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A DNA Barcoding Approach to Characterize Pollen Collected by Honeybees

In the present study, we investigated DNA barcoding effectiveness to characterize honeybee pollen pellets, a food supplement largely used for human nutrition due to its therapeutic properties. We collected pollen pellets using modified beehives placed in three zones within an alpine protected area (...

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Autores principales: Galimberti, Andrea, De Mattia, Fabrizio, Bruni, Ilaria, Scaccabarozzi, Daniela, Sandionigi, Anna, Barbuto, Michela, Casiraghi, Maurizio, Labra, Massimo
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2014
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4190116/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25296114
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0109363
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author Galimberti, Andrea
De Mattia, Fabrizio
Bruni, Ilaria
Scaccabarozzi, Daniela
Sandionigi, Anna
Barbuto, Michela
Casiraghi, Maurizio
Labra, Massimo
author_facet Galimberti, Andrea
De Mattia, Fabrizio
Bruni, Ilaria
Scaccabarozzi, Daniela
Sandionigi, Anna
Barbuto, Michela
Casiraghi, Maurizio
Labra, Massimo
author_sort Galimberti, Andrea
collection PubMed
description In the present study, we investigated DNA barcoding effectiveness to characterize honeybee pollen pellets, a food supplement largely used for human nutrition due to its therapeutic properties. We collected pollen pellets using modified beehives placed in three zones within an alpine protected area (Grigna Settentrionale Regional Park, Italy). A DNA barcoding reference database, including rbcL and trnH-psbA sequences from 693 plant species (104 sequenced in this study) was assembled. The database was used to identify pollen collected from the hives. Fifty-two plant species were identified at the molecular level. Results suggested rbcL alone could not distinguish among congeneric plants; however, psbA-trnH identified most of the pollen samples at the species level. Substantial variability in pollen composition was observed between the highest elevation locality (Alpe Moconodeno), characterized by arid grasslands and a rocky substrate, and the other two sites (Cornisella and Ortanella) at lower altitudes. Pollen from Ortanella and Cornisella showed the presence of typical deciduous forest species; however in samples collected at Ortanella, pollen of the invasive Lonicera japonica, and the ornamental Pelargonium x hortorum were observed. Our results indicated pollen composition was largely influenced by floristic local biodiversity, plant phenology, and the presence of alien flowering species. Therefore, pollen molecular characterization based on DNA barcoding might serve useful to beekeepers in obtaining honeybee products with specific nutritional or therapeutic characteristics desired by food market demands.
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spelling pubmed-41901162014-10-10 A DNA Barcoding Approach to Characterize Pollen Collected by Honeybees Galimberti, Andrea De Mattia, Fabrizio Bruni, Ilaria Scaccabarozzi, Daniela Sandionigi, Anna Barbuto, Michela Casiraghi, Maurizio Labra, Massimo PLoS One Research Article In the present study, we investigated DNA barcoding effectiveness to characterize honeybee pollen pellets, a food supplement largely used for human nutrition due to its therapeutic properties. We collected pollen pellets using modified beehives placed in three zones within an alpine protected area (Grigna Settentrionale Regional Park, Italy). A DNA barcoding reference database, including rbcL and trnH-psbA sequences from 693 plant species (104 sequenced in this study) was assembled. The database was used to identify pollen collected from the hives. Fifty-two plant species were identified at the molecular level. Results suggested rbcL alone could not distinguish among congeneric plants; however, psbA-trnH identified most of the pollen samples at the species level. Substantial variability in pollen composition was observed between the highest elevation locality (Alpe Moconodeno), characterized by arid grasslands and a rocky substrate, and the other two sites (Cornisella and Ortanella) at lower altitudes. Pollen from Ortanella and Cornisella showed the presence of typical deciduous forest species; however in samples collected at Ortanella, pollen of the invasive Lonicera japonica, and the ornamental Pelargonium x hortorum were observed. Our results indicated pollen composition was largely influenced by floristic local biodiversity, plant phenology, and the presence of alien flowering species. Therefore, pollen molecular characterization based on DNA barcoding might serve useful to beekeepers in obtaining honeybee products with specific nutritional or therapeutic characteristics desired by food market demands. Public Library of Science 2014-10-08 /pmc/articles/PMC4190116/ /pubmed/25296114 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0109363 Text en © 2014 Galimberti et al http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are properly credited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Galimberti, Andrea
De Mattia, Fabrizio
Bruni, Ilaria
Scaccabarozzi, Daniela
Sandionigi, Anna
Barbuto, Michela
Casiraghi, Maurizio
Labra, Massimo
A DNA Barcoding Approach to Characterize Pollen Collected by Honeybees
title A DNA Barcoding Approach to Characterize Pollen Collected by Honeybees
title_full A DNA Barcoding Approach to Characterize Pollen Collected by Honeybees
title_fullStr A DNA Barcoding Approach to Characterize Pollen Collected by Honeybees
title_full_unstemmed A DNA Barcoding Approach to Characterize Pollen Collected by Honeybees
title_short A DNA Barcoding Approach to Characterize Pollen Collected by Honeybees
title_sort dna barcoding approach to characterize pollen collected by honeybees
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4190116/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25296114
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0109363
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