American Foulbrood in honeybees and its causative agent, Paenibacillus larvae

J Invertebr Pathol. 2010 Jan:103 Suppl 1:S10-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jip.2009.06.015. Epub 2009 Nov 11.

Abstract

After more than a century of American Foulbrood (AFB) research, this fatal brood infection is still among the most deleterious bee diseases. Its etiological agent is the Gram-positive, spore-forming bacterium Paenibacillus larvae. Huge progress has been made, especially in the last 20 years, in the understanding of the disease and of the underlying host-pathogen interactions. This review will place these recent developments in the study of American Foulbrood and of P. larvae into the general context of AFB research.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Beekeeping*
  • Bees / microbiology*
  • Bees / physiology
  • Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / pathology
  • Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / physiopathology
  • Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / veterinary*
  • Host-Pathogen Interactions / physiology
  • In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence
  • Larva / microbiology
  • Paenibacillus / pathogenicity*
  • Paenibacillus / physiology