Parasitic Effects of Varroa destructor (Acari: Varroidae) on Hypopharyngeal Glands of Africanized Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera: Apidae)

The mite Varroa destructor (Anderson & Truemann 2000) (Acari: Varroidae) is one of the most studied parasites of Apis mellifera, as it causes many losses in apicultural business worldwide. Several research studies have demonstrated distinct levels of virulence of the mite and increased colony mortality rates due to its infestation; however only a few studies report the mite's effects on specific tissues, glands or other organs in bees. In this context, this study was conducted with the aim of studying the parasitic effect of the mite V. destructor on hypopharyngeal glands of Africanized A. mellifera. Mean gland cell areas for bees with and without mite infestations were significantly different. Variations in the number of vesicles and the presence of reduced-size glands and abundant nuclei were also observed. The secretion produced by the hypopharyngeal glands is important to the development of the broods and queen nutrition, thus a decrease in secretion production has a negative effect in the colony fitness as a whole.