Científics estan estudiant la capacitat infectiva del fong Metarhizium acridum per lluitar contra la varroa que debilita les colònies d'abelles.
Els estudis conviden a l'optimisme, tot i que cal crear soques d'aquest fong amb una patogènia perdurable en el temps i així permetre als apicultors abandonar els acaricides químics.
(...) The biggest scourge to bees is tiny—a mite the size of a pinhead that feeds on them and spreads deadly viruses. Getting rid of the parasite, Varroa destructor, is tough: Chemicals can kill it, but the mite has started to evolve resistance to the usual pesticides; moreover, these and other treatments can harm the bees themselves. Now, researchers have toughened up a mite-killing fungus so it can slay the bee slayers inside a hot beehive. If the new strain passes further tests, it could help honey bees around the world avoid a gruesome fate, and reduce the use of chemical pesticides.
"The beekeeping industry has a great need for alternatives," says Margarita López-Uribe, an entomologist at Pennsylvania State University, University Park, who was not involved in the fungal research. "So it is very exciting to see that there is potential for a nonchemical treatment."
