RT Journal Article SR Electronic T1 Variation in hemolymph content and properties among three Mediterranean bee species JF bioRxiv FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory SP 2023.12.22.573070 DO 10.1101/2023.12.22.573070 A1 Elfar, Salma A. A1 Bahgat, Iman M. A1 Shebl, Mohamed A. A1 Lihoreau, Mathieu A1 Tawfik, Mohamed M. YR 2023 UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2023/12/23/2023.12.22.573070.abstract AB Hemolymph, as mediator of immune responses and nutrient circulation, can be used as physiological marker of an insect’s health, environmental quality or ecological adaptations. Recent studies reported intraspecific variation in protein contents and biological activities of the hemolymph of honey bees related to their diet. Here we measured interspecific variation in three common bee species in the Mediterranean Basin with contrasting ecologies: Apis mellifera, Chalicodoma siculum, and Xylocopa pubescens. Despite all the bees were collected in the same area, we found important quantitative and qualitative variations of hemolymph extracts across species. Samples of A. mellifera and C. siculum had much higher protein concentration, anticancer, antimicrobial and antoxidant activities than samples of X. pubescens. This first descriptive study suggests life history traits of bee species have strong influences on their hemolymph properties and call for future large scale comparative analyses across more species and geographical areas.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.