Effects of clothianidin on antioxidant enzyme activities and malondialdehyde level in honey bee drone semen
Résumé
Neonicotinoids can cause a variety of adverse sublethal effects in workers and queens honey bees. However, despite their key role in reproduction, drones have not received much attention on how neonicotinoids can affect their fertility. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of clothianidin exposure of drones at sexual maturity stage, on antioxidant enzyme activities, malondialdehyde (MDA) level and on protein content of semen. Our results show for the first time that clothianidin elicits significant increases in superoxide dismutase, of glutathione peroxidase, of catalase and of MDA level. Protein content in semen of drones exposed to clothianidin was significantly decreased. This study suggested that drones exposed to clothianidin at the stage of sexual maturity could induce oxidative stress in spermatozoa of drones which could affect the semen quality and therefore the queen fecundity.