Honey Bee Health Challenges – Gut Microbiome Is A New Biological Solution

Honey bees are friends of the earth. These lovely little creatures are vital for a healthy environment & healthy economy. Honey bees are known for their elaborate hives & are responsible for building homes for millions of insects & animals as well. Though being the most important pollinators, the bee population is declining all around the world. Did you ever think about the reason behind this decline?

Varroa destructor or varroa mite is the major factor that has caused a great decline in the honey bee population. Several methods add to the sensational impact of Varroa on honey bee populaces, including the direct impact of their feeding capabilities on immature honey bees. Though several chemical & other methods have controlled these parasites, the problem has become worse as these mites are developing resistance that results in ineffective treatment. On the off chance that a hive gets plagued with these vermin, it might be enough of a threat for the solid honey bees to bug out, leaving their hive mates behind.

To battle against Varroa, the usage of organisms is certainly not a new idea. Fungal extracts have been tested to know about their anti-bacterial properties. To retaliate against Varroa, scientists looked to Snodgrassella alvi, a symbiotic bacterium found inside the gut of bumblebees. The honey bee gut microbiome is comprised of a little center arrangement of microscopic organisms. One of the microscopic organisms found in the honey bee gut has indicated guarantee as an enemy of viral and against Varroa. Hereditary adjustment of the organisms empowered them to annihilate the vermin from the back to front through RNA obstruction (RNAi). The designed microscopic organisms created double-stranded RNA that prompted the bugs to dispatch an RNAi protection to annihilate those successions. Since the bacterial arrangements coordinated those from the varroa genome basic to the mites’ survival, the silencing mechanism wiped out the mite transcripts as well, killing the parasites.

The Varroa destructor bacteria was taken care of and kept up in the gut of 20 grown-up honey bees over a multi-day time frame. It is the analysts’ trust that grown-up honey bees would be able to effectively transfer the new bacterium to youthful honey bees.

Results exhibited that Varroa feeding on treated honey bees was 70% more likely to die soon.   The test infection focusing on RNA additionally improved honey bee endurance by 36%.

Notwithstanding this work, genetic engineering may likewise help cause honey bees to turn out to be stronger against pesticides. This work doesn't come without concern. Similarly, as we are worried about hereditarily changed food sources and organic entities, the equivalent goes for honey bees. Thus, we all need to take a step forward in saving these vital pollinators by understanding their needs. Geohoney strongly supports the researchers and believes that using honey bee gut microbiome as a biological solution will protect these pollinators from varroa mites & will save human life also.