Apis mellifera campionatore di particolato atmosferico (PM) e contaminazione dei prodotti apistici

[Autom. eng. transl.] The honey bee (Apis mellifera L.), in addition to providing ecosystem services for regulation and supply, is also a well-known bioindicator of the state of health of the environment. During pollen and nectar foraging activities, bees can also collect various environmental pollutants such as heavy metals, pesticides, radionuclides and volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which can then concentrate in hive products such as honey and pollen. Recent studies have confirmed that hives can be excellent tools for monitoring airborne airborne particulates as well. These particles, known as PM (particulate matter), can have nanometric dimensions and have a natural or anthropic origin. In the present work we demonstrate that beehive products, such as honey and pollen, deriving from bee families living in heavily anthropized environments can be contaminated with PM. The research examined an area with a high environmental impact, corresponding to an industrial area of the Municipality of Parma. The study hive was located near a highway (Autostrada del Sole A1) and a waste-to-energy plant. PM (single particle analysis) analyzes were carried out on the wings and pollen taken from the pollen pockets of foraging bees using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with an X-ray energy dispersion microprobe (EDX), in order to characterize the morphology, the dimensions and the chemical composition of the powders. The analyzes were also carried out on a honey sample from the same bee family and in particular on the sediment extracted from the sugar matrix of the product. In all cases, wings, pollen and honey showed both natural and anthropogenic particles. Among the former we mention minerals of the phyllosilicate family, while among the latter we have found powders of different sizes, fine (<2.5 µm) and ultrafine (<0.1 µm), such as spherical or subspherical particles of silicon dioxide or iron produced by high temperature combustion such as those typical of waste-to-energy plants; or barium sulphate and titanium dioxide, common constituents of the vehicle braking system and which could therefore derive from motorway traffic. In conclusion it is possible to affirm that also the products of the bees can be contaminated by the inorganic particulate present in the environment. Further studies for a toxicological evaluation of the different compounds against bees and on the possible toxicological impact on humans of contaminated hive products are therefore necessary.