Royal Jelly Production Research Articles

Assessing Queen Cell Cups Priming from Combs of Different Honey Bee Species for Mass Rearing of Apis mellifera L. Queen Bee

Experiments were carried out at the Beekeeping-cum-Honey Production Unit, Department of Entomology, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur, Bihar, India, during 2020-21. The study was aimed to evaluate queen cell cups prepared from combs of different bee species to find out a suitable technique for royal jelly production through mass queen bee rearing of Apis mellifera species. The worker bees of Apis mellifera (AM) exhibited a low preference for working with combs produced by Apis dorsata (AD) and Apis cerana (AC) for queen cell construction amongst evaluated combs. In contrast, when queen cell cups were made using AM combs, the worker bees attempted to build 100% of the cells. The time required by AM worker bees to complete queen cell construction on AM combs ranged from 7 to 15 days, however, they took 1.20 and 0.98 times longer to complete cells made with AD and AC combs, respectively. Similarly, queen bees showed reluctance to lay eggs in cells built on AD and AC combs. In queen cells constructed on AM combs, the queen bee began laying eggs on the second day after release into the nucleus hive and continued for five days, with an increasing trend in egg-laying activity. Among the different batches of eggs laid, the third batch was the most successful in respect of the larval growth and development. Additionally, larval growth showed a consistent upward trend during the first three days of observation for each laying batch. A. mellifera combs have been found to be more favourable for queen cell construction by worker bees, showing a strong preference for the queen's egg-laying performance, as well as optimal larval growth and development. Based on these findings, it is recommended that beekeepers may adopt this method to promote mass queen bee rearing and enhance royal jelly production.

Honeybee Nutrition: Physiological and Ecological Insights

Bees play a vital role in global agriculture through their pollination services; however, their populations have declined over the past three decades due to various stress, including nutritional deficits stemming from habitat loss and alteration. ​This review emphasizes the critical need for understanding bee nutrition, which is essential for overcoming these declines.​ With their evolutionary background alongside flowering plants, bees have adapted to a herbivorous diet primarily consisting of floral nectar and pollen. Nectar provides the energy necessary for flight and other metabolic processes, while pollen supplies essential proteins, fats and micronutrients. Foraging behaviors vary among bee species and are influenced by environmental factors and the genetic composition of the colony. Honey bees exhibit complex social structures where worker bees gather nectar, pollen and water, each contributing to the nutritional needs of the colony. The transformation of collected nectar into honey and pollen into bee bread illustrates bees unique food storage strategies, providing vital nutrition to larvae and adult workers. Additionally, understanding the nutritional processes involved in larval development and royal jelly production sheds light on caste differentiation and overall colony health. This comprehensive view on bee nutrition underscores its significance for future conservation strategies.

Effects of physical sterilization on microbial safety, nutritional composition, and antioxidant activity of queen bee larva powder, a by-product of royal jelly production

Queen bee larvae (QBL), a by-product of royal jelly production, have nutritional value and confer health benefits. The commercialization of QBL is hindered because of the lack of evidence for its nutrition and safety parameters. Thus, this study was conducted to investigate the microbial dynamics, nutritional composition, and antioxidant activity of QBL, aiming to assess its potential as a food product. Lyophilized QBL powder samples were sterilized through gamma irradiation and high-pressure processing at varying doses and pressures. Gamma irradiation at 10 and 15 kGy effectively reduced the total aerobic count to 0, whereas high-pressure processing led to no significant reduction. Regarding the microbial profile of QBL, 16S rDNA gene sequencing unveiled five bacteria—Acinetobacter pittii, Bacillus thuringiensis, Enterococcus mundtii, Enterococcus faecalis, and Fructobacillus fructosus—but no major foodborne pathogens. Lactobacillus, Bombella, and Fructobacillus emerged as the predominant genera in QBL, with low abundances of Staphylococcus and Escherichia. Proximate composition analysis indicated no significant postirradiation changes in macronutrient contents; notably, protein was the predominant component (approximately 48.0%). Sugar and amino acid analyses revealed essential nutrients meeting human dietary requirements. Upon fatty acid analysis, palmitic and oleic acids emerged as predominant fatty acids. Gamma irradiation at 10 kGy exerted no significant effect on the nutritional composition or antioxidant activity of QBL. Our study provides valuable insights into the microbial safety and nutritional value of QBL, indicating its potential as a dietary protein source with favorable microbiota.

