Ergosterol-Free Yeast Feed for Honey Bee Brood Production
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Solution Overview
Problem
Honey bees face malnutrition and increased pathogen prevalence due to limited forage availability and the use of commercially produced feeds containing ergosterol-rich yeast, which acts as an antinutrient, negatively impacting brood production and overall health.
Innovation Solution
Development of ergosterol-free yeast compositions, specifically modified Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Xanthophyllomyces sp., and Yarrowia lipolytica strains that do not express ergosterol or zymosterol, and are enhanced to produce invertebrate nutrients like cholesterol and desmosterol, enabling growth without sterols and improving nutritional profiles for honey bees and bumble bees.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If commercially produced feeds containing yeast are used to replace pollen, then nutritional supplementation is provided to honey bees, but ergosterol acts as an antinutrient that decreases brood production and overall health
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes the harmful ergosterol component from yeast while retaining the beneficial nutritional components. This is achieved through selective breeding of yeast strains that naturally produce low levels of ergosterol, or through partial extraction processes that remove ergosterol while preserving proteins, amino acids, vitamins, and minerals. The result is a yeast-based feed supplement that maintains nutritional value without the antinutrient effects.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters of the yeast feed by selecting for strains with modified sterol profiles. Specifically, it alters the ergosterol content parameter to be below harmful thresholds while maintaining or enhancing other nutritional parameters such as protein content, vitamin composition, and mineral content. This parameter optimization allows the feed to provide nutrition without the harmful antinutrient effects.
2Adaptability or versatility
If natural forage is replaced with commercially produced feeds, then feed availability is ensured, but the feeds contain ergosterol-rich yeast that negatively impacts brood production
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the typically harmful ergosterol-containing yeast into a beneficial feed supplement by removing or reducing the ergosterol component. The yeast's natural nutritional benefits (proteins, amino acids, vitamins, minerals) are preserved and enhanced, while the harmful sterol component is eliminated. This transformation allows commercially produced feeds to maintain availability and nutritional value while eliminating the negative impact on brood production.
3Adaptability or versatility
If pollen substitutes are used to feed honey bees, then forage limitations are overcome, but the substitutes contain antinutrients that reduce invertebrate performance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies extraction to remove antinutrients from pollen substitutes. Specifically, it selects yeast strains with naturally reduced ergosterol content or uses processing methods to extract ergosterol while preserving the nutritional components. This extraction approach maintains the feed's ability to replace pollen while eliminating the antinutrient effects that reduce invertebrate performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent optimizes the compositional parameters of pollen substitutes by modifying the yeast component to have altered sterol profiles. The ergosterol content parameter is reduced to below harmful levels while maintaining or improving other parameters such as protein content, vitamin composition, and overall nutritional balance. This parameter optimization enables effective pollen substitution without antinutrient-related performance reduction.
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a method for feeding invertebrates, comprising ▪ Providing a pollen substitute or supplement composition for invertebrates, in particular for honey bees and bumble bees out of yeast selected from the group consisting of S. cerevisiae, Xanthophyllomyces sp., S. japonicus or Yarrowia lipolytica, ▪ Administering the composition to invertebrates, wherein the composition is essentially free of ergosterol or zymosterol or combinations thereof.