Corazonin responds to nutrient stress in and increases flight activity of Apis mellifera workers

Authors: OBERNERSSER, BETANY - Former ARS Employee; Snyder, Lucy; HOFFMAN, AMELIA - Former ARS Employee; BENNETT, MEGHAN - Former ARS Employee; Corby-Harris, Vanessa

Submitted to: Journal of Apicultural Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/27/2025
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: In order to reduce colony losses, we need to either remove the stressor or increase the colony’s tolerance when the stressor cannot be removed. The latter requires a basic understanding of how stress responses work in bees. Our objective was to determine whether one hormone, corazonin, is involved in the honey bee stress response. We found that the expression of the gene encoding the corazonin peptide was activated when bees were stressed by poor nutrition. We also found that injecting corazonin peptide into bees activated a typical colony-level stress-induced behavior: flight activity. We concluded that corazonin is involved in the honey bee stress response.

Technical Abstract: Honey bee colonies regularly fail due to a variety of stressors, and colony failure threatens food production. Colony health is increased by either removing the stressor or increasing the colony’s tolerance when the stressor cannot be completely removed. The latter requires a basic understanding of how stress responses work in bees. Here, we asked whether the neuropeptide corazonin responds to stress and activates a typical colony-level stress-induced behavior: flight activity. Corazonin gene expression increased with age and was higher in bees deprived of pollen. Bees injected with corazonin peptide also flew more at younger ages than control-injected bees. We hypothesize that the neuropeptide hormone corazonin is one part of the honey bee stress response.