Aaron Morris wrote:
> it wasn't clear exactly what brood malady the researchers were trying to impact with the application.
> I assume, given the mention of Terramycin that the malady was AFB.  So I wonder what it is about cow urine that is effective against Bacillus larvae?  
I agree that it would appear to be foulbrood but it was not clear.

Bee preferences for water tends towards the less than savory sources as 
first published as early as 1940.  (Butler, CG; "The Choice of Drinking 
Water by the Honeybee" in _Journal of Experimental  Biology_, *17*, 
253-261(1940))  They are attracted to the decaying organic matter 
content of water as in roof gutters and also in cow urine and feces.  In 
this study bees couldn't distinguish distilled water from dilute salt 
solutions (sodium or ammonium chloride) up to a concentration of around 
0.5 N NaCl/NH4Cl. 

In cow urine there would be a good dose of various N-containing wastes 
including free amino acids.  If we make an analogy to other 
spore-formers in /Bacillus/ they are known induce spore germination when 
exposed to L-alanine (an amino acid) and other substances (allantoin and 
urea which are present in urine?).  Once they start to germinate they 
become vulnerable and this might be answer.

Erik

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