0000000000089783
AUTHOR
Pau Calatayud-vernich
Beeswax cleaning by solvent extraction of pesticides
We set out to test if the methodology used to clean sheep wool wax (Lanolin) from pesticides could be used to clean beeswax as well. We first made an aggregate sample of brood comb wax from three different US beekeepers. Sub-samples of these aggregate wax samples were analyzed for pesticide contamination. The remaining wax, was then dissolved into hexane solution and run through four N, N-Dimethylformamide (DMF) washes. During these extractions, the pesticides partitioned into the DMF, and so were removed from the beeswax. Following the solvent extractions, the beeswax was tested again for pesticides. An average of 95% of the pesticide contamination was removed by the chemical wash procedur…
Pesticide analysis in coffee leaves using a quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe approach and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry: Optimization of the clean-up step.
An analytical method using a quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged and safe (QuEChERS) procedure for multi-residue determination of 52 pesticides in coffee leaf extractshas been developed and validated according to SANTE/11945/2015 guidelines. Different sorbent combinations for dispersive solid phase extraction (d-SPE) clean-up as well as dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) were tested. The relative standard deviations (RSDs) for the recovery of 87-94% of pesticides added to coffee leaf extracts,was ≤20% for samples spiked at concentrations up to 50ng*g-1 depending on the clean-up procedures. However, samples spiked with a 100ng*g-1 pesticide mixture gave RSDs>20% for most pest…
Pesticide residues in honey bees, pollen and beeswax: Assessing beehive exposure
In order to study the distribution of pesticide residues in beekeeping matrices, samples of live in-hive worker honey bees (Apis mellifera), fresh stored pollen and beeswax were collected during 2016–2017 from 45 apiaries located in different landscape contexts in Spain. A total of 133 samples were screened for 63 pesticides or their degradation products to estimate the pesticide exposure to honey bee health through the calculation of the hazard quotient (HQ). The influence of the surrounding environment on the content of pesticides in pollen was assessed by comparing the concentrations of pesticide residues found in apiaries from intensive farming landscapes to those found in apiaries loca…
Efficiency of QuEChERS approach for determining 52 pesticide residues in honey and honey bees
A comparison between QuEChERS and other pesticide extraction procedures for honey and honey bee matrices is discussed. Honey bee matrix was extracted by solvent based procedure whereas solid phase extraction was the protocol for the honey matrix. The citrate buffered QuEChERS method was used for both matrices. The methods were evaluated regarding cost (equipment and reagents), time, accuracy, precision, sensitivity and versatility. The results proved that the QuEChERS protocol was the most efficient method for the extraction of the selected pesticides in both matrices. QuEChERS is the most economical and less time-consuming procedure.SPE and solvent-based extraction procedures show equivale…
Occurrence of pesticide residues in Spanish beeswax
Beeswax from Spain was collected during 2016 to determine pesticide residues incidence. The 35 samples were divided in foundation, old combs, cappings or virgin beeswax to compare pesticide content between groups. Wax was screened for 58 pesticides or their degradation products by QuEChERS extraction and liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Beeswax was uniformly contaminated with acaricides and, to a much lesser extent, with insecticide and fungicide residues. Virgin followed by cappings were less contaminated than foundation and old combs beeswax. The miticides applied in-hive had a contribution to average pesticide load higher than 95%. Compounds widely used as acaricides, …
Influence of pesticide use in fruit orchards during blooming on honeybee mortality in 4 experimental apiaries
Samples of dead honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) were collected periodically from 4 different locations during citrus and stone fruit trees blooming season to evaluate the potential impact of agrochemicals on honey bee death rate. For the determination of mortality, dead honey bee traps were placed in front of the experimental hives entrance located in areas of intensive agriculture in Valencian Community (Spain). A total of 34 bee samples, obtained along the monitoring period, were analyzed by means of QuEChERS extraction method and screened for 58 pesticides or their degradation products by LC-MS/MS. An average of four pesticides per honey bee sample was detected. Coumaphos, an organophosph…
Neonicotinoids in excretion product of phloem-feeding insects kill beneficial insects
Significance The use of insecticides in agriculture is one of the suggested causes of the decline in insect populations. Neonicotinoids are among the most widely used insecticides. However, they have important negative side effects, especially for pollinators and other beneficial insects feeding on floral nectar and pollen. We identified an exposure route: Neonicotinoids reach and kill beneficial insects when they feed on the most abundant carbohydrate source for insects in agroecosystems, honeydew. Honeydew is the excretion product of phloem-feeding hemipteran insects such as aphids, mealybugs, whiteflies, or psyllids. This route of exposure is likely to affect a much wider range of benefi…
A two-year monitoring of pesticide hazard in-hive: High honey bee mortality rates during insecticide poisoning episodes in apiaries located near agricultural settings.
Pesticide residues in beebread, live and dead honey bees, together with honey bee death rate were monitored from June 2016 to June 2018 in three apiaries, located near agricultural settings and in wildlands. Dead honey bees were only collected and analyzed when significant mortality episodes occurred and pesticide content in beeswax of each experimental apiary was evaluated at the beginning of the study. Samples were extracted by a modified QuEChERS procedure and screened for pesticides residues by liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Pesticide hazard in the samples was evaluated through the hazard quotient approach (HQ). Beebread was widely contaminated with coumaphos and am…