A new study conducted in the scientific journal NPJ Precision Oncology has shared a remarkable finding: bee venom, specifically a component called melittin, can effectively remove the most aggressive bre.ast can.cer cells , including the type known as triple-negative breast can.cer and tumors with excess of the HER2 protein.
What is melittin?
Melittin is the main active component of bee venom. It accounts for about 50% of the venom’s dry weight and is responsible for the pain we feel when stung by a bee. But except the pain, this substance has the ability to enter cells and eliminate them from within.
How does it fight off can.cer?
Melittin can break the membranes of can.cer cells. This causes the cells to leak their internal contents and di:e. Moreover, this substance appears to be highly selective: it attacks only malignant cells and removes normal cells unharmed.
Better results when blended with chemotherapy
Another exciting finding from the study is that when melittin is mixed with chemotherapy drugs like docetaxel, the effect on the tumor is even greater. Tumors shrink more quickly, and the mixture helps ensure lower doses of the drug are needed, which reduces side effects.
And what about bees from other regions?
For this study, the team collected honeybee venom from different parts of the world, including Australia, Ireland, and England. They also compared its effectiveness with bumblebee venom. The result was that only honeybee venom was able to destr0y bre.ast can.cer cells with such precision.
This suggests that not just any type of insect venom works to combat can.cer, but rather the honeybee’s specific melittin has unique properties.
Is this treatment safe?
Although the results are very hopeful, there is still a long way to go. It has not yet been tested in humans, and scientists caution that the way melittin is administered needs to be refined.
One of the most interesting things from the study is that the scientists altered melittin to make it even more precise in targeting only can.cer cells. They added a special type of “tag” that helps it better find malignant cells. This could help avoid damage to healthy tissue and make the treatment safer.
Why is this discovery so crucial?
Bre.ast cancer is one of the most popular types of can.cer in the world, and triple-negative breast can.cer is one of the most difficult to treat. Current treatments often have numerous side effects and are not always effective.
