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  • RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT

How the giant stinging tree of Australia can inflict months of agony

A new type of peptide produces pain so intense that sometimes even morphine cannot quell it.
Close-up of a green plant stem covered in fine, translucent stings, on a black background.

Beware the fuzz: the hair-like structures on the leaves and stems of the giant stinging tree (Dendrocnide excelsa) can inject a potent venom into the skin of the unwary. Credit: Institute for Molecular Bioscience/University of Queensland

The unrelenting pain from an Australian tree’s sting is caused by newly identified peptides resembling those in spider venoms.

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Nature 585, 485 (2020)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-02668-9

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