Project Leader:
Leonard Foster

Lead Institution:
University of British Columbia

Technology Applications:
Honey bee genetics, host-pathogen interactions

Research Funding Program:
Applied Genomics Innovation Program

Honey bees are crucial pollinators for many major food crops that humans rely on. However, honey bee populations are declining from a variety of infections caused by mites, viruses and bacteria.
An ‘omics' approach will identify desirable pathogen resistant traits in natural bee populations and the researchers will fully annotate the bee genome thus providing an essential resource for bee breeders.

Beekeepers around the world use vast resources in an effort to control infections in order to maintain the bee populations. Identification of bee populations naturally resistant to pathogens is crucial to maintaining the numbers of bees necessary for pollination of all of our food crops.

The use of miticides for Varroa mites and antibiotics for Paenibacillus larvae infections is causing a rapid increase in the amount of resistance pathogens. But, selective breeding of bees for resistant traits is hampered by the lack of knowledge of honey bee biology; therefore effective methods to select for important resistance traits would be a huge advantage to breeding programs such as those overseen by the BC Bee Breeders Association (BCBBA).

With a better understanding of natural pathogen-resistant traits in bees the beekeepers will no longer need to use miticides, fungicides, and antibiotics to control the array of pathogens. Additionally, bee breeding efficiency will be improved by using protein markers to map desirable traits in bee families through generations.