Toxic “forever chemicals” can accumulate in honeybee colonies and transfer to their honey, and potentially threaten food security and human health, Australian scientists warn in a new study.
These chemicals, called perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS), are widely used in stain-resistant fabrics, non-stick cookware, firefighting foams, and electronics, and persist in the environment as they do not break down easily.
Studies have shown that PFOS are associated with health risks, including high cholesterol and liver enzyme changes.
Now, researchers have monitored the effects of PFOS on European honeybee colonies in Australia (Apis mellifera) and found that prolonged exposure can change the expression of some key proteins responsible for cell function in honeybees.
“PFOS was detected in the body tissue of the new generation of juvenile bees, and these showed a lower body weight than the control bees without PFOS exposure,” said Carolyn Sonter, an author of the study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology.
Scientists suspect PFOS may also affect the bees’ royal jelly, a nutrient-dense liquid that’s used to feed larvae.
If its quality is reduced, future generations can be adversely affected, compromising the health and longevity of the entire bee colony.
“A lower body weight indicates a smaller bee with smaller glands, including the hypopharyngeal gland, which produces royal jelly to feed the next generation of bees,” Dr Sonter said.
Prolonged exposure on a larger scale may lead to honeybee populations gradually decreasing and negatively affect the pollination of crops, researchers warn.
“Any threat to bees threatens food security,” Dr Sonter said.
“Most agricultural crops rely on bees for pollination, and without them, production of foods like berries, fruit, and most vegetables would be severely reduced,” he said.
Although PFOS is banned in many parts of the world, legacy contamination from the past may still harm bees.
Bees could be exposed to the toxic chemical via contaminated dust, water, paint on bee hives, crop protection products and pollen from plants growing in contaminated soil and water, researchers say.
“The legacy of PFOS is permanent, at least in our lifetime,” Dr Sonter said.
“One way to reduce PFAS risks to bees at home is to avoid using crop protection products that contain PFAS in gardens – many do!” he added.
In further studies, scientists hope to better understand the exposure pathways for bees in the field.
“Even though bees are such an important insect, they’re poorly researched and understood when it comes to threats from environmental contaminants,” Dr Sonter said.
Source: independent.co.uk