BeeBrilliant: Exploring the keys of honey bee resilience through a combination of genomic, biochemical and geoinformatics approaches

The content of the project aims to study important mechanisms of resistance of bee colonies to adverse conditions, which can be caused by pathogens, parasites, insufficient nutrition or climate changes. The main goals of the project are: 1) Research of stress reactions on the longevity and physiology of bees, 2) Study of the prophylactic anti-stress effect of microalgae in bee food, 3) OMICS approaches to search for resistant bee colonies. The project is divided into three sub-units, which are interconnected by a supporting theme focused on the molecular nature of bees’ resistance to adverse factors, the search for their genetic markers, landscape analysis for the health of bee colonies and their vitality, and at the same time the study of the potential of using microalgae as a food supplement for bees designed to overcome adverse conditions. The results of the sub-units of the projects should provide a comprehensive view of the issue of resistance or sensitivity of bee colonies to diseases and at the same time offer solutions that can be used in bee populations in the Czech Republic.