Development of natural products as novel miticides and anti-virulence agents for the treatment of varroa mites and American foulbrood in honeybees

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Currently, managed and natural ecosystems are threatened by largely unexplained declines in honeybee populations. Since 2006, North American and European beekeepers have lost about one-third of their colonies every year. These colony losses are unprecedented and have endangered the supply of honeybees as pollinators of flowering plants, which has strong economic and ecological implications. These losses also impact non-cultivated plants, good stewards of the land, public concern, and have economic impact on beekeepers and farmers reliant on bees as pollinators. Colony collapse disorder refers to the massive loss of honeybee colonies. Although the causes of this record mortality remain undetermined, it may be due to a combination of a broad suite of stresses on honeybees. Stressed bees have a reduced capacity to resist common larval and adult diseases and secondary infections become more severe. The parasitic mite Varroa destructor, and diseases like American Foulbrood (AFB), are among the factors frequently associated with colony mortality.