Miloslav Brejcha

@bc.cas.cz

Insitute of Entomology, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Laboratory of Telomere Research
Biology Centre CAS

RESEARCH, TEACHING, or OTHER INTERESTS

Molecular Biology, Genetics, Physiology
4

Scopus Publications

Scopus Publications

  • Multilevel impact of cocaine on honeybees: From neurochemistry and mitochondrial dysfunction to superorganism
    Dalibor Kodrík, Jan Černý, Jana Jemelková, Petr Kozel, Michala Sábová, et al.
    Biomedicine and Pharmacotherapy, 2026
  • Telomeres and telomerase: active but complex players in life-history decisions
    Radmila Čapková Frydrychová, Barbora Konopová, Vratislav Peska, Miloslav Brejcha, Michala Sábová
    Biogerontology, 2024
  • Seasonal changes in ultrastructure and gene expression in the fat body of worker honey bees
    Miloslav Brejcha, Daniela Prušáková, Michala Sábová, Vratislav Peska, Jan Černý, et al.
    Journal of Insect Physiology, 2023
  • Seasonality in telomerase activity in relation to cell size, DNA replication, and nutrients in the fat body of Apis mellifera
    Justina Koubová, Michala Sábová, Miloslav Brejcha, Dalibor Kodrík, Radmila Čapková Frydrychová
    Scientific Reports, 2021
    In honeybees (Apis mellifera), the rate of aging is modulated through social interactions and according to caste differentiation and the seasonal (winter/summer) generation of workers. Winter generation workers, which hatch at the end of summer, have remarkably extended lifespans as an adaptation to the cold season when the resources required for the growth and reproduction of colonies are limited and the bees need to maintain the colony until the next spring. In contrast, the summer bees only live for several weeks. To better understand the lifespan differences between summer and winter bees, we studied the fat bodies of honeybee workers and identified several parameters that fluctuate in a season-dependent manner. In agreement with the assumption that winter workers possess greater fat body mass, our data showed gradual increases in fat body mass, the size of the fat body cells, and Vg production as the winter season proceeded, as well as contrasting gradual decreases in these parameters in the summer season. The differences in the fat bodies between winter and summer bees are accompanied by respective increases and decreases in telomerase activity and DNA replication in the fat bodies. These data show that although the fat bodies of winter bees differ significantly from those of summer bees, these differences are not a priori set when bees hatch at the end of summer or in early autumn but instead gradually evolve over the course of the season, depending on environmental factors.