> Honey bee samples collected between 1995 and 2007 from 12 states were examined for the presence of Nosema infections. Results showed that N. ceranae is the only Nosema species found to infect European honey bees from our widespread geographic collections in the United States. The results showed that all examined bees were negative for N. apis when amplified with specific N. apis primer pair.

> In an attempt to investigate the historical incidence of N. ceranae infection in European honey bees, we found infections of N. ceranae in samples collected during the period from 1995 to 2007 in the United States. The detection of N. ceranae in bees collected a decade ago indicated that N. ceranae is not a new emerging pathogen for European honey bees and in fact had transferred from its original host to Apis mellifera earlier than previously recognized.

> The discovery of N. ceranae in European honey bees raises several questions. First, assuming A. cerana was the original host of N. ceranae, when was the exact time that N. ceranae expanded its host range from A. cerana to A. mellifera? When did this displacement occur, or for how long has Nosema disease in the U.S. been misclassified as arising solely from N. apis. Indeed, is it possible that the parasite identified genetically as N. ceranae is in fact the historical source of this disease in the U.S.

Journal of Invertebrate Pathology. Volume 97, Issue 2, February 2008, Pages 186–188

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