Standardization method for toxicity tests in stingless bee larvae in laboratory conditions, and potential adverse effects from the larval food contaminated with the neonicotinoid thiamethoxam

• Grant number: 16/00328-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: August 01, 2016
• End date: July 31, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Zoology - Applied Zoology
• Principal Investigator: Osmar Malaspina
• Grantee: Annelise de Souza Rosa Fontana
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Rio Claro. Rio Claro , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 12/50197-2 - Action of products used in cultivation of sugar cane on non-target organisms, AP.BIOEN.TEM

Abstract

Toxicity tests for use in insecticides risk assessments on bees are carried out according to the guidelines established by the OECD. In Brazil, scientific research lacks standardized methods for the proposition regulatory policies regarding the protection of native pollinators, so that this information can be made available to the public and adopted as standard procedures in toxicity tests. In the country, so far, it is not used a model to estimate the risk exposure of bees to pesticides, and IBAMA uses as a basis for assessing, the North American approach. However, the North American model, as well as the OECD tests, present data particularly concerning the species A. mellifera, and in the Neotropics, currently there are 409 described species of social native bees. Thus, the use of A. mellifera as an ecological model for toxicity testing in Brazil has been questioned. Thus, considering the search for a proper planning of public policies for protection of native bees, and the need to establish representative species of native fauna of bees to be considered as model organisms, as well as the standardizing methods for the development of pesticide toxicity tests on these organisms, the aim of this project fits perfectly with the current needs for this purpose. In addition, we have proposed for this study, the use of neonicotinoid thiamethoxam, the active ingredient that, among the three that are currently in review process by IBAMA, has rules and authorization for aerial application on sugarcane, prevailing culture in São Paulo State.

Scientific publications

(7)

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

DORIGO, A. S.; ROSA-FONTANA, A. S.; CAMARGO, I. F.; NOCELLI, R. C. F.; MALASPINA, O.. Biological Data of Stingless Bees with Potential Application in Pesticide Risk Assessments. Sociobiology, v. 65, n. 4, SI, p. 777-779, OCT 2018. (16/00328-4)

DORIGO, ADNA SUELEN; ROSA-FONTANA, ANNELISE DE SOUZA; SOARES-LIMA, HELLEN MARIA; GALASCHI-TEIXEIRA, JULIANA STEPHANIE; FERREIRA NOCELLI, ROBERTA CORNELIO; MALASPINA, OSMAR. In vitro larval rearing protocol for the stingless bee species Melipona scutellaris for toxicological studies. PLoS One, v. 14, n. 3, MAR 20 2019. (16/00328-4)

MARENCO, LUDWING; CARMONA, HUMBERTO A.; CARDOSO, FELIPE MACIEL; ANDRADE, JR., JOSE S.; CESAR, CARLOS LENZ. Time evolution of the behaviour of Brazilian legislative Representatives using a complex network approach. PLoS One, v. 15, n. 2, FEB 5 2020. (16/00328-4, 11/51959-0)

ROSA-FONTANA, ANNELISE; DORIGO, ADNA SUELEN; GALASCHI-TEIXEIRA, JULIANA STEPHANIE; NOCELLI, ROBERTA C. F.; MALASPINA, OSMAR. What is the most suitable native bee species from the Neotropical region to be proposed as model-organism for toxicity tests during the larval phase?. Environmental Pollution, v. 265, p. 9-pg., 2020-10-01. (17/21097-3, 16/00328-4)

ROSA-FONTANA, ANNELISE; DORIGO, ADNA SUELEN; GALASCHI-TEIXEIRA, JULIANA STEPHANIE; NOCELLI, ROBERTA C. F.; MALASPINA, OSMAR. What is the most suitable native bee species from the Neotropical region to be proposed as model-organism for toxicity tests during the larval phase?. Environmental Pollution, v. 265, n. B, OCT 2020. (17/21097-3, 16/00328-4)

ROSA-FONTANA, ANNELISE DE SOUZA; DORIGO, ADNA SUELEN; SOARES-LIMA, HELLEN MARIA; FERREIRA NOCELLI, ROBERTA CORNELIO; MALASPINA, OSMAR. Is the Water Supply a Key Factor in Stingless Bees' Intoxication?. JOURNAL OF INSECT SCIENCE, v. 20, n. 6, NOV 12 2020. (16/00328-4, 17/21097-3)

DORIGO, A. S.; ROSA-FONTANA, A. S.; CAMARGO, I. F.; NOCELLI, R. C. F.; MALASPINA, O.. Biological Data of Stingless Bees with Potential Application in Pesticide Risk Assessments. Sociobiology, v. 65, n. 4, p. 3-pg., 2018-10-01. (16/00328-4)