Developing the BEESOCOSM - a modular, multi-species bee cage for laboratory experiments (NEC05913)

在实验室中测试化学物质对传粉者的影响是了解它们可能对环境产生影响的关键一步。目前对蜜蜂的标准毒性测试仅限于蜜蜂，尽管有人呼吁对其他物种进行更多常规测试。标准化测试表明，用来容纳蜂群的测试笼子“容易清洗[并且]通风良好”，而且大小“与蜜蜂的数量相适应”。一个问题是，目前还没有关于进行实验的笼子类型的规定，也没有商业上可以提供这种笼子的产品。在COLOSS(一个由来自60个国家的300个合作伙伴组成的国际研究网络)举办的一系列研讨会上，确定需要改进笼养蜜蜂的方法。此外，越来越多的人认识到，为了更好地模拟现实世界，实验应该比标准的48小时更长。重要的是，蜜蜂在相似的条件下进行公平的测试，以使结果完全具有可比性。我们已经开发了一种原型笼子，它是专门为在多种蜜蜂物种中进行测试而设计的，并克服了处理和压力方面的问题。这笔资金将使我们能够改进我们的原型笼子设计，并在简单的试验中评估其效果，以提供商业证据。我们将获取设计规范，并对其组件和潜在用途进行详细描述。接下来，我们将利用专利律师探索专利和外观设计注册的机会。同时，我们将与许多利益攸关方(包括其他研究人员、设计师和监管/测试当局)(在保密的情况下)探索这一潜力。两位调查员都在这些领域(如化学和生物农药登记)建立了良好的联系。如果反馈是肯定的，我们将与商业设计师进行简短的初步讨论，以确定项目的下一步步骤，并与顾问一起制定商业商业计划。这些活动将为我们提供数据和想法，以帮助制定后续提案。

Testing the impact of chemicals on pollinators in a laboratory is a key step to understand the impacts they may have in the environment. Currently standard toxicity testing on bees is limited to the honey bee, although there have been calls for more routine tests in other species. Standardised tests suggest that test cages to hold groups of bees are "easy to clean [and] well ventilated" and that that the size is "appropriate to the number of bees". One problem is that there is currently no stipulation for the type of cage that experiments are performed in and there is no commercially available product that delivers this. In a series of workshops held by COLOSS (an international research network composed of >300 partners from >60 countries) it was determined that an improved method for maintaining honey bees in cages was required. In addition there is a widening recognition that experiments should be longer than the standard 48 hours to better mimic the real world. It is important that bees are tested fairly under similar conditions for results to be fully comparable. We have developed a prototype cage that is designed specifically to allow testing in multiple bee species and overcomes problems with handling and stress. The funding will allow us to refine our prototype cage design and evaluate its efficacy in simple trials to provide proof of commerciality. We will capture the design specification and produce a detailed description of its components and potential uses. Following this we will explore the opportunities for patent and design registration using a patent attorney. Simultaneously we will explore the potential (in confidence) with a number of stakeholders, including other researchers, designer and regulatory/testing authorities. Both investigators have well developed contacts in these areas (e.g. in chemical and bio-pesticide registration). If feedback is positive we will have brief, preliminary discussions with a commercial designer to scope out the next steps for the project and develop a commercial business plan with consultants. These activities will provide us with the data and ideas to help develop a follow-on proposal.