Production and Quality Characteristics of Royal Jelly in Relation to Available Natural Food Resources

Royal jelly is a secretion produced from the hypopharyngeal glands of worker bees, which requires significant pollen reserves to stimulate gland secretion. The natural sources of food available to the hive during beekeeping season can greatly affect the quantity and quality of produced royal jelly. In this study, samples of royal jelly were collected throughout the beekeeping season, and their physical and chemical characteristics were analyzed to understand how natural variations in bee diet affect royal jelly production. Before each sample collection, the bees’ food reserves were removed from the experimental colonies so that the royal jelly was produced solely from natural sources. The results showed that the production was significantly lower during the summer months compared with spring and autumn. Additionally, the moisture, protein, fructose, and glucose content of fresh royal jelly also showed significant changes in the summer, and all physical and chemical characteristics decreased when the fresh samples were converted into dry matter. It seems that the quality of pollen entering the hives has a direct impact on the physical and chemical properties of the final product, highlighting the crucial role of available resources in stimulating bees to produce royal jelly.

Prospects of probiotics in beekeeping: a review for sustainable approach to boost honeybee health.

Honeybees are vital for global crop pollination, making indispensable contributions to agricultural productivity. However, these vital insects are currently facing escalating colony losses on a global scale, primarily attributed to parasitic and pathogenic attacks. The prevalent response to combat these infections may involve the use of antibiotics. Nevertheless, the application of antibiotics raises concerns regarding potential adverse effects such as antibiotic resistance and imbalances in the gut microbiota of bees. In response to these challenges, this study reviews the utilization of a probiotic-supplemented pollen substitute diet to promote honeybee gut health, enhance immunity, and overall well-being. We systematically explore various probiotic strains and their impacts on critical parameters, including survival rate, colony strength, honey and royal jelly production, and the immune response of bees. By doing so, we emphasize the significance of maintaining a balanced gut microbial community in honeybees. The review also scrutinizes the factors influencing the gut microbial communities of bees, elucidates the consequences of dysbiosis, and evaluates the potential of probiotics to mitigate these challenges. Additionally, it delineates different delivery mechanisms for probiotic supplementation and elucidates their positive effects on diverse health parameters of honeybees. Given the alarming decline in honeybee populations and the consequential threat to global food security, this study provides valuable insights into sustainable practices aimed at supporting honeybee populations and enhancing agricultural productivity.

Consumption of Citric Acid by Bees Promotes the Gland Development and Enhances Royal Jelly Quality.

The glands of bees are responsible for generating and secreting various biologically active substances that significantly impact bee physiological health and adaptability. This study aimed to investigate the effects of adding citric acid (CA) to bee feed on gland development and royal jelly quality. By formulating feed with varying proportions of CA, evaluation was undertaken of pollen feeding by honeybees under laboratory conditions, along with the impact of CA on the development of major glands, to determine suitable addition proportions. Further optimization of the CA proportion involved feeding colonies and evaluating royal jelly production and quality. The results indicated that feed containing 0.75% CA significantly extended the lifespan of bees and increased their pollen consumption. Gland development in bees showed a positive correlation with CA addition within the range of 0.25% to 0.75%, especially at 0.50% and 0.75%, which notably accelerated the development of mandibular, hypopharyngeal, and cephalic salivary glands, with active proliferation and differentiation of glandular cells and maintenance of normal gland size and morphology. CA added to feed stimulated vigorous secretion of wax glands in worker bees, resulting in prolific wax construction. Colonies consuming feed containing 0.50% CA produced royal jelly with significantly reduced moisture and total sugar content and increased levels of 10-HDA, total phenolic acids, total proteins, and acidity. These findings demonstrate that CA consumption significantly prolongs bee lifespan, increases consumption, promotes gland development, and enhances royal jelly quality. This research provides theoretical guidance for beekeeping practices and feed development, contributing to the sustainable advancement of apiculture.

Genetic parameters, trends, and inbreeding in a honeybee breeding program for royal jelly production and behavioral traits

