METHOD OF MONITORING THE INFECTION PRESSURE OF AMERICAN FOULBROOD, THE EQUIPMENT NECESSARY FOR THIS METHOD, AND THE USE OF TEST CARDS THEREFOR

摘要

The European honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) is subject to affliction by a disease known as American foulbrood, the causative agent of which is the Gram-positive bacteria Paenibacillus larvae which attacks bee larvae and pupae. This disease is detected and monitored using the PCR test and an ordinary cultivation test; these tests necessitate the complicated preparation of samples, and they must be transported to the laboratory. The submitted invention eliminates these disadvantages by using a mobile test card (1) which is equipped with a detection layer (2) that contains a nutrient medium consisting of MYPGP bullion with nalidixic or pipemidic acid and chromogen 2,3,5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC). The sample (7) of bee brood or bee debris comes into contact with the test card (1) by imprint directly in the bee hive (9), by debris fallout on the test card (1) placed on the floor of the hive (9), or by inoculation of a liquid sample (7) on the detection layer (2) of the test card (1). The test card (1) is also equipped with a removable cover layer (3) of transparent oxygen- permeable material, possibly also with a square mesh (11) for deducting the number of cultivated bacteria colonies (10). Following the completion of cultivation, the test card (1 ) with the sample (7) can be stored in a frozen state.