USDA-ARS

This method explains how to build and operate a continuous ¹³C and ¹⁵N isotope labeling chamber for uniform or differential plant tissue labeling. Representative results from metabolic and structural labeling of Andropogon gerardii are discussed.

Here are methods to quantify nutrients in pollen before and after its conversion to beebread by two subspecies of honeybees. We describe techniques to measure beebread consumption and resulting protein titers in both subspecies.

Microbial consortia within bumble bee hives enrich and preserve pollen for bee larvae. Using next generation sequencing, along with laboratory and field-based experiments, this manuscript describes protocols used to test the hypothesis that fungicide residues alter the pollen microbiome, and colony demographics, ultimately leading to colony loss.

This paper describes nitric oxide (NO) fumigation protocols for postharvest pest control. Fumigation chambers are flushed with nitrogen (N₂) to establish ultralow oxygen conditions before NO is injected. At the end, chambers are flushed with N₂ to dilute NO before exposing products to ambient air to prevent exposure to NO₂.

Fungicide sprays on flowering plants may expose solitary bees to high concentrations of pollen-borne fungicide residues. Using laboratory-based experiments involving in vitro-reared bee larvae, this study investigates the interactive effects of consuming fungicide-treated pollen derived from host and non-host plants.

The presented method creates natural herbivore damaged plant tissue through the application of Manduca sexta larvae to detached leaves of potato. The plant tissue is assayed for expression of six transcription factor homologs involved in early responses to insect herbivory.

Flight mills are important tools for comparing how age, sex, mating status, temperature, or various other factors may influence an insect’s flight behavior. Here we describe protocols to tether and measure the flight propensity and performance of western corn rootworm under different treatments.

By running the Pathway Association Study Tool (PAST), either through the Shiny application or through the R console, researchers can gain a deeper understanding of the biological meaning of their genome-wide association study (GWAS) results by investigating the metabolic pathways involved.

This protocol was developed to enhance the understanding of how agrochemicals affect honey bee (Apis mellifera) reproduction by establishing methods to expose honey bee queens and their worker caretakers to agrochemicals in a controlled, laboratory setting and carefully monitoring their relevant responses.