After Genetic Tweaks, Fruit Flies Glow When They Sense Cancer

Sniffing Setup In this experimental setup, scents travel through the tube on the left and flow over the fruit fly mounted on the translucent block. Above the fly is the lens of a microscope that allows researchers to see individual cells on the fly's antenna.
University of Konstanz

Fruit flies are able to distinguish breast cancer cells from healthy mammary tissue, according to a new study. The humble fly joins dogs and honeybees as members of the animal kingdom that are able to detect odors associated with cancer. Unlike dogs, however, the flies can't show people when they get a hit. So, instead, researchers genetically engineered the flies so that receptor cells on their antenna glow when they latch onto cancer odors.

Source: Here