Honey bee stingers use double-piston pumps to deliver venom

Researchers have discovered that honey bee stingers function as autonomous, double-piston micropumps. Using high-speed videography and 3D-printed models, a team led by Fiorella Ramirez-Esquivel at Macquarie University revealed that the stinger’s valves act as flexible, reciprocating pistons to maintain a continuous flow of venom.

Unlike most venomous animals that use muscles to contract venom sources, the honey bee utilizes a mechanism called autotomy. When a worker bee’s barbed stinger becomes embedded in a target, it breaks off and continues to function independently. The device can burrow into tissue and pump venom for over a minute without the bee's intervention.

The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), explains that the pumping chamber contains two valves acting as collapsible pistons. Because these pistons operate in opposite directions, one delivers pressure while the other refills, ensuring a steady flow rather than a pulsed output. Scientists suggest this biological mechanism could inspire the development of new medical drug-delivery devices.