Expressão gênica diferencial de abelhas Apis mellifera expostas a diferentes agrotóxicos: integração de informações por meio da construção de uma base de dados e identificação de assinaturas moleculares dos efeitos adversos

Abstract

Pesticides are utilized across diverse environments, including urban, industrial, agricultural, and livestock settings. Despite their effectiveness in pest control, pesticides exert detrimental effects on ecosystems and various organisms, notably pollinators like Apis mellifera bees. Responsible for pollinating approximately 73% of the world's cultivated plant species, A. mellifera has encountered Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), partly attributed to pesticide usage. To investigate these effects, molecular biology techniques such as transcriptome sequencing (RNA-Seq) have gained prominence. Numerous studies employing RNA-Seq have examined changes in gene expression profiles across different castes, tissues, and developmental stages of A. mellifera exposed to varied pesticides, encompassing diverse dosages and administration methods. While studies vary in approach, methodology, and sample selection, consolidating data from 22 scientific articles reveals that pesticides influence the expression of approximately 52.8% of the species' total genes. Additionally, our analysis underscores significant genes, biological processes, molecular functions, and metabolic pathways affected by pesticides. These findings are anticipated to support the development of diagnostic methods for assessing pesticide exposure, accounting for potential co-exposures and their cumulative impacts, reflective of real-world conditions faced by bees and other vulnerable pollinators in their natural habitats.