Natural Product Medicines for Honey Bees: Perspective and Protocols

doi:10.3390/insects10100356

Review

. 2019 Oct 18;10(10):356.

doi: 10.3390/insects10100356.

Natural Product Medicines for Honey Bees: Perspective and Protocols

James P Tauber¹, William R Collins², Ryan S Schwarz³, Yanping Chen⁴, Kyle Grubbs⁵, Qiang Huang⁶, Dawn Lopez⁷, Raymond Peterson^{8

9}, Jay D Evans¹⁰

Affiliations

¹ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. james.tauber@usda.gov.
² Department of Chemistry, Fort Lewis College, 1000 Rim Drive, Durango, CO 81301, USA. collins_w@fortlewis.edu.
³ Department of Biological Sciences, Fort Lewis College, 1000 Rim Drive, Durango, CO 81301, USA. rsschwarz@fortlewis.edu.
⁴ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. judy.chen@ars.usda.gov.
⁵ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. kyle.grubbs@ars.usda.gov.
⁶ Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Zhimin Avenue 1101, Nanchang 330045, China. qiang-huang@live.com.
⁷ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. Dawn.Lopez@ars.usda.gov.
⁸ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. raymond.peterson@granitepv.com.
⁹ Granite Point Ventures LLC, 10 Lakeview Circle, Greenbelt, MD 20770, USA. raymond.peterson@granitepv.com.
¹⁰ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. Jay.Evans@usda.gov.

PMID: 31635365
PMCID: PMC6835950
DOI: 10.3390/insects10100356

Review

Natural Product Medicines for Honey Bees: Perspective and Protocols

James P Tauber et al. Insects. 2019.

. 2019 Oct 18;10(10):356.

doi: 10.3390/insects10100356.

Authors

James P Tauber¹, William R Collins², Ryan S Schwarz³, Yanping Chen⁴, Kyle Grubbs⁵, Qiang Huang⁶, Dawn Lopez⁷, Raymond Peterson^{8

9}, Jay D Evans¹⁰

Affiliations

¹ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. james.tauber@usda.gov.
² Department of Chemistry, Fort Lewis College, 1000 Rim Drive, Durango, CO 81301, USA. collins_w@fortlewis.edu.
³ Department of Biological Sciences, Fort Lewis College, 1000 Rim Drive, Durango, CO 81301, USA. rsschwarz@fortlewis.edu.
⁴ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. judy.chen@ars.usda.gov.
⁵ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. kyle.grubbs@ars.usda.gov.
⁶ Honeybee Research Institute, Jiangxi Agricultural University, Zhimin Avenue 1101, Nanchang 330045, China. qiang-huang@live.com.
⁷ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. Dawn.Lopez@ars.usda.gov.
⁸ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. raymond.peterson@granitepv.com.
⁹ Granite Point Ventures LLC, 10 Lakeview Circle, Greenbelt, MD 20770, USA. raymond.peterson@granitepv.com.
¹⁰ USDA-ARS Bee Research Laboratory, BLDG. 306, RM. 315, BARC-EAST, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA. Jay.Evans@usda.gov.

PMID: 31635365
PMCID: PMC6835950
DOI: 10.3390/insects10100356

Abstract

The western honey bee remains the most important pollinator for agricultural crops. Disease and stressors threaten honey bee populations and productivity during winter- and summertime, creating costs for beekeepers and negative impacts on agriculture. To combat diseases and improve overall bee health, researchers are constantly developing honey bee medicines using the tools of microbiology, molecular biology and chemistry. Below, we present a manifesto alongside standardized protocols that outline the development and a systematic approach to test natural products as 'bee medicines.' These will be accomplished in both artificial rearing conditions and in colonies situated in the field. Output will be scored by gene expression data of host immunity, bee survivorship, reduction in pathogen titers, and more subjective merits of the compound in question. Natural products, some of which are already encountered by bees in the form of plant resins and nectar compounds, provide promising low-cost candidates for safe prophylaxis or treatment of bee diseases.

Keywords: bee disease; colony loss; honey bees; natural product; screening; traditional medicine; virus.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Peterson, R. is Principal of Granite Point Ventures LLC. Mentions of companies, organizations or products including Fungi Perfecti, BioQuip, Apiguard, Solo and HopGuard are made for clarity and do not reflect commercial endorsement of one product over others.

