Scientists have discovered that honey bees, Apis mellifera,
have an extraordinary talent. Using their superior sense of smell, even more
sensitive than that of a dog, bees can be trained to detect specific chemical
odors. Those odors include biomarkers associated with lung, skin, and
pancreatic cancer, as well as tuberculosis.
A Portuguese designer, Susan Soares, took that knowledge and
developed a device that can utilize trained bees to detect serious diseases.
Bees are simply placed in the glass chamber and the patient
simply exhales into it. The bees fly into a smaller, secondary chamber if they
detect any cancer.
Bees don’t always live terribly long lives, but this method
is still effective because bees can be trained in just 10 minutes by using
Pavolv’s reflex, which connects certain odors with a food reward.
When bees are exposed to that odor, they are fed sugar and
water as a reward. Once taught, the bees remember for the entirety of their
six-week-long lives.
Early diagnosis is key for treating these deadly diseases,
and fortunately, bees can help. Just one more reason to do everything we can to
save the bees.
Source:higherperspectives.com
