Jewel wasps use special sensors on their stingers to inject toxins directly into cockroach brains.

Image: Wikimedia Commons/Muhammad Mahdi KarimNot only does this paper have one of the best titles we've heard yet, but the scenario it describes is perfect for the next big sci-fi blockbuster. There are many species of wasps that parasitize other insects by injecting them with their larvae, which will grow inside the poor victims until they are large enough to eat their way out. But the parasitoid jewel wasp goes a step further: it first injects the brain of its cockroach prey with toxins that turn the roach into a zombie. In this study, the scientists set out to determine how the jewel wasp is able to identify exactly where in the cockroach to insert its stinger. Turns out that the wasps' stingers have special neurons that are sensitive to touch ("mechanosensitive"), and these neurons are activated when touching objects with a similar hardness to cockroach heads. Furthermore, the jewel ...