Effect of royal jelly on longevity and memory-related traits of Apis mellifera workers

Abstract

Royal jelly (RJ) is a key factor for honey bee caste determination. The queen bee is fed with RJ by worker bees throughout her life, while the worker bees eat bee bread themselves. This study was designed to explore the effect of nutrient-rich RJ on longevity and learning and memory abilities of workers of the western honey bee Apis mellifera. The newly emerged worker bees were randomly divided into three groups and were fed 50% sucrose solution containing 0%, 10%, and 20% RJ. We found that worker bees fed with 10% and 20% RJ showed significantly improved longevity and higher proboscis extension response success rate compared to bees fed with 50% sucrose containing 0% RJ. Additionally, bees fed with 20% RJ showed significantly higher level of expression of memory related genes (GluRA and Nmdar1) compared to the control group. Furthermore, expression of the Nmdar1 gene of worker bees fed with 10% RJ was also significantly higher than in the control group. These results indicate that RJ has potential effects on the longevity and learning and memory abilities of A. mellifera.