Scientists Use Wasp Venom To Kill Breast Cancer Cells

Researchers from the Institute for Biomedical Research (IRB Barcelona) reported that wasp venom targeted and killed breast cancer tumor cells in in vitro experiments.

The team developed the new therapy based on a peptide from wasp venom to fight breast cancer. The venom could not be used directly due to its high toxicity and its ability to indiscriminately attack on both malignant and healthy cells alike. The researchers circumvented the obstacle by using a decorated carrier polymer comprised of a peptide bound to a tumor cell receptor and a cytotoxic peptide of the wasp venom.

The substance successfully targeted and killed the tumor cells while sparing healthy cells. Lead author Miguel Moreno explained in an interview, “This peptide has the ability to form pores in the cell plasma membrane, penetrate into the cell and finally, cause its death, either by necrosis or by triggering apoptosis, programmed cell death.”

The scientists’ next step is to test the venom’s effectiveness in mouse models of the disease.

Nature has proven to be a storehouse of drugs for cancer and other diseases. The best known of these is the story of Taxol, an anti-cancer drug discovered in the 1960s through the joint effort of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and U.S. Department of Agriculture. The drug is sourced from the needles of the Pacific Yew tree and found to be a potent compound against ovarian cancer among others. More recently, an article from Mother Nature cited a study from Nutrition and Cancer that reports wild thyme extract triggered cytotoxicity in breast cancer cells while sparing normal cells.

David Newman, chief of the Natural Products Branch of the National Cancer Institute, commented in an interview with Business Insider on the importance of preserving nature as a source of medicines, saying, “Mother Nature has been doing her chemistry over the last three billion years. She isn't making anti-tumor compounds but the same chemical that a sea sponge uses to fight predators might also be able to kill cancer cells or viruses.”