Dr. Michele Mansfield
Director, Penn State Honey and Pollen Diagnostics Lab
A plant pathologist by trade, I have 20+ years experience developing and using molecular diagnostic tools to study/detect a variety of plant pathogens and now, pollen. In April of 2021 I joined the Grozinger Lab and the Center for Pollinator Research to help develop and launch the PSU Pollen and Honey Diagnostic Lab (HPDL). It has been fascinating to learn about the world of pollen and pollinators!
The primary diagnostic tool of the HPDL is nested PCR for metabarcoding pollen DNA, combined with next generation sequencing (the Illumina® platform) and a customized bioinformatics pipeline. The goal is to (1) identify what plants are in a pollen or honey sample (2) how much plant contributes to the total floral fingerprint of a sample and (3) provide this information to beekeepers and researchers in a user-friendly platform. This work is based on Dr. Douglas Sponsler’s initial metabarcoding protocols for his post-doc work in the Grozinger Lab (Sponsler et al 2020. Characterizing the floral resources of a North American metropolis using a honey bee foraging assay. Ecosphere) and has been available since fall 2023. Data from metabarcoding has been used to develop Beescape, a web-based tool developed at PSU for researchers, citizen scientists and beekeepers alike to access forage quality in their area.
The HPDL also offers screening for Spotted Lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula), or SLF, in honey, a method originally developed by Valientin et al, 2020 (Moving eDNA surveys onto land: Strategies for active eDNA aggregation to detect invasive forest insect samples) and modified by myself for application to honey. The method was first utilized with samples, collected by Robyn Underwoodt, to study characteristics of honey resulting from SLF honeydew. This invasive pest has infiltrated throughout the eastern half of the United States and is considered a major agricultural problem that continues to spread.
The HPDL continues to expand and we hope to soon offer other honey and pollen characterization methods, including protein and lipid ratios in pollen and glucose/fructose/sucrose testing, amylase quantification, pH, and Brix content for honey.
In addition to using molecular methods to characterize pollen & honey samples, I have also worked with Dr. Natalie Boyle to prepare pollen samples collected from the Arboretum at Penn State and other Pennsylvania sources for photo documentation to produce high-resolution images available to users online as part of the PA Pollen Library Project.
I look forward to developing further methods to continue exploring the world of plants and pollinators!