The medicinal use
of honey bee products is called apitherapy. This method of treating various
diseases has been practised since ancient times. Bee venom therapy can
be applied to a wide variety of medical conditions. Today apitherapy is
used to help patients who suffer from arthritis or other inflammatory or
degenerative diseases. Did you know that there are at least 18 active substances
in the composition of honey bee venom?
The link Venom Extracts will
take you to a table, containing detailed information on the contemporary
use of substances extracted from poisonous plants and animals, such as
their medical application and source, which they originate from.
In the future, animal venom
may be used in medicine to treat serious illnesses. For example, a neurologist
at the university of Alabama says that scorpion venom may soon be used
to fight a currently incurable form of brain cancer, glioma. Harald Sontheimer
isolated the peptide chlorotoxin from the venom of a giant Israeli Scorpion.
The concept is to use the peptides to direct the action of chemotherapy
agents only to the cancerous cells.
Tarantula venom, too, may
one day be used to treat various conditions, such as heart attacks and
brain tumours. Follow the links on the left to read the entire articles
and to find out curious facts that may become reality much sooner than
you thought!