Radio & television

Heather Graham at Omroep Flevoland about a vaccine developed for bees

American researchers have developed a vaccine against the common bee disease American foulbrood. Heather Graham, researcher at Wageningen Bioveterinary Research and involved in the National Reference Laboratory for Bee Diseases, explains the significance of this development on Omroep Flevoland Radio.

Developing a vaccine especially for bees is a unique development, according to Heather Graham on Omroep Flevoland. "Vaccine development in bees is the work of pioneers. The newly developed vaccine potentially offers new tools for preventing or combating diseases in bees," says Graham. The American researchers have shown that by giving the queen bee the vaccine through her diet, her offspring has a higher resilience and is more resistant to the bacteria that cause American foulbrood.

American foulbrood among Dutch bees

Every year, one or two cases of this notifiable disease are reported to the NVWA in the Netherlands. According to Graham, it is unclear whether that is an accurate representation of the problem of American foulbrood in Dutch bees. With her research, she will focus on mapping American foulbrood among Dutch bee colonies.

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