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Community => Science and Technology => Topic started by: Her3tiK on March 08, 2013, 09:58:08 pm

Title: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Her3tiK on March 08, 2013, 09:58:08 pm
No, seriously. (http://io9.com/5989525/nanoparticles-made-from-bee-venom-can-kill-hiv)

Quote
Earlier this week we reported on the remarkable news that a Mississippi-born baby was cured of HIV. Now, as if to show the disease that it's days are truly numbered, researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have shown that nanoparticles infused with a toxic bee venom can kill HIV. The researchers hope to take this new compound and develop a vaginal gel that can prevent the further spread of the disease.

...

For the experiment, Wickline's team prepared free melittin and melittin-loaded nanoparticles and set them against various strains of HIV (CXCR4 and CCR5 in particular). The researchers then showed that melittin, when delivered in these large and free accumulations, can make life miserable for the disease.

Moreover, these melittin-loaded nanoparticles left the surrounding cells unharmed, which bodes well for the development of a topical vaginal virucide. But this didn't happen by accident. The nanoparticles were endowed with a kind of filter that prevents healthy cells from coming into contact with the toxin. HIV, on the other hand, is small and it sifts through these filters, thus exposing it to the toxin.

This is thrilling, fascinating, and mildly terrifying. And inconvenient for people who are allergic to bee stings. And probably not going to go well after the bees go extinct from climate change, but y'know... one step at a time.

SCIENCE!
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Art Vandelay on March 08, 2013, 10:15:47 pm
Well, vaginas are the best place to store bees.
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Rabbit of Caerbannog on March 08, 2013, 11:22:22 pm
That's right ladies, time to stuff your vaginas with bees!
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Damen on March 08, 2013, 11:30:03 pm
(http://cdn.memegenerator.net/instances/400x/32970293.jpg)
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: ThunderWulf on March 08, 2013, 11:46:02 pm
I don't know if this would classify as thinking outside the box... or inside the "box".
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Random Gal on March 09, 2013, 02:26:55 am
Do I have to link to that one story again?
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Jodie on March 09, 2013, 04:25:03 am
That's good news if it is true.

But aren't bee colonies diminishing every year at alarming rates? That's bad for this bit of good news as well as the human food supplies for the future.

0_0
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Flying Mint Bunny! on March 09, 2013, 05:42:30 am
That's good news if it is true.

But aren't bee colonies diminishing every year at alarming rates? That's bad for this bit of good news as well as the human food supplies for the future.

0_0

But if this was a effective cure for HIV, wouldn't people then make it a priority to save the bees?
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: syaoranvee on March 09, 2013, 06:36:40 am
I swear I hear these
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Captain Jack Harkness on March 09, 2013, 11:52:16 am
I just hope that people won't go on a crusade about how "invasive" this is to women if the use of this shit becomes more widespread.  I wouldn't be surprised if some did, considering how stupid people can get.
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Jodie on March 09, 2013, 01:20:11 pm
That's good news if it is true.

But aren't bee colonies diminishing every year at alarming rates? That's bad for this bit of good news as well as the human food supplies for the future.

0_0

But if this was a effective cure for HIV, wouldn't people then make it a priority to save the bees?

Saving bee colonies should be a priority anyway, since they are vital to our naturally grown food supplies, but especially if this HIV cure thing turns out to bee true. I see many articles complaining about the problem but I don't actually know if anyone has tried to do anything about it yet. Which is unfortunate.
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Auggziliary on March 09, 2013, 01:38:04 pm
I just hope that people won't go on a crusade about how "invasive" this is to women if the use of this shit becomes more widespread.  I wouldn't be surprised if some did, considering how stupid people can get.

To be fair, some might think this involves shoving bees into a vagina, and that can be pretty invasive.
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Random Gal on March 09, 2013, 06:08:33 pm
OKAY FINE I'LL LINK TO IT AGAIN. (http://solotouch.com/contri.php?story=1049)

Warning: NSFW and may cause sympathy pains.
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Eats Babies on March 12, 2013, 02:09:09 am
First thing that popped into my head:
(http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6gE2FEVZRFQ/Tuu2YbZRmDI/AAAAAAAAA8Y/_jGHT_LA3Gg/s1600/47-centipedes-in-my-vagina.jpg)
This is very interesting though, figures that bees are threatened at the moment...
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Meshakhad on March 12, 2013, 02:59:56 am
How long before some fundie says that this will encourage risky sex?
Title: Re: Bee venom kills HIV. Let's put it in vaginas!
Post by: Osama bin Bambi on March 12, 2013, 03:03:10 am
How long before some fundie says that this will encourage risky sex?

Bees encourage promiscuity?

Well I guess that makes sense since they're a female-dominated and therefore "feminist" society

:P