New research shows that insects feel pain. researchers say it isn't same kind of pain that humans feel. pain that insects feel is sensation that is like pain. research was conducted at University of Sydney in Australia. Professor Greg Neely, co-author of research report, said: "People don't really think of insects as feeling any kind of pain, but it's already been shown in lots of different invertebrate animals that they can sense and avoid dangerous [things] that we [think of] as painful." He added: "We knew that insects could sense 'pain' but what we didn't know is that injury could lead to long-lasting hyper-sensitivity...in similar way to human patients' experiences."
researchers looked at how fruit flies reacted to injuries. scientists damaged one leg on fruit flies and allowed leg to heal. They found that after leg fully healed, flies became more sensitive and tried harder to protect their legs. Professor Neely said pain the flies felt stayed in their memory and this changed their behaviour. He said: "After [insect] is hurt once badly, they are hypersensitive and try to protect themselves for rest of their lives." Neely says he hopes to carry out more research to better understand how humans feel pain. He said: "We are focused on making new stem cell therapies or drugs that target underlying cause and stop pain for good."
