Microsatellite-Based Genetic Characterization of Honeybees from the Ordu Region, Türkiye

Abstract

This study aimed to characterize the genetic structure of the honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) population in Ordu Province, Türkiye, using microsatellite markers and to compare it with five regional reference populations. Worker bees were sampled from 50 colonies in 2023 and genotyped at fifteen polymorphic microsatellite loci. Genetic diversity parameters, including allele numbers, heterozygosity levels, polymorphic information content, genetic distances, and molecular variance, were calculated. The Ordu population exhibited high allelic diversity (mean observed allele number= 14.0; mean effective allele number= 9.11) and high marker informativeness (mean polymorphic information content= 0.8276). The mean expected heterozygosity (0.8445) exceeded the observed heterozygosity (0.5920). Pairwise genetic distances between Ordu and other populations ranged from 1.96 to 2.62, indicating marked genetic differentiation. Molecular variance analysis showed that 19.09% of total genetic variation was attributed to differences among populations. Multivariate and clustering analyses consistently demonstrated that the Ordu population formed a distinct genetic cluster. These findings suggest that the Ordu honey bee population represents a regionally differentiated genetic unit within the Anatolian honey bee lineage, emphasizing the importance of regulated queen exchange and region-based conservation strategies.

Keywords

• Allelic diversity
• heterozygosity
• AMOVA
• Nei’s genetic distance
• regional gene

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