Ants surrender their venomous secrets

Venoms produced by snails, snakes, scorpions and spiders contain numerous bioactive compounds that could lead to therapeutic drugs or insect-specific pesticides. Yet little is known about venoms produced by insects, in part because each bug contains such a tiny amount. Researchers recently responded to this challenge by conducting one of the first intensive studies of ant venom. They have now published their findings in ACS’ Journal of Proteome Research.