Our results demonstrated a strong inhibitory
effect of the combined honey bee
stomach LAB flora and of two Lactobacillus
phylotypes (Hma11 and Biut2) on the in vitro
growth of P. larvae (Tab. II). Furthermore,
the results clearly demonstrate that addition of
LAB to young honey bee larvae exposed to P.
larvae spores decreases the proportion of larvae
that succumb to AFB infection. Thus, our
results strongly suggest that probiotic bacteria
linked to the honey bee stomach have important
implications for honey bee pathology
in general and for AFB tolerance in particular.