In nature, honeybees are the most important pollinators. They play a vital role in both protecting the diversity of natural ecosystems, and maintaining the yield-improving effects of agroecosystems. But in recent years, epidemic disease in bees has caused huge losses. Black Queen Cell Virus (BQCV) is a bee pathogen that was first reported in 1955. It mainly infects bee larvae and pupae, making their bodies turn dark and black, and causing a massive decrease in the bee population. More specifically, the virus makes the exterior of the cell walls in the larvae and pupae turn black. BQCV is a seasonal epidemic, spread by means horizontal and vertical transmission, and is often unapparent. BQCV not only infects a variety of bee species, but also spiders, centipedes and other arthropods. It can also be coinfected with other honeybee viruses. In recent years, research has shown that the Nosema intestinal parasite plays an important role in BQCV transmission and bees carrying Nosema that become infected with BQCV have increased mortality. Here we summarize current research on the incidence, prevalence, geographical distribution and transmission of BQCV.
Animals ; Bees ; virology ; Dicistroviridae ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; physiology ; Insect Viruses ; classification ; genetics ; isolation & purification ; physiology

Although silver is known to be a broad-spectrum biocidal agent, the effects of this metal against Sacbrood virus have not yet been investigated. In this study, we evaluated the efficacy of silver ions against natural Korean sacbrood virus (KSBV) infection of Apis (A.) cerana. Ten KSBV-infected colonies containing A. cerana with similar strength and activity were selected from an apiary located in Bosung-gun (Korea). Among these, five colonies were randomly assigned to the treatment group that was fed sugar syrup containing 0.2 mg/L silver ions. The other colonies were assigned to the untreated control group in which bees were given syrup without the silver ions. To assess the efficacy of the silver ions, colony strength, colony activity, and the number of dead larvae per hive were measured. During the experimental period, the test group maintained its strength and activity until day 32 while those of bees in the control group decreased sharply after day 8 to 16. Survival duration of the test group was significantly longer (40 days) than that of the control group (21 days). These results strongly indicated that silver ions are effective against KSBV infection in A. cerana.
Animals ; Antiviral Agents/*pharmacology ; Beekeeping ; Bees/*virology ; Ions/pharmacology ; RNA Viruses/*drug effects ; Republic of Korea ; Silver/*pharmacology