Difference between revisions of "Team:British Columbia"

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<p>Honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) is a serious problem, given the ecological and economical importance of honeybees. Experts estimate that honeybees pollinate $14 billion worth of seeds and crops per year in the United States alone. Though the mechanisms by which CCD occurs are likely many fold and remain uncertain, neonicotinoid pesticides have been implicated. <i>Gilliamella apicola</i> is a bacterium that natively resides in the midgut of the bee. Our project aims to engineer <i>G. apicola</i> to metabolize imidacloprid, a common neonicotinoid, into harmless organic compounds using three cytochrome P450 enzymes: CYP6CM1vQ, CYP6G1, and HUMCYPDB1. Though 6-CNA, the breakdown product of imidacloprid, displays significantly lower toxicity, it still induces sublethal effects. As such, we have also incorporated a pre-existing 6-CNA degradation pathway from <i>Pseudomonas putida</i> for complete breakdown of imidacloprid. We believe honeybees that harbour this engineered bacterium in probiotic form will become less susceptible to common field doses of imidacloprid; thus, significantly reducing the risk of CCD.</p>
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<p>Honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) is a serious problem, given the ecological and economical importance of honeybees. Experts estimate that honeybees pollinate $14 billion worth of seeds and crops per year in the United States alone. Though there is no single cause for CCD, neonicotinoid pesticides carry a major part of the blame.</p>
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<p>We are working with <i>Gilliamella apicola</i>, a native midgut bacterium specific to honeybees. We aim to engineer <i>G. apicola</i> to degrade imidacloprid, a common neonicotinoid, into non-toxic compounds. By feeding this bacteria to honeybees as a probiotic, we believe honeybees will become less susceptible to common field doses of imidacloprid and reducing the risk of CCD.</p>
 
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Revision as of 03:09, 12 September 2015

UBC iGEM 2015

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  • Honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) is a serious problem, given the ecological and economical importance of honeybees. Experts estimate that honeybees pollinate $14 billion worth of seeds and crops per year in the United States alone. Though there is no single cause for CCD, neonicotinoid pesticides carry a major part of the blame.

    We are working with Gilliamella apicola, a native midgut bacterium specific to honeybees. We aim to engineer G. apicola to degrade imidacloprid, a common neonicotinoid, into non-toxic compounds. By feeding this bacteria to honeybees as a probiotic, we believe honeybees will become less susceptible to common field doses of imidacloprid and reducing the risk of CCD.