Hive atmosphere

This paper summarizes the types of compounds found by our technique while biomonitoring for a variety of volatile and semi-volatile organic contaminant residues. Briefly, hive atmospheres were drawn through multibed sorption traps and subsequently analyzed by thermal desorption/gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (TD/GC/MS). 

A typical hive atmosphere chromatogram from our TD/GC/MS technique is shown in Figure 2.2. Identified compounds have been systematized into four categories, each with a summary table. Table 2.2 lists compounds reported as honey bee semiochemicals. Semiochemicals are produced in glands that secrete to the exterior of the insect, and include pheromones, which are chemicals used to communication between individuals of the same species. Table 2.3 consists of compounds associated with hive stores. Table 2.4 presents compounds emanating from materials and components from which beehives are assembled. Table 2.5 documents compounds arising from non-bee sources. Within each category, compounds have been listed in formula order. Table 2.6 contains selected levels for hazardous air pollutants that have been collected from hives in our studies in the vicinity of Chesapeake Bay, USA. 

Figure 2.2 Total ion chromatogram of a typical hive atmosphere sample. Seleeted peaks have been labeled with the identity of the compound and retention time in minutes. Seen here are eompounds from bees (nonanal at 34.57 min), from plant resins in propolis or hive boards (a-pinene at 28.24 min), and from non-bee eontaminants (toluene at 21.89 min and tetrachloroethene, PCE, at 23.69 min).

Compounds listed in Table 2.5 are released into the air by well-known, non-honey bee sources. As such, most of them have not previously been considered as part of the hive atmospheres in which colonies live. Hive atmosphere sampling, however, reveals that these compounds are intimately incorporated into the air reservoir used by hive residents. Thus, they should be included in discussions of honey bee ecosystems. 

Fossil-fueled vehicles give rise to emissions of unburned fuel and partially oxidized hydrocarbons [102,106]. Prominent are the BTEX suite of aromatics - benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes. These compounds are ubiquitous in the environment, present in essentially every hive atmosphere we test and often among the most prominent peaks in the chromatogram. To date, it has not been possible to position a bee colony that avoids capture of significant amounts of BTEX. We also detect more biorefractive fuel components in hive air - polycyclic aromatics and biphenyls commonly associated with diesel products [114]. Incompletely burned fuel residuals [102] were also evident as noted in the Oxygenates portion of Table 2.5. These comprised aldehydes, ketones, alcohols, and oxides. 

Figure 2.3 Perdeuterated taggants in hive atmosphere. Feeder syrup contained no taggant for points prior to 90 minutes. Taggant was only available for points between 90 and 200 minutes. Non-taggant syrup was restored for points beyond 200 minutes. Note that their presence is seen immediately in the first post-deployment interval and that they disappear within 1 hour of being removed.

This concern isn t entirely theoretical penicillins, quiescent affinity label as mentioned above, cause allergies (mostly skin rashes and hives) in about 2% of the patients who take them, and even potentially fatal anaphylaxis in a few, and toxicity is believed to proceed through this sort of mechanism. With the current atmosphere about drug safety, it s no wonder that many companies will only consider working on irreversible inhibitors where the benefits clearly outweigh the risks as in the case of cancer, in the context of tool compounds, or perhaps not at all. Had penicillin been discovered today quite a few companies might choose not to develop it. 

In the city of Modena, the levels of lead, chromium, nickel, and cadmium in the air (as measured by automatic detectors) were compared with those contained in honey, larvae, and pollen samples taken monthly from beehives situated in the vicinity of the detectors themselves. The findings cannot be considered conclusive, as the average monthly data recorded by the automatic detectors referred to a single point in the atmosphere whereas the beehive data were referable to the area around the hive visited by bees in a given month. Nonetheless, they showed that the fresh honey recently imported into the honey chamber was the matrix that best reflected the trend in lead contamination of the atmosphere, as recorded by the detectors [89]. It was also observed, again with regard to lead in the honey matrix, that the values provided by the detectors were a reliable anticipation of the biological data. In the same study, the authors also tried to estimate the ratio of the mean concentration of the various contaminants in honey (in Jig/kg) and that in the air (in pg/m ), which may be estimated as approximately 1000-2000 for lead and nickel, 2000-4000 for chromium, and 3000-5000 for cadmium [90]. 

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