Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41709129›Full record

ArticleBMC genomics2026

Whole-genome sequencing of Apis mellifera lamarckii: first comprehensive genomic atlas of Egyptian honeybees reveals pathogen resistance mechanisms and local adaptation signatures.

Tarek Essa Abd El-Wahab, Elsayed E Hafez, Mohammad Mohammad Bedewy, Ashraf S Sherif, Marwa B M Gomaa, Ramy E El-Ansary, Mohamed Kandel, Ayman M M Ghania, Khaled M A Abdel-Hameed, Ahmed Ali Shaheen and 1 more

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Article in BMC genomics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

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2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Tarek Essa Abd El-Wahab *Department of Pests and Plant Protection, Agricultural and Biological Research Institute, National Research Centre. Dokki, Giza, Egypt.
Elsayed E HafezPlant Protection and Biomolecular Diagnosis Department, Arid Lands Cultivation Research Institute, City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA-City), Alexandria, 21934, Egypt. elsayed_hafez@yahoo.com.
Mohammad Mohammad BedewyPlant Protection Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt.
Ashraf S SherifDepartment of Bee Research, Plant Protection Research Institute, Agricultural Research Centre, Giza, 12627, Egypt.
Marwa B M GomaaDepartment of Bee Research, Plant Protection Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center Dokki, Giza, Egypt.
Ramy E El-AnsaryZoology and Entomology Department, Faculty of Science, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt.
Mohamed KandelPlant Protection and Biomolecular Diagnosis Department, Arid Lands Cultivation Research Institute, City of Scientific Research and Technological Applications (SRTA-City), Alexandria, 21934, Egypt.
Ayman M M GhaniaHonybees Department, Plant Protection Institute, Agricultural Research Center, Dokki, Giza, Egypt.
Khaled M A Abdel-HameedApiculture Department, Plant Protection Institute, Agricultural Research Center, Dokki, Giza, Egypt.
Ahmed Ali ShaheenPlant Protection Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt.
Ahmed A Saleh *Animal and Fish Production Department, Faculty of Agriculture (Al-Shatby), Alexandria University, Alexandria, 11865, Egypt. elemlak1339@gmail.com.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

This study presents the first comprehensive genomic atlas of Egypt’s native honeybee, Apis mellifera lamarckii. Along with the Morphometric Assessment, a thorough examination of A. m. lamarckii workers and taxonomical characterization was conducted. Using PacBio long-read sequencing and Hi-C scaffolding, we generated a chromosome-scale genome assembly, revealing unique adaptations underlying its resilience to pathogens and arid climates. Key genomic findings revealed a triple-copy amplification of the Defensin-1 (Def-1) gene, providing a structural basis for its natural resistance to Varroa destructor mites. Transcriptomic profiling under pesticide stress confirmed functional consequences, showing dramatic upregulation of SFCYP5 (> 110-fold) and Def-1 (> 50-fold), alongside trade-offs including ABA suppression (0.01-fold). Morphometric analysis of 120 workers confirmed distinct physical traits, including smaller body size (proboscis: 5.45–5.46 mm; hindwing length: ~6.01 mm) and reduced colony sizes compared to European subspecies. Whole-genome resequencing identified structural variants near immune loci (Def-1 and Hymenoptaecin) and detoxification genes (SFCYP family), with significant enrichment in pathogen-recognition pathways (KEGG map04626; p < 0.0001. These results resolve A. m. lamarckii’s evolutionary divergence and provide critical genomic tools for conserving its unique adaptations amid hybridization threats.

Indexed as

Adaptation, PhysiologicalDisease ResistanceGenome, InsectGenomicsWhole Genome SequencingAnimalsBeesEgyptGene Expression ProfilingTranscriptomeApis mellifera lamarckiiGene expressionGenomic atlas

Identifiers

PMID41709129
PMCPMC12934041

What Socratic holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.