Washington University School of Medicine researchers have attached the peptide Melittin, a major component of bee venom, to nano-sized spheres they call “nanobees”
for injection into tumors.

Melittin is strongly attracted to cell membranes, where it can form pores that break up cells and kill them. The results suggest that nanobees could lessen the growth and size of established cancerous tumors and also act at early stages to prevent cancer from developing.