Venom's Healing Bite
- By Kate Becker
- Posted 02.17.11
- NOVA
For hundreds of millions of years