Pollen-mimicking antidote saves bees after pesticide exposure

Feeding bees an antidote packaged inside pollen-like particles can rescue them from pesticide poisoning, according to research by scientists in the US.

The pesticides sprayed on crops to control harmful insects are high on the list of the many challenges facing pollinators like honeybees and bumblebees. One particular group of insecticides, the organophosphates, are a major threat – they account for more than a third of insecticide sales worldwide and are highly toxic to bees.

‘We wanted to develop a strategy to detoxify managed pollinators and found we can do it by incorporating it into their food,’ says Minglin Ma, a biomaterials engineer at Cornell University, US, who led the study.