There is a growing appreciation for the potentially beneficial roles
of bacteria in honey bee colonies.  Reynaldi et al. recently showed
that bacteria isolated from bees in Argentina are inhibitory of the
important bee fungal pathogen, Ascosphaera apis [chalkbrood].

Bacterial symbionts likely play roles in individual and colony fitness
across the social insects. Sharing of symbiotic bacteria is
notoriously important for termite nutrition, and it is increasingly
clear that both obligate and facultative symbioses are widespread in
social insects.

Recent evidence for a socially communicable defense against pathogens
in termites might indeed reflect sharing of bacteria among termite
colony members, rather than the proposed induction of host-specific
physiological changes. Perhaps, as is apparent in the termites and
ants, honey bees have evolved behavioral or physiological mechanisms
to enhance the transmission of beneficial microbes, while battling
those species which are pathogenic. This would indicate a delicate
balancing act for bees and other social insects, allowing for the
encouragement of beneficial species while maintaining barriers against
exploitation by pathogens.

Beneficial symbionts can potentially be fed to developing bees as a
prophylactic against disease, and can regardless be used to better
understand the complexity of interactions between the microbial biota
of bees. It will, in this vein, also be important to look more closely
at transmission mechanisms of microbes within and between bee
colonies.

Antagonistic interactions between honey bee bacterial symbionts and
implications for disease
Jay D Evans and Tamieka-Nicole Armstrong
USDA-ARS Bee Research Lab, BARC-East Bldg. 476, Beltsville, MD 20705, USA

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