Compositions and methods for treating an animal who has been exposed to pyrethroid are provided. An effective amount of a pyrethroid detoxifying enzyme to prevent or treat pyrethroid toxicity. The pyrethroid detoxifying enzyme is one or more pyrethroid-hydrolyzing carboxylesterases.

Described herein are engineered cells, enzymes, methods of use, and bee bread incorporating engineered cells and enzymes as described herein. In certain aspects, described herein are a bacterium containing therein one or more stably-expressing expression vectors for exogenous expression of one or more recombinant carboxylesterase enzymes or oxalate decarboxylase enzymes, thereby providing the engineered cell an exogenous pathway for hydrolyzing ester bonds or removing a carboxyl group. Engineered cells and recombinant enzymes as described herein can be incorporated into bee bread to be fed to a member of the Apidae family of bees or of the Apis or Bombus genus. In additional aspects, such bacteria can also be selected and amplified from the milieu of the hive microorganisms and in some cases they can be molecularly bred to enhance their metabolic capabilities without genetic engineering.

Compositions and methods for treating an animal who has been exposed to pyrethroid are provided. An effective amount of a pyrethroid detoxifying enzyme to prevent or treat pyrethroid toxicity. The pyrethroid detoxifying enzyme is one or more pyrethroid-hydrolyzing carboxylesterases.

A process for producing three recombinant enzymes capable of hydrolyzing each class of organophosphate, carbamate, and pyrethroid insecticides, as well as a formulation containing these enzymes provides the recombinant plasmid DNA vector, in which the protein secretory system has been modified to enhance the secretion of recombinant protein into the periplasmic space or culture medium. A nucleotide sequence encoding PelB (pectate lyase B) signal sequence for periplasmic localization is deleted and replaced with a nucleotide sequence encoding LamB (maltoporin or phage lambda receptor) signal sequence to enable a more efficient secretory recombinant protein. Three recombinant plasmid DNA vectors for the expression of recombinant proteins that are constructed using the modified plasmid DNA vector described above. The recombinant proteins include a recombinant organophosphate-hydrolyzing enzyme; a recombinant carbamate-hydrolyzing enzyme; and a recombinant pyrethroid-hydrolyzing enzyme.