Gut microbiota-driven regulation of queen bee ovarian metabolism

With the global prevalence of Varroa mites, more and more beekeepers resort to confining the queen bee in a queen cage to control mite infestation or to breed superior and robust queen bees. However, the impact of such practices on the queen bee remains largely unknown. Therefore, we subjected the queen bees to a 21-d egg-laying restriction treatment (from the egg stage to the emergence of adult worker bees) and analyzed the queen bees' ovarian metabolites and gut microbiota after 21 d, aiming to assess the queen bee's quality and assist beekeepers in better hive management. Our findings revealed a significant reduction in the relative expression levels of Vg and Hex110 genes in the ovaries of egg-laying-restricted queen bees compared to unrestricted egg-laying queens. The diversity of gut microbiota in the queen bee exhibited a notable decrease, accompanied by corresponding changes in the core bacterial species of the microbial community. Following egg-laying restriction, the activity of the queen bee's ovaries decreased, while the metabolism of glycerophospholipids remained or stored more lipid molecules, awaiting environmental changes for the queen bee to resume egg-laying promptly. Furthermore, we observed that Bombella in the queen bee's gut may regulate the queen's ovarian metabolism through tryptophan metabolism. These findings provide novel insights into the interplay among queen egg-laying, gut microbiota, and ovarian metabolism.