Bee scientists force killer mites to self destruct Scientists
may be able to halt global honey bee decline by forcing the
self-destruction of deadly Varroa mite, which is thriving in the
freezing weather. The blood-sucking Varroa is the biggest killer
of honey bees world-wide, having developed resistance to
beekeepers’ medication over the past decade. It particularly
thrives in cold winters when colonies are more vulnerable while
huddled together tightly to keep warm. Now researchers from the
Government’s National Bee Unit and Aberdeen University have
worked out how to ‘silence’ natural functions in the mites’ gene
– with the potential to make them self destruct. Dr. Alan Bowman
from the University of Aberdeen said: “Introducing harmless
genetic material encourages the mites’ own immune response to
prevent their genes from expressing natural functions. This
could make them self destruct. “The beauty of this approach is
that it is really specific and targets the mites without harming
the bees or, indeed, any o