Investigation of long-term effect of Black Sea bee’s venom on the cytotoxicity of pancreatic cancer cells

Bee venom is one of the potential natural mixtures to be used in therapies of a range of diseases. The cytotoxic effect of bee venom on a number of cancer cells has been revealed by different research groups. These in vitro studies are designed to include serial concentrations of bee venom under various incubation times, followed by the application of cytotoxicity assays. Common approach in the field is to determine the most effective cytotoxic conditions within those experienced. Differentially, in this study we aimed to understand whether the cytotoxic effect of venom obtained from Black sea Apis mellifera has been remained even if bee venom was removed after a while of incubation. For this aim, the conditions were determined in AR42J pancreatic cancer cells and the prolonged effect of bee venom under the determined concentrations was investigated. The findings showed that the cytotoxic effect of bee venom still continued in cells treated with bee venom once. This suggests that bee venom-induced cell death can be memorized by the cells in population somehow or/and bee venom may provoke a cascade of apoptosis occurring in a long time. This however needs further investigations.