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Abstract

Honey bees (Apis mellifera) play a critical role in the pollination of highbush blueberry crops, yet exposure to environmental stressors such as agrochemicals and pathogens poses significant risks to their health and colony sustainability. This study aimed to investigate the proteomic responses of honey bees during highbush blueberry pollination, focusing on agrochemical and pathogen stressors. Through large-scale field trials involving honey bee colonies placed near and far from highbush blueberry agriculture, coupled with caged bee trials, differential expression analysis and gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis were employed to identify proteomic changes. Although no significant proteomic differences were found between exposed and unexposed site types, timepoint and tissue-specific analyses revealed critical changes during the bloom and post-bloom periods, particularly in gut and head tissues. Gut tissues showed extensive metabolic and mitochondrial pathway enrichment, emphasizing their sensitivity to environmental stressors, while head tissues exhibited downregulation in pathways related to cognitive function and DNA repair. Agrochemical residue analysis identified significant pesticide contamination in both exposed and unexposed hives, particularly during bloom, with flupyradifurone and pyrimethanil being the most prominent residues. The study’s findings highlight the importance of managing agrochemical applications and addressing pathogen prevalence in blueberry agriculture. Future research should focus on sublethal effects of prominent pesticides, further characterization of pathogen dynamics, and more refined control experiments to better assess stressor impacts on honey bee health. This research provides crucial insights into the molecular mechanisms through which environmental stressors influence honey bee physiology, with broader implications for pollinator conservation and agricultural sustainability.