The man (not to imitate) who is helping to obtain a universal antidote to the snake poison

Tim Friede, breeder of Wisconsin snakes (United States), survived up to 57 years of age, despite having made himself intentionally biting from his beloved poisonous reptiles about 200 times. In the future, its recklessness could save hundreds of thousands of people from certain death. A study just released on Cell In fact, it tells how two types of antibodies extracted from Friede’s blood have contributed to realizing The antidote candidate for the most powerful snakes ever obtained so fareffective against the bites of 19 different – and lethal – species.

Even if from our privileged perspective it may not seem like this, the bites of poisonous snakes are an urgent and widespread global public health problem, as well as a cause of high mortality. Over 600 species of poisonous snakes bite up to 2.7 million people every year, killing 120,000 and condemning another 400,000 to mutilation. And it is thought that these are estimated estimates.

Different species of poisonous snakes produce different cocktails of toxins: cobra and mamba section paralyzing neurotoxins; The aspids of the Vipere family, poisons that tear the tissues and that favor blood leakage. Region of origin, age, season and feeding of the reptile can alter the composition of the poison even within the same species.

Nonetheless, the technology to produce antidotes has not changed much for 130 years now, that is, since the anti -senior serums exist. A small amount of poison is injected into animals such as horses, camels or sheep, and their antibodies are therefore taken. But they are specific for the type of injected poison and effective only against one or a few species of snakes. They are also of animals other than humans, and can trigger potentially lethal allergic reactions.

Over 18 years, Friede It has self -employed about 650 doses carefully calibrated with snake poisons To progressively build an immunity to 16 species with a lethal bite. It also subjected itself on purpose to about 200 biteswith a rich corollary of effects (once in a coma, several anaphylactic shocks, some fainting, many skin rashes). Each time, taking note of the species of snake and exposure to the poison to which it had been exposed.

Peter Kwong, Biochemical of Columbia University in New York, and Jacob Glanville, CEO of the Biomedicine Cenivax company (California) have isolated from Friede’s blood Effective antibodies against the height of elapidsa family of snakes comprising 41 genres and about 180 species, which includes some of the most poisonous aspids in the world (such as the royal cobra, in the opening photo, or Taipan, a notorious Australia, Indonesia and Papua New Guinea snake).

Two types of antibodies developed by Friede in union with the varespladiba drug that inhibits an enzyme of the snake poison that destroys the tissues of muscles and nerves, protected the mice from the poison of 19 different species of elapid snakes. Leaving hoping in the future universal antidote, or at least effective against multiple stripped threats.

The approach opens the doors to combinations of drugs such as Varespladib together with monoclonal antibodies, that is, copies of human antibodies, to try to increase the coverage of antidotes, extending it against multiple species of poisonous snakes. However, it is not clear whether these antibodies can be produced at accessible prices on large scale. Furthermore, the most stringent problem to be solved may not be so much the availability of antidotes, as The presence of drugs ready to be administered “on the spot”close to the places where you are most often bitten by snakes.

The next step will be to test the potential antidote on dogs that in Australia are brought by veterinarians following the bite of poisonous snakes. If the mixture is not effective within a few minutes, we will move on to the administration of traditional antidotes.