I wasn’t expecting to think about bees and bombs again (after my July 28, 2010 posting on science knitting and yarn bombing respectively) but then this news item, Novel bee venom derivative forms a nanoparticle ‘smart bomb’ to target cancer cells, popped up on Nanowerk last week. From the news item,

The next time you are stung by a bee, here’s some consolation: a toxic protein in bee venom, when altered, significantly improves the effectiveness liposome-encapsulated drugs or dyes, such as those already used to treat or diagnose cancer. This research [Samuel Wickline], described in the August 2010 print issue of the FASEB [Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology] Journal, shows how modified melittin may revolutionize treatments for cancer and perhaps other conditions, such as arthritis, cardiovascular disease, and serious infections.

I gather the joournal’s editor is also experiencing these coincidences,

“Our journal is abuzz in a hive of bee-related discoveries. Just last month, we published research showing for the first time how honey kills bacteria. This month, the Wickline study shows how bee venom peptides can form “smart bombs” that deliver liposomal nanoparticles directly to their target, without collateral damage,” said Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of the FASEB Journal.

That’s a lot of military jargon.