An economically sustainable production of royal jelly (RJ) requires the use of genetics specifically improved for this very demanding trait. The French Royal Jelly Association has developed since 2010 a selection plan for that purpose, based on a collective data recording system and the initial seedstock of five French beekeepers. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of this collective breeding program, a decade after its concrete start. We considered three different genetic models to describe the phenotypes, hereafter named the Colony, Worker, and Queen Models. We showed that when the size and the structure of the dataset are insufficient to fit a Colony Model, fitting a Queen Model gives more understandable results for practical use of the estimated breeding values than the Worker Model. Regarding genetic parameters, we estimated moderate to high heritability values for all traits, regardless of the genetic model. Under a Queen Model, heritability estimates of RJ production were 0.19 ± 0.09 and 0.35 ± 0.13 for first and second harvests, respectively; the estimates were 0.76 ± 0.08, 0.29 ± 0.09, and 0.22 ± 0.08, respectively, for the calmness, gentleness, and spring development of the colony. We also proved that the breeding program is efficient, increasing the production at second harvest of 3.5% per year on average. Attention must, however, be paid to the evolution of inbreeding in this very small breeding population. Few genetic correlations were significantly different from zero between the traits, due to large standard errors of our estimates. It is, however, worth to note that the trends were generally favorable between all traits, which appears encouraging to improve production and behavioral traits jointly in the breeding program.

Effects of Sucrose Feeding on the Quality of Royal Jelly Produced by Honeybee Apis mellifera L.

Royal jelly (RJ) is a highly nutritious secretion of the honeybees' hypopharyngeal glands (HPGs). During RJ production, colonies are occasionally subjected to manual interventions, such as sucrose feeding for energy supplementation. This study aimed to assess the impact of sucrose feeding on the composition of RJ. The results indicated that RJ obtained from sucrose-fed colonies exhibited significantly higher levels of fructose, alanine, glycine, tyrosine, valine, and isoleucine compared to the honey-fed group. However, no significant differences were observed in terms of moisture content, crude protein, 10-HDA, glucose, sucrose, minerals, or other amino acids within the RJ samples. Moreover, sucrose feeding did not have a significant effect on midgut sucrase activity, HPGs development, or the expression levels of MRJP1 and MRJP3 in nurse bees. Unsealed stored food samples from sucrose-fed bee colonies demonstrated significantly higher sucrose levels compared to sealed combs and natural honey. Additionally, natural honey exhibited higher moisture and Ca levels, as well as lower levels of Zn and Cu, in comparison to honey collected from bee colonies fed sucrose solutions. Based on these findings, we conclude that sucrose feeding has only a minor impact on the major components of RJ.

Uncovering untapped potentials: diversifying business may yield profitable earnings, yet it remains an overlooked strategy among beekeepers

Beekeeping is a rewarding business that offers numerous opportunities beyond just honey production. While most beekeepers are solely focused on honey production, this approach can be limiting due to the fluctuation of weather and market conditions. Therefore, it is essential to diversify your business by exploring other honey bee products and services. Our research investigated the beekeeping practices of 100 beekeepers from seven regions in southern Brazil to identify the most common practices and potential opportunities for diversification. Our study focused on ten major beekeeping practices, including products or services as honey, queen rearing, swarm, propolis, pollen, beeswax, royal jelly, sanitary control activity, digital technology enthusiasm, and migratory beekeeping. We used a semi-structured questionnaire consisting of 86 questions that were analysed with generalized Procrustes analysis and clustered heatmap. Overall, we found that honey production, digital technology enthusiasm, and migratory beekeeping are the most common beekeeping practices among beekeepers, regionally. Conversely, the exploitation of beeswax, pollen, swarm, and royal jelly production were relatively rare, creating opportunities for beekeepers looking to diversify their earnings and reduce competition. Additionally, our research revealed that certain regions have adopted specific beekeeping practices better than others, which suggests that there are possibilities for improvement and growth in the beekeeping industry. Finally, our research demonstrates the potential for beekeepers to diversify their business beyond just honey production. By exploring other honey bee products and services, beekeepers can reduce the impact of market limitations caused by weather and market fluctuations, ultimately creating a more resilient and profitable business.

Influence of Probiotics Feed Supplementation on Hypopharyngeal Glands Morphometric Measurements of Honeybee Workers Apis mellifera L.

More scientific study and methods that are compatible with the honeybee-specific probiotic bacteria are needed in modern beekeeping to increase the productivity and well-being of honeybees. The goal of the current study set out to investigate the possible effects of probiotics previously isolated from the honeybee intestinal tract and soybean patties on nurse worker bee hypopharyngeal gland (HPG) development. The experimentation was carried out in four different treatment groups in which probiotics and soybean patties were provided in different proportions, with control colonies. Results showed that there was a significant increase in HPG morphometric parameters of bees in all experimental groups. Control nurse worker fed with sugar syrup for only 2 weeks had the smallest HPG morphometric parameters. The highest HPG diameter 14.89 ± 0.097 µm and surface area 0.065 ± 0.001µm2 were observed in the bees group fed with both probiotic and soya patty. Additionally, the same trend was observed in all morphometric parameters with the bees group fed with probiotic bacteria and soya patty. More royal jelly can be produced by larger HPGs than by smaller ones. Thus, the use of probiotics as a natural alternative tool boosted the development of Apis mellifera nurse workers’ HPG that will positively affect the beekeepers’ economy by providing a higher yield of royal jelly production. Overall, the study’s findings show that probiotics are a useful feed supplement for honeybees.

