Bacteria Engineered to Protect Bees from Pests and Pathogens

January 30, 2020 • by Marc Airhart

Genetically engineered strains of bacteria protect bees from mites and viruses that can lead to colony collapse.

A red mite attached to the side of a honey bee

A Varroa mite, a common pest that can weaken bees and make them more susceptible to pathogens, feeds on a honey bee. Photo credit: Alex Wild/University of Texas at Austin.


Graph showing how much engineered bacteria affect mite mortality and bee survival

Compared with control bees, the bees treated with the strain of bacteria targeting the deformed wing virus were 36.5% more likely to survive to day 10. Meanwhile, Varroa mites feeding on another set of bees treated with the mite-targeting strain of bacteria were about 70% more likely to die by day 10 than mites feeding on control bees. Credit: University of Texas at Austin.

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