Figures

**Figure 1**
Natural product screening process.

See this image and copyright information in PMC

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References

1. vanEngelsdorp D., Meixner M.D. A historical review of managed honey bee populations in Europe and the United States and the factors that may affect them. J. Invertebr. Pathol. 2010;103:S80–S95. doi: 10.1016/j.jip.2009.06.011. - DOI - PubMed
1. Cornman R.S., Tarpy D.R., Chen Y., Jeffreys L., Lopez D., Pettis J.S., vanEngelsdorp D., Evans J.D. Pathogen webs in collapsing honey bee colonies. PLoS ONE. 2012;7:e43562. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0043562. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Dainat B., Evans J.D., Chen Y.P., Gauthier L., Neumann P. Predictive markers of honey bee colony collapse. PLoS ONE. 2012;7:e32151. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0032151. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Martin S.J., Highfield A.C., Brettell L., Villalobos E.M., Budge G.E., Powell M., Nikaido S., Schroeder D.C. Global honey bee viral landscape altered by a parasitic mite. Science. 2012;336:1304–1306. doi: 10.1126/science.1220941. - DOI - PubMed
1. Ryabov E.V., Wood G.R., Fannon J.M., Moore J.D., Bull J.C., Chandler D., Mead A., Burroughs N., Evans D.J. A virulent strain of Deformed wing virus (DWV) of honeybees (Apis mellifera) prevails after Varroa destructor-mediated, or in vitro, transmission. PLoS Pathog. 2014;10:e1004230. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1004230. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

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[1] vanEngelsdorp D., Meixner M.D. A historical review of managed honey bee populations in Europe and the United States and the factors that may affect them. J. Invertebr. Pathol. 2010;103:S80–S95. doi: 10.1016/j.jip.2009.06.011. - DOI - PubMed

[2] vanEngelsdorp D., Meixner M.D. A historical review of managed honey bee populations in Europe and the United States and the factors that may affect them. J. Invertebr. Pathol. 2010;103:S80–S95. doi: 10.1016/j.jip.2009.06.011. - DOI - PubMed

[3] Cornman R.S., Tarpy D.R., Chen Y., Jeffreys L., Lopez D., Pettis J.S., vanEngelsdorp D., Evans J.D. Pathogen webs in collapsing honey bee colonies. PLoS ONE. 2012;7:e43562. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0043562. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[4] Cornman R.S., Tarpy D.R., Chen Y., Jeffreys L., Lopez D., Pettis J.S., vanEngelsdorp D., Evans J.D. Pathogen webs in collapsing honey bee colonies. PLoS ONE. 2012;7:e43562. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0043562. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[5] Dainat B., Evans J.D., Chen Y.P., Gauthier L., Neumann P. Predictive markers of honey bee colony collapse. PLoS ONE. 2012;7:e32151. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0032151. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[6] Dainat B., Evans J.D., Chen Y.P., Gauthier L., Neumann P. Predictive markers of honey bee colony collapse. PLoS ONE. 2012;7:e32151. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0032151. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[7] Martin S.J., Highfield A.C., Brettell L., Villalobos E.M., Budge G.E., Powell M., Nikaido S., Schroeder D.C. Global honey bee viral landscape altered by a parasitic mite. Science. 2012;336:1304–1306. doi: 10.1126/science.1220941. - DOI - PubMed

[8] Martin S.J., Highfield A.C., Brettell L., Villalobos E.M., Budge G.E., Powell M., Nikaido S., Schroeder D.C. Global honey bee viral landscape altered by a parasitic mite. Science. 2012;336:1304–1306. doi: 10.1126/science.1220941. - DOI - PubMed

[9] Ryabov E.V., Wood G.R., Fannon J.M., Moore J.D., Bull J.C., Chandler D., Mead A., Burroughs N., Evans D.J. A virulent strain of Deformed wing virus (DWV) of honeybees (Apis mellifera) prevails after Varroa destructor-mediated, or in vitro, transmission. PLoS Pathog. 2014;10:e1004230. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1004230. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[10] Ryabov E.V., Wood G.R., Fannon J.M., Moore J.D., Bull J.C., Chandler D., Mead A., Burroughs N., Evans D.J. A virulent strain of Deformed wing virus (DWV) of honeybees (Apis mellifera) prevails after Varroa destructor-mediated, or in vitro, transmission. PLoS Pathog. 2014;10:e1004230. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1004230. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

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Natural Product Medicines for Honey Bees: Perspective and Protocols

Affiliations

Natural Product Medicines for Honey Bees: Perspective and Protocols

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Conflict of interest statement

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References

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