Andres Baez

Well-organized and passionate about career development, early personal objectives achieved after being exposed to both edges of the honey bee activity, science-research and commercial production in all stages. I gathered more than 12 years of professional certified experience; strong commitment, resiliency, good planning, personal development focused, good communication skills, used to work in multicultural and challenging environments.

• Saira Espinosa, Judith Figueroa, Peter G. Kevan, Carlos Báez, Victor Solarte, Guy Smagghe Andres Sánchez. Entomovectoring for Precision Biocontrol and Enhanced Pollination of Crops Advances in the Implementation of Apivectoring Technology in Colombia: Strawberry Case (Fragaria x ananassa) Springer ISBN 978-3-030-18916-7 ISBN 978-3-030-18917-4 (eBook) https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-18917-4 Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
• Carlos Baez, Edgar Arias. Colombian Journal of Livestock Sciences “Market research for beekeeping products offered through the health food stores distribution channel in Bogota-Colombia”. ISSN: 0120-0690, Universidad de Antioquia Colombia’ publishing house. v.26 p.359 - 359,2013
• Evaluation of the reproductive ability of Varroa destructor in colonies of Africanized honeybees in three Colombian regions". 2013. page. 209 XXXXIII International Apicultural Congress Apimondia, Kiev 2013

• Researcher in the BARC Bee Research Laboratory BRL of the United States Department of Agriculture. USDA 2017- 2018
• A project I was involved in:
• Develop nutritional supplements to help reduce the impact of honey bee malnutrition caused by habitat destruction and extensive use of monoculture agro-practices, and understand the relations between nutrition and the effect of pathogens such as ectoparasite Varroa destructor
• I designed the hypothesis and diet trial to feed a winter diet formula into honey bees under artificial winter conditions promoting protein storage in the hive and colony diet incorporation.
• The results were obtained by quantification of vitellogenin protein levels using confocal micrograph technics and gene expression comparison implementing a USDA phenol-chloroform standard procedures.
• Researcher and laboratory supervisor in the Molecular & microbiology laboratory ANIMAL SCIENCE & VETERINARY FACULTY at the National University of Colombia. 2013-2017
• Project I was involved in:
• Molecular traceability innovations by way of competitiveness strategies in the Colombian bee agri-business
• Identification of disease-causing pathogens in Apis mellifera and implementation of a genetic improvement plan, based on the selection of parents with superior health and productive characteristics, to increase competitiveness in three regions of Colombia
• Research projects focused on finding, reporting and building the first disease map for Apis mellifera using molecular biology techniques.
• I was in charge of dairy activities recording, sample labelling, storage and usage for DNA isolation applying the adapted USDA Phenol chloroform technique on A.mellifera and the bacteria diseases American foulbrood (AFB), and European foulbrood (EFB) Also, RNA isolation from a virus such as chronic paralysis (CBPV), Acute Paralysis (ABPV), deformed wing virus (DWV), and Kashmir virus (KBV).
• Highly experienced in assembling conventional PCR and rt-PCR and posterior electrophoresis in horizontal agarose gel, reading and sample preparation before the codification.
• I also was actively involved in the sampling journeys, programming with farmer communities and travelling to different remote areas, gathering and transporting live insect samples before laboratory processing, labelling and storage bringing a holistic point of view and professional experience.
• In 2015 while I was still involved in the research projects, I was named a laboratory supervisor having as a main objective of keeping chemical reagents inventory updated, equipment properly maintained, laboratory standards of health and safety in shape, keeping operative licenses active and seeking funding writing potential experimental proposals.