In addition to serving as biochemical weapons for offense and defense, the venoms produced by ants in the subfamily Formicinae also fulfill additional roles. For example, the ants use it to protect their nests from pathogens. It has long been assumed that the primary constituent of these venoms, formic acid, was responsible for these functions. However, a team of researchers from Freie Universität Berlin and Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg has now shown that these venoms also contain a complex mixture of peptidic compounds and other bioactive substances. The discovery of these substances opens up new possibilities in the field of medical research.