Delivers Toxic Bacteria Pesticidal Proteins to the Small Hive Beetle while Protecting Honey Bee Health
These bacteria-derived pesticidal proteins, delivered in a dietary supplement, control small hive beetles while protecting honey bee health. The small hive beetle (Aethina tumida) is a parasite of social bee colonies, feeding on pollen, honey, and brood of the European honey bee. As the beetles multiply inside a hive, their larvae consume stored resources, causing extensive damage to comb and hive contents. When infestations become severe, larval feeding and defecation ferment honey, weakening the hive structure and driving bees to abandon the colony. Together, these effects make the small hive beetle a persistent and disruptive pest for beekeepers, causing an estimated $3 million in annual damages in the United States . Existing control methods, including chemical treatments and mechanical traps, face limitations such as safety risk to honey bees, environmental persistence, and need for manual labor. These challenges underscore the need for safer, sustainable, and more targeted pest management.
Researchers at the University of Florida have identified three bacteria-derived pesticidal proteins toxic to small hive beetles but harmless to honey bees. These proteins are proposed for incorporation into dietary supplement patties that small hive beetles ingest inside the hive, providing a potential environmentally friendly and bee–safe control method. Proof-of-concept has been demonstrated in controlled feeding studies, and production of the proteins is underway for field testing in working hives.
Application
Delivers bacteria-derived pesticidal proteins to control small hive beetle populations without harming honey bees
Advantages
- Suppresses small-hive beetle populations, reducing damage to combs, honey, and brood
- Remains non-toxic to honey bees, preserving colony health
- Provides a biologically based control, lowering environmental impact compared with chemical insecticides
- Reduces labor demands associated with chemical sprays and mechanical traps, simplifying hive management
- Eliminates need for specialized honey-storage, cutting handling and processing costs
Technology
Researchers at the University of Florida identified three pesticidal proteins derived from Bacillus thuringiensis, a bacterium well known for producing proteins with insecticidal activity against various beetle species. These naturally occurring proteins have a long history of use in insect management and are recognized for their environmental friendliness and specificity toward certain insect groups. From a larger panel of proteins tested, researchers identified three proteins, Cry2Ab, App6Aa2, and Mpp51Aa1, as the only candidates that showed toxicity at low ppm concentrations to small hive beetle while demonstrating no harm to honey bees. Because the proteins can be incorporated into dietary supplement patties placed inside hives, they offer a delivery method aligning with standard beekeeping practices. The technology therefore provides a biologically based, bee-safe option for managing small hive beetle populations inside colonies.
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