Genetic characterization of the honeybee ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor from Benin (West Africa) using mitochondrial and microsatellite markers.
Varroa destructor is one of the scourges of global beekeeping. It was detected for the first time in Benin in 2011 on the honeybee Apis mellifera adansonii. The aim of this study was to identify the strain of Varroa sp. found and study its genetic diversity. In total 183 Varroa mites were sampled in 21 municipalities in Benin. The COI intergenic region of each mite mtDNA was amplified by PCR. The SacI restriction enzyme was used to determine the strains of Varroa sp. Only the Korean (K) haplotype, identical to the most prevalent strain in Africa, was detected. Analysis of the genetic diversity of Varroa mites with eight microsatellite loci (Simple Sequence Repeats) indicated a very low diversity of genotypes. Thus, V. destructor populations from Benin appear to make up a single group. Their clonal wealth ranges from 0.00 to 0.47. This study is an important step forward in the monitoring of the infestation of V. destructor.
['Kelomey|Aude E|AE|', 'Paraiso|Armand|A|', 'Sina|Haziz|H|', 'Legout|Hélène|H|', 'Garnery|Lionel|L|', 'Baba-Moussa|Lamine|L|']
D000818:Animals D056630:Beekeeping D001516:Bees D001541:Benin D014644:Genetic Variation D018895:Microsatellite Repeats D057077:Varroidae
Varroa destructor Benin Microsatellite markers Apis mellifera Clonal species Mitochondrial DNA