The effect of the method of preservation of bee honey on the development of the pharyngeal gland in honey bees Apis mellifera L

Modern agricultural systems involve the use of large monocultures, which significantly limits the variety of flowers for bees. The article presents data on the biochemical composition of monofloral bee pollen and its influence on the development of pharyngeal glands in honey bees. The conducted studies give reason to believe that the protein content in bee pollen depends on the species origin and the preservation method. The studied samples for protein content show that its amount ranges from 11.9 to 24.9 %. The maximum amount of protein was found in fresh rapeseed and apple bee pollen. To study the influence of monofloral diets on the growth and development of the pharyngeal gland, 9 groups of analogous bee families were formed, 3 in each, which were fed three types of feed. The first type is fresh bee pollen from the following plants: apple tree, dandelion, winter rapeseed, buckwheat, clover, chestnut, raspberry. The second type is a similar bee pollen, only after a year of deep freezing storage. The ration of the third species consisted of the indicated bee pollen only in the process of harvesting it was dried. Along with this, the formed group of bee families was divided into two more subgroups. Some consumed mixed feed in equal proportions, others did not have any protein feed. The duration of the experiment was 15 days. On the 10th day, the development of acini of the pharyngeal gland was determined. The morphometry of the acini and the dynamics of vesicle filling indicate that the best indicators were found in the group of bees that consumed mixed bee pollen. A highly beneficial increase in the length and width of the acini of the pharyngeal gland was revealed by 36.4 and 34.7 % compared to bees that did not consume pollen at all. A group of bees that received fresh rapeseed and apple seed in their diet fully demonstrated their potential for royal jelly production. The worst development of the pharyngeal gland was found in the group of bees that consumed dried dandelion nectar. In this group of bees, the area of the acini ranged from 15.5 to 16.4 thousand μm2. The relationship between the protein content in the diet and the degree of development of the pharyngeal gland was revealed. Of the researched methods of its preservation, the conditions of deep freezing turned out to be the best. The use of experimental monofloral diets has a negative effect on the internal indicators of the body of honey bees. Key words: Apis mellifera L., pharyngeal gland, nutrition, protein, bee pollen, pollen storage.

Development of AI Based Larvae Transfer Machine for Royal Jelly Production

Honeybees produce many different products beneficial to humans. One of these of is royal jelly which is the bee product with highest nutritional value but is most difficult to produce. The most time-consuming procedure in royal jelly production involves removing larvae with ideal size from the honeycomb cells and transferring them to queen cups. In order to increase the speed of the larva transfer process and perform it without labor power, a machine autonomically performing larva transfer was developed in three stages. Firstly, a CNC platform that can move on three axes above the honeycomb was created. In the second stage, a camera device was developed to image the larvae and mounted on the platform. Later larvae were photographed with this device and labelled. Tagged photos have been quadrupled by data augmentation methods. A Mobiledet+SSDLite deep learning model was trained with these photographs and this model identified larvae with ideal size with 96% success. Additionally, the central points of the honeycomb cells were identified with the Hough circles method. In the third and final stage, a device which can transfer the identified larvae from the honeycomb cells to the queen cups was developed and mounted on the platform. Later general software controlling the platform and devices was developed. At the end of this study, for the first time in the literature, an artificial intelligence-supported machine was developed for automatic transfer of ideal larvae from natural honeycombs for royal jelly production.

The effects of different industrial sugars on royal jelly production

In this study, the larvae acceptance rate and the royal jelly yield in honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) colonies supplemented with different industrial sugars at different locations were determined. For this purpose, feeding groups (1. Sucrose group, 2. Glucose group, 3. Bee feed syrup group, 4. Control group) and locations (1. Battalgazi, 2. Doğanşehir) were formed. In queenless colonies that produce royal jelly, in order to sustain 5-15 day-old young feeder worker bees, two sealed frames with brood from support colonies were added. The royal jelly yield was harvested seven times. Based on the location, the feeding groups, and the location x feeding groups interaction, 12600 larvae were grafted, 9054 larvae were accepted, and the larvae acceptance rate was determined as 71.86%. Based on the location, feeding groups and the location x feeding group interaction, the yield per cell was calculated as 213.15 ± 11.53 mg/cell, the yield per colony as 6.88 ± 0.38 g/col./app., and the total yield per colony as 34.40 ± 1.91 g/colony. In the study, no statistically significant difference was determined between feeding with sucrose, bee feed and the supplementary feeding with glucose. On the other hand, it was determined that the location where the royal jelly was produced affected both the larvae acceptance and the royal jelly yield.

