The Buzz Around Beemmunity, the Company Saving Bees From Pesticide

Bees fertilize crops accounting for roughly a third of food that winds up on your plate. That’s why researchers worldwide are alarmed at the rate in which these pollinators are disappearing -a phenomenon due, in part, to widespread pesticide use on crops. Pesticides contaminate 98 percent of wax and pollen in U.S. hives, slashing bees’ immunity against deadly pathogens and mites.

Meet Beemmunity at IndieBio New York Class Two Demo Day on Tuesday June 22, 2021. RSVP here.

Now, New York-based Beemmunity , part of New York class two, has developed a pollen-sized antidote: microparticles mixed with pollen patties or sugar water that stop pesticides inside a bee’s midgut they cause harm. How exactly does Beemmunity’s solution work? And what’s the story behind this hive-friendly company? Media outlets worldwide are buzzing with details.

Beemmunity’s origin story stems from Cornell University , where Beemmunity CEO James Webb participated in research on an enzyme that detoxifies a family of insecticides called organophosphates. Published in Nature Food , the research honed in on microparticles filled with sponge-like enzymes encased in a protective casing . Once bees ingest these enzymes, they pass through the bee’s stomach, break down organophosphates, and seclude the toxins until the bee excretes them , a Phys.org synopsys reports. “[A bee] will sometimes go up to three weeks without going to the bathroom,” . “So our microparticles are hanging around in the bee gut during this time and doing their work.”

The results of this study have attracted plenty of press coverage: 100 percent of bees fed the microparticles after organophosphate exposure survived . Meanwhile, those without the antidote died within days, cites 12 News WBNG. “This is a low-cost, scalable solution which we hope will be a first step to address the insecticide toxicity issue and contribute to the protection of managed pollinators ,” said senior author Minglin Ma in an Earth.com article.

Inspired by the stark success of the Cornell study, Beemmunity has expanded this microparticle concept beyond organophosphates to all pesticides . “Instead of filling the microparticles with enzymes that break down insecticides, Beemmunity’s particles have a shell made with insect proteins that are then filled with a special absorptive oil-creating a kind of micro-sponge,” said Laboratory Equipment editor-in-chief Michelle Taylor. “Many insecticides, including widely-used neonicotinoids, are designed to target insect proteins, so the microparticle shell draws in the insecticide where it is sequestered inert within the casing.”

In a Modern Farmer interview, Webb conceded that while he would never advocate pesticides solely because Beemmunity products cancel out their effects, these immunity products are an effective way to stop the harmful effects of inevitable insecticide exposure beyond a person’s control .

The Beemmunity CEO also told Salon one of his driving motivations for protecting pollinators : “What I fear most about a world in which bees continue to decline is as a result, we engineer crops that don’t need to be insect pollinated, or we switch to mechanical pollination,” he said in an email. “This would release our dependency on bees, and therefore cause a negligence of our consideration of wildlife (bees) in our agricultural practices.”

The Cornell Chronicle says Beemmunity will push trials on a colony scale (240 hives) this summer . Final products-including microparticle sponges in dry sugar or bee feeders-will roll out beginning in February 2022.

Originally published at https://indiebio.co on June 10, 2021.

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