Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt
Markus Brinkmann
School of Environment and Sustainability, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5C8, Canada
Christie M. Sayes
Department of Environmental Sciences, Baylor University, Waco, TX 76798-7266, USA
Saad N. AL-Kahtani
Laboratory of Bio-Control and Molecular Biology, Department of Arid Land Agriculture, College of Agricultural and Food Sciences, King Faisal University, Hofuf 31982, Saudi Arabia
Showket A. Dar
Division of Agricultural Entomology, KVK-Kargil II, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, Srinagar 191111, India
Hesham R. El-Seedi
International Research Center for Food Nutrition and Safety, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China
Bernd Grünewald
Institut für Bienenkunde, Polytechnische Gesellschaft Frankfurt am Main, Goethe-Universität, 61440 Oberursel, Germany
John P. Giesy
Toxicology Centre, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5B3, Canada
Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous and persistent pollutants, and have been detected in a wide variety of media, from soils to aquatic systems. MPs, consisting primarily of polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyacrylamide polymers, have recently been found in 12% of samples of honey collected in Ecuador. Recently, MPs have also been identified in honey bees collected from apiaries in Copenhagen, Denmark, as well as nearby semiurban and rural areas. Given these documented exposures, assessment of their effects is critical for understanding the risks of MP exposure to honey bees. Exposure to polystyrene (PS)-MPs decreased diversity of the honey bee gut microbiota, followed by changes in gene expression related to oxidative damage, detoxification, and immunity. As a result, the aim of this perspective was to investigate whether wide-spread prevalence of MPs might have unintended negative effects on health and fitness of honey bees, as well as to draw the scientific community’s attention to the possible risks of MPs to the fitness of honey bees. Several research questions must be answered before MPs can be considered a potential threat to bees.
