Incredible fish discovery stuns scientists

An incredible new discovery involving a tiny fish that swims in the Great Barrier Reef in the Pacific Ocean near Australia, and can also be found in many home aquariums, could lead to breakthroughs in medicine. The fish, which is known as the fang blenny, has a defense mechanism that involves injecting predators with a substance similar to heroin or opioids in order to slow their enemies down.

It’s a fascinating finding that could lead to the development of new types of painkillers as an alternative to opioids, which are beset with problems including addiction and the risk of overdose. Scientists will need to conduct many more studies and tests before such a medicine would be available on the market, but it’s potentially a big step toward finding a solution to the opioid epidemic.

Fang blennies are bottom feeders that can be found near reefs. Like many species that rely on reefs, climate change is a big threat. Scientists say species like this that could help humankind are a good reason to care about global warming and its effects on the environment…. read more here