Project description
Decoding honeybees’ collective defence
Honeybees, Apis mellifera, have been greatly affected by globalisation, with the recent invasion of the deadly Varroa destructor parasite. This mite has emerged as a leading cause of colony losses worldwide. However, some colonies manage to survive infestation. In these resilient colonies, honeybees exhibit defensive hygiene by selectively removing highly parasitised members, effectively limiting the spread of the mite. This ‘social immunity’ acts as a colony-level immune system. In this context, the ERC-funded BEE HEALTHY project aims to unravel the intricate mechanisms underlying collective behavioural defences against unhealthy members in honeybee colonies. The project holds the promise of profound discoveries. In the face of escalating threats from invasive species, the research paves the way for sustainable beekeeping.
Objective
Honey bees, Apis mellifera, have experienced the full impacts of globalization, including the recent invasion by the parasite, Varroa destructor. This deadly mite has rapidly become one of the main causes of colony losses worldwide, with a huge economic impact on beekeeping.
Despite the lethal effects of varroa, some colonies survive infestation. In such colonies, honey bees are able to work together to selectively remove highly parasitized brood, thereby limiting mite spread. Defensive hygiene plays a role at society level that parallels that of an immune system, and the social immunity it confers provides the basis for colony resistance to varroa and other brood diseases. How compromised individuals are accurately diagnosed, and how the collective actions of hygienic bees are regulated at colony level pose central but yet unsolved challenges.
The BEE HEALTHY project aims to decipher the mechanisms that underpin collective behavioural defences against unhealthy brood in honey bee colonies. Four key breakthroughs support my high-risk high-gain and wide-scoped approach: (1) a new conceptual framework postulating that bees maintain the integrity of the colony by constantly assessing the wellness of conspecifics; (2) a new hypothesis that considers distinct hygienic behaviours as components of a single suite of defences that must be considered together; (3) a cutting-edge experimental strategy that tightly associates studies at the individual bee and superorganism colony level; (4) an integrative biology approach that combines chemical ecology and neurophysiology.
This ambitious project promises an unprecedented journey in the understanding of social immunity. In the face of increasing threats from invasive species events, revealing how hosts adapt to detrimental foes has never been more pressing. This research also opens avenues to deliver tools for a more sustainable beekeeping and agriculture through preserved pollination ecosystem services.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences ecology ecosystems
- agricultural sciences agriculture, forestry, and fisheries agriculture
- social sciences other social sciences development studies development theories global development studies globalization
- agricultural sciences animal and dairy science apiculture
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC Grants
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2022-STG
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
75007 PARIS CEDEX 07
France
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.