Investigation of Yield and Some Quality Features of Royal Jelly Harvested from Honeybee Colonies Fed with Food Substitutes

Objective: In several nations, royal jelly is used in apitherapy, healthful foods, and cosmetics. The production and quality of royal jelly collected from honeybee colonies are being worked on by researchers and beekeepers. This study investigated the effect of honey and pollen substitute feeding on the production efficiency of royal jelly. In addition, analyses were conducted to determine the differences between fed and unfed groups in terms of 10-hydroxy-2-deconoic acid (10-HDA), protein and pH characteristics, honey, and pollen substitute.Material and Methods: In this research, the influence of honey and pollen substitute feeding on royal jelly production was examined using the ANOVA test for multiple comparisons by forming 3 different groups and conducting 2 replications. Also, features of the 10- hydroxy-2-deconoic acid (10-HDA), protein and pH of the royal jelly was analyzed for understanding differences among the non-feeding pollen and honey substitute feeding groups.Results: The average RJ quantity per queen cup for non-feeding colonies (Group A) was 420 mg, while the content of 10-HDA, protein and pH were 2.40%, 14.06% and 4.20%, respectively. For the colonies fed with sugar syrup (Group B), these values were 470 mg, 2.51%, 12.88%, 4.25 and for the colonies fed with syrup+pollen substitute (Group C) 530 mg, 4.05%, 13.13% and 4.18. The statistical test and contents analysis highlighted the impact of substitute feeding on average quantity amounts and 10-HDA. According to the results of the research, average RJ amounts in queen cell cup was significantly different in three honey bee colonies feeding groups (p<0.05). Colonies fed with sugar syrup +pollen substitute (Group C) colonies were filled the queen cell cups more amount of RJ than non-feeding (Group A) and fed with sugar syrup (Group B) colonies were filled RJ in the queen cell cups with significantly different. In the study, the colony fed with the sugar syrup +pollen substitute showed almost double the amount of 10-HDA value in RJ than non-feeding and fed with sugar syrup colonies. Protein and pH values shows no differences among the groups.Conclusion: Even at times when nectar and pollen were available in nature, it was observed in this research that providing pollen substitution feed to honey bee colonies supported the output and quality of royal jelly.

A comparative transcriptome analysis of the head of 1 and 9 days old worker honeybees (Apis mellifera).

The role of bees in the environment, economic, biodiversity and pharmaceutical industries is due to its social behavior, which is oriented from the brain and hypopharyngeal gland that is the center of royal jelly (RJ) production. Limited studies have been performed on the head gene expression profile at the RJ production stage. The aim of this study was to compare the gene expressions in 9 and 1-day-old (DO) honeybee workers in order to achieve better understanding about head gene expression pattern. After sequencing of RNAs, transcriptome and their networks were compared. The head expression profile undergoes various changes. 1662 gene transcripts had differential expressions which 1125 and 537 were up and down regulated, respectively, in 9_DO compared with 1_DO honey bees. The day 1th had more significant role in the expression of genes related to RJ production as major RJ protein 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and 9 encoding genes, but their maximum secretion occurred at day 9th. All process related to hypopharyngeal glands activities as CYP450 gene, fatty acid synthase gene, vitamin B6 metabolism and some of genes involved in fatty acid elongation and degradation process had an upward trend from 1_DO and were age-dependent. By increasing the age, the activity of pathways related to immune system increased for keeping the health of bees against the chemical compound. The expression of aromatic amino acid genes involved in Phenylalanine, tyrosine and tryptophan biosynthesis pathway are essential for early stage of life. In 9_DO honeybees, the energy supplying, reducing stress, protein production and export pathways have a crucial role for support the body development and the social duties. It can be stated that the activity of honeybee head is focused on energy supply instead of storage, while actively trying to improve the level of cell dynamics for increasing the immunity and reducing stress. Results of current study identified key genes of certain behaviors of honeybee workers. Deeper considering of some pathways will be evaluated in future studies.

