Photo: SHAIITH79/Depositphotos
Bees are critical to agriculture around the world.
Honey bees are pollinators, necessary to the production ofone thirdof American agriculture.
An important solution for the latter may at last be emerging.
Photo: SHAIITH79/Depositphotos
Most bees live in hives presided over by a queen.
She lays larvae which hatch and become her loyal subjects.
However, American foulbrood can destroy this careful ecosystem.
Photo: IGORVITUSHKO/Depositphotos
The bacterial infection of the hive causes larvae to turn brown and smell like they are rotting.
Thousands of bees can die from it.
Beekeepers must burn the dead and their hive to prevent spread.
This devastationalong with the other myriad threats facing beeshas wide impact across the agricultural sector.
Thankfully, this new vaccine has now passed the first stage of approval with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
So how do you vaccinate bees against this foul infection?
The vaccine is placed in royal jelly, the sugary treat fed to queen bees.
Beekeepers arewilling to trythis new solution.
Annette Kleiser, chief executive of Dalan Animal Health which developed the vaccine, called it a huge breakthrough.
