The brain of a honey bee, about a cubic millimeter in volume, is used in biomedical research.

Studies of the brain of a honey bee, only about a cubic millimeter in volume, yield valuable information in medical research, information that can improve our brain health and our lives.

The honey bee brain has the highest neuropile density of any animal. How can research on an insect brain be useful in human medicine? We use an animal model such as the honey bee, simpler in some ways and yet more focused, to understand perception, information processing, learning, etc., and evolutionary pathways. To get an idea of how much this research has contributed to our understanding of brain structure and function, try searching “neuropile Apis mellifera” at https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ to see over 80 research articles on this subject.