Retraction: Queen cells acceptance rate and royal jelly production in worker honey bees of two Apis mellifera races.

Retraction: Queen cells acceptance rate and royal jelly production in worker honey bees of two Apis mellifera races.

Comparative proteomics analysis of the head proteins of worker honey bees (Apis mellifera) in production stage of royal jelly

Honey bees can be evaluated to study their economic, developmental and immunity aspects. Apis mellifera has important organs such as the hypopharyngeal gland, mandibular gland and brain in their heads. The hypopharyngeal glands and mandibular glands cooperate to produce royal jelly essential in feeding queen honey bees and broods. Moreover, the brain is an organ that regulates the social behaviors of honey bees such as memory and learning. Therefore, this study aimed to detect differential head protein changes in one-day-old and nine-day-old worker honey bees. 153 repeatable protein spots were identified using Melanie software and statistically analyzed. Of the total protein spots, 27 responsive spots were identified using MALDI TOF-TOF mass spectrometry, of which 14 and 8 spots showed up and down regulation, respectively and five spots were expressed just in the head capsules of nine-day-old workers. All identified proteins were divided into 16 different groups involved in various growth-related processes as well as royal jelly augmentation. Nine proteins including KMT5B, TGIF2LX, Protein mono-ADP-ribosyltransferase PARP12, TCL1B4, maph-9, Vimentin-type intermediate filament-associated coiled-coil protein, HSP68, tetratricopeptide repeat domain 36 and POC1B were also identified and introduced for the first time in A. mellifera. This study provides valuable information on proteins involved in honey bee head growth and development as well as increasing royal jelly production.

The effect of fermented pollen supplements on the percentage of cell acceptance rate and royal jelly production in Iranian honey bees (Apis mellifera meda)

Royal jelly (RJ) is a yellowish-white substance secreted by the secretory glands of young worker bees to feed the larvae and the queen throughout its life. This study investigates the effect of fermented pollen supplementation on RJ production and cell acceptance rate in Iranian honey bees. The experiment was conducted in Marivan, Iran, for 30 days in the summer of 2020. Experimental treatments include (1) control (sugar syrup); (2) pollen cake (raw pollen, powdered sugar, and honey) + sugar syrup; (3) unfermented pollen supplement + sugar syrup; and (4) fermented pollen + sugar syrup. RJ production and cell acceptance rate were measured and estimated at different time intervals. The collected data were analyzed in a completely randomized design using SAS9.4 software using the GLM procedure. The results showed that different experimental treatments had a significant effect (p ≤ 0.05) on the amount of RJ produced. Among various treatments, the highest RJ production was related to the fourth treatment (12.53 g), and the control treatment (8.07 g) had the lowest production rate. In addition, the highest mean percentage of cell acceptance rate (97.58%) was related to the fermented pollen + sugar syrup treatment. The results showed a positive and high correlation between the two traits of cell acceptance rate and RJ production. In general, a fermented supplementary diet is more efficient than unfermented rations with the same ingredients, therefore recommendable for the apiculture industry.

Supplementation with Queen Bee Larva Powder Extended the Longevity of Caenorhabditis elegans.

Queen bee larva (QBL) is one kind of important edible insect that is harvested during royal jelly production process. QBL has many physiological functions; however, limited information is available regarding its antiaging effects. In this study, the antiaging function of freeze-dried QBL powder (QBLP) was investigated by combining the Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) model and transcriptomics. The administration of QBLP to C. elegans was shown to improve lifespan parameters. Additionally, QBLP improved the mobility of nematodes. Transcriptome analysis showed the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were significantly enriched in Gene Ontology (GO) terms that were almost all related to the biological functions of cell metabolism and stress, which are associated with lifespan. The Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis suggested that the lifespan of C. elegans was related to the longevity regulating pathway-worm. The expression levels of the key genes sod-3, gst-6, hsp-12.6, lips-7, ins-8, and lips-17 were upregulated. sod-3, hsp-12.6, lips-7, and lips-17 are downstream targets of DAF-16, which is an important transcription factor related to lifespan extension. CF1038 (daf-16(mu86)) supplemented with QBLP did not show a life-prolonging. This indicates that the antiaging function of QBLP is closely related to daf-16. Thus, QBLP is a component that could potentially be used as a functional material to ameliorate aging and aging-related symptoms.

Retraction: Evaluation of queen cell acceptance and royal jelly production between hygienic and non-hygienic honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies.

Retraction: Evaluation of queen cell acceptance and royal jelly production between hygienic and non-hygienic honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies.