Even tobacco is doing good now. Wired reports a discovery that is the very definition of irony: the nicotine-rich tobacco plant could potentially treat cancer, viruses, and genetic disorders. Holy vaccine!

William Bentley, the University of Maryland professor leading the charge, reveals that the plant’s tubular “mosaic virus is literally a nano-sized syringe,” one that can be hollowed out and stuffed with “small interfering RNA” (or siRNA) molecules. Once injected, these siRNA molecules can program cells to destroy disease-causing proteins. A few scientists even opine that siRNA is the most significant development in medicine since the discovery of vaccines. There are still a few stumbling blocks before this can all be done in practice, of course, but we wish these pioneers luck.