[Pollinator] APPLIED BEE-ONIMICS, How the Honey Bee Genome Project is Revolutionizing Pollinator Research. Monday, June 17, Noon, 1300 LHOB. NC-FAR Hill Research Seminar. RSVP by Friday, June 14

[Tom Van Arsdall]

Join us for this National C-FAR hill seminar, featuring a leading-edge presenter sharing timely information made possible by federally funded food and agricultural research, extension and education.  This presentation on honey bee and pollinator research is in conjunction with the start of National Pollinator Week <http://pollinator.org/pollinator_week_2013.htm> .

 

The seminar will be held on Monday, June 17, from 12:00 to 12:55 in 1300 Longworth House Office Building (LHOB).  

Chick Fil-A Lunch (Veggie Wrap Option) will be provided. 

 

 <https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dGMzSUhPMVhZT1hCVm1qTXM1TzBsWlE6MQ#gid=0> CLICK HERE to RSVP by c.o.b. Friday, June 14

 

Feel free to share this invitation with hill staff, agency officials and others who may be interested in attending the seminar.

 

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APPLIED BEE-NOMICS

How the Honey Bee Genome Project is Revolutionizing Pollinator Research

 

The complete sequence of the honey bee genome was published in 2006 after four years of concentrated effort.  The project, the brainchild of a consortium of scientists comprising university laboratories around the world, the U.S. apiculture industry, and the USDA, was funded by NIH, the USDA, and private donors, including industry representatives. The timing proved opportune in that release of the genome coincided with the first reports of unprecedented bee losses associated with the phenomenon now known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD).  Although CCD remains challenging, the availability of the bee genome proved transformative in elucidating basic bee biology and investigating the stresses experienced by America’s honey bees, providing new insights and new tools for investigating bee health. These tools facilitated the identification of many hitherto unreported bee pathogens and enabled the identification of predictive markers and potential molecular diagnostics for CCD.  At the same time, the discovery of a universal bacterial flora revealed the existence of symbiotic gut flora that may be critical to bee health. Also facilitated was identification of genes encoding specific enzymes that metabolize acaricides used by beekeepers to control the parasitic varroa mite and pesticides encountered by bees as they forage for pollen and nectar and provide pollination services to U.S. agriculture.  The investment in sequencing the honey bee genome was immediately justified in generating useful new knowledge and continues to provide the foundation for an ongoing revolution in bee science. 

 

Presenter:  May Berenbaum, Ph.D., is head of the Department of Entomology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and chaired the NRC panel report on the Status of Pollinators in North America.

 

More information about National C-FAR and the hill seminar series can be found at  <http://www.ncfar.org/> http://www.ncfar.org.  The Hill Seminar Series helps demonstrate the value of public investment in food and agricultural research—investment that returns 45 percent per year on average.

 

THANKS to the following Seminar Series Contributing Sponsors: 

Academy for Nutrition and Dietetics · Alliance to Feed the Future · American Society for Nutrition 

Bayer CropScience · Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO)

CHS Inc. · Cooperative Extension · Cotton Foundation 

Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST) 

Council on Food, Agriculture & Resource Economics (C-FARE) · CropLife America

Dr. William Danforth · Elanco Animal Health · Eversole Associates · Dr. David W. Hertha

Illinois Soybean Association · Indiana Soybean Alliance · Institute of Food Technologists 

National Farmers Union · Michael Newman, DVM · National Council of Farmer Cooperatives · North American Millers’ Association

Riley Memorial Foundation · Soil & Water Conservation Society · Syngenta 

United Soybean Board · Weed Science Society of America · University of Wyoming

 

Sincerely,

 

Tom

R. Thomas (Tom) Van Arsdall, National C-FAR Executive Director & Pollinator Partnership Director of Public Affairs
         <mailto:tom at vanarsdall.com> tom at vanarsdall.com  
        PH:  703-509-4746  

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