The Mind Unleashed, 1/27/2014
Nano-particles carrying a toxin found in bee venom can
destroy human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) while leaving the surrounding cells
unharmed. The research was conducted by the Washington University School of
Medicine in St. Louis. The Nanoparticles carry melittin, which is the principal
active component of bee venom. Melittin fuses with the HIV virus and destroys
it’s protective envelope while molecular bumpers prevent the nanoparticles from
harming the body’s normal cells. Bee venom is known to disrupt cellular walls
and destroy tumour cells as well.
Bee venom contains a potent toxin called melittin that can
poke holes in the protective envelope that surrounds HIV, and other viruses.
Large amounts of free melittin can cause a lot of damage. Indeed, in addition
to anti-viral therapy, the paper’s senior author, Samuel A. Wickline, MD, the
J. Russell Hornsby Professor of Biomedical Sciences, has shown melittin-loaded
nano-particles to be effective in killing tumor cells.
The new study shows that melittin loaded onto these
nanoparticles does not harm normal cells…
1 comment:
I had no idea you could treat HIV with bee venom. The medicinal value of bees is incredible.
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