deformed wing virus , DWV (Abkürzung)

Genetic tests also showed that both bees and flies were often infected with deformed wing virus and the fungus Nosema ceranae.

In this process, RNA viruses such as the deformed wing virus (DWV) spread to bees.

Deformed wing virus (DWV) is an RNA virus, one of 18 known viruses affecting the honey bee, Apis mellifera.

Deformed wing virus (DWV) is suspected of causing the wing and abdominal deformities often found on adult honeybees in colonies infested with Varroa mites.

These bees often suffer infestations of varroa mites, which are vectors for deformed wing virus, as a result, this virus has become one of the most widely distributed and contagious insect viruses on the planet.

According to a 2007 article, the mite Varroa destructor remains the world's most destructive honey bee killer, due in part to the viruses it carries including deformed wing virus and acute bee paralysis virus, which have both been implicated in CCD.

These researchers initially suggested a connection between Varroa destructor mite infestation and CCD, suggesting that a combination of these bee mites, deformed wing virus (which the mites transmit) and bacteria work together to suppress immunity and may be one cause of CCD.