A scientific note on the first detection of Israeli acute paralysis virus in honey bees (Apis mellifera) in Kenya using high-throughput sequencing

A number of viruses have been associated with honey bee (Apis mellifera) health and declines worldwide, although populations in Africa remain understudied. Viruses that are widespread in Europe and North America have previously been detected in African countries, however their prevalence in wild, unmanaged populations remains unclear. Here, we applied an unbiased high-throughput sequencing approach to test for the presence of known viruses in wild A. mellifera populations across Kenya and report the first identification of Israeli acute paralysis virus (IAPV). Comparison to North American populations revealed IAPV was less abundant in samples collected from Kenya, and phylogenetic analysis did not suggest evidence for multiple origins of the virus in sampled populations.