Detecting cancer odors with honeybees: An unlikely hero

Science

24 Jul, 2024

Honeybees: Unlikely Heroes in Cancer Odor Detection

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Hey! Did you know that honeybees can be trained to smell cancer? It's almost like something that would be in a science fiction movie or something else, but it is real! Those small things there have such sensibilities of the nose, thus the scientists think it will become possible for them to smell the odorous compounds which cancer emanates. Exactly that—cancer-bees smelling around!

Right now you must be asking yourself, "How do bees even smell things?" Honeybees indeed use their olfactory systems to communicate and feed each other. However, the interesting thing about them is the ability to detect and distinguish scents. In fact, their noses are so good that ours are dust in comparison. Of course, they are modern but certainly the bee's knees. ???? As far as the smell is concerned, Saha explains, "biological sensors have this capability to tell apart between extremely similar mixtures, which synthetic sensors cannot."

Bees: Why Bees Over Machines?

The question still remains as to why we shouldn't opt for the machines. We, embracing the technology of the present time, have probably been thinking of it. **E-noses** as well as other devices for sensing smell are certainly good but they are not as sensitive as bees are. They don't have that fine detective smell to smell the mixtures the way the bees can. **They say** "The sense of smell is a like a language to the bees". According to Flora Gouzerh, a chemical ecologist at the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development, "For insects, as for many, it is a language". They use it for communication, finding food, and also finding a mate.

So, their noses—or, if I am not mistaken, antennae?

—can be employed for discerning complex smells without any added machinery.

The Future of Bee-Detection

How about a time when bees would be doing traditional honey production plus the diagnosis of human ailments too? Are they able to learn the smell of cancer as dogs do by associating it with food reward? The first step is to train the bees on the scent of cancer, then it is time to put them to cancer detection tests in real-life. It is a very interesting area of research showing lots of promise!

Still, do not expect a scene where they wear lab coats and use them as the hospital nurses. Though it might remain speculative, most of the time, the door is wide open. This is stilOur scientists not only may we find a new way of detecting cancer in its out-of-control phase but also we may get rid of outdated methods.