Molecular diagnosis of Paenibacillus larvae larvae spores, in diseased larva of honey bee.

American foulbrood (AFB) is the most serious brood disease of the honey bee. The disease is caused by the Gram-positive spore-forming bacterium Paenibacillus larvae larvae. This highly infectious disease affects larval and pupal stages during the honeybee development. Dead larvae decompose to a glue-like colloid liquid, producing a specific smell. Nurse bees remove spores to other larvae by oral feeding. The disease is so infectious that it can destroy the infected honeybee colony within a few months or years. Traditional methods are reliable but rather slow simply because they are based on biochemical and morphological/physiological identification of cultivated isolates. This method also requires relatively long cultivation. Traditional methods are reliable but rather slow simply because they are based on biochemical, morphological and physiological identification of cultivated isolates. The aim of this study is the detection of Paenibacillus larvae larvae spores in diseased larvae samples by PCR. Therefore 54 samples of diseased larvae samples, were diluted with an equal volume of distilled water and centrifuged, then the pellet was used for DNA extraction and PCR. PCR products were electrophoresed on 0.8 % agarose gel. Five of 54 larvae samples were positive for Paenibacillus larvae larvae by PCR.