Surgical device inspired by parasitic wasps could extract bits of you

By Christa Lesté-Lasserre

The device works in a similar way to a parasitic wasp’s ovipositor

A. Sakes et al

A surgical device inspired by parasitic wasps could make it easier and less painful to remove certain tumours and blood clots.

Parasitic wasps inject their eggs through a long, thin, tubular organ called an ovipositor into living hosts, such as spiders and caterpillars. The organ’s blade-like valves, which run the full length of the tube, slide up and down alternately pushing the eggs into the wasp’s victims using friction.

Aimée Sakes at Delft University of Technology in The Netherlands and her colleagues …