known hosts | Effect on host | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenophonus sp. | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Gammaproteobacteria; Enterobacteriales; Enterobacteriaceae; Arsenophonus | Apis mellifera | Babendreier et al. 2007, Aizenberg-Gershtein et al. 2013, Corby-Harris et al. 2014B |
Non-Apis bee bacteria common associates
Many other environmental bacteria are also found sporadically associated with Non-Apis bees. Very few of the nearly 20,000 species of bees have been studied, so this list will likely change drastically with future research.
| Bacterium | Taxonomy | Known hosts | Effect on host | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lactobacillus kunkeei clade bacteria | Bacteria; Firmicutes; Bacilli; Lactobacillales; Lactobacillaceae; Lactobacillus | Halictidae, Megachilidae, Apidae, Austroplebeia australis | unknown | McFrederick et al. 2012, McFrederick et al. 2013, McFrederick et al. 2014A, McFrederick et al. 2014B, Leonhardt and Kaltenpoth 2014 |
| Saccharibacter floricola | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Alphaproteobacteria; Rhodospirillales; Acetobacteraceae; Saccharibacter | Halictidae | unknown | McFrederick et al. 2012, McFrederick et al. 2014B |
| Fructobacillus spp. | Bacteria; Firmicutes; Bacilli; Lactobacillales; Leuconostocaceae; Fructobacillus | Megalopta spp. | unknown | McFrederick et al. 2012, McFrederick et al. 2014B |
Non-Apis bee bacteria possible endosymbionts
| Bacterium | Taxonomy | Known hosts | Effect on host | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arsenophonus sp. | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Gammaproteobacteria; Enterobacteriales; Enterobacteriaceae; Arsenophonus | Collettes, Megachile rotundata | unknown | McFrederick et al. 2014 A, Gerth et al. 2015 |
| Wolbachia | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Alphaproteobacteria; Rickettsiales; Anaplasmataceae; Wolbachieae; Wolbachia | Widespread outside of Apis | unknown | Gerth et al. 2011, McFrederick 2012, McFrederick et al. 2014B, Gerth et al. 2015 |
| Rickettsia | Bacteria; Proteobacteria; Alphaproteobacteria; Rickettsiales; Rickettsiaceae; Rickettsieae; Rickettsia | Halictidae, Osmia | unknown | Gerth et al. 2015 |
| Spiroplasma | Bacteria; Tenericutes; Mollicutes; Entomoplasmatales; Spiroplasmataceae; Spiroplasma | Megalopta spp. | unknown | McFrederick et al. 2014B |
Reference
These data come from supplemental material of:The Bee Microbiome: Impact on Bee Health and Model for Evolution and Ecology of Host-Microbe InteractionsEngel et al., mBio, 2016; DOI: 10.1128/mBio.02164-15PubMed PMID: 27118586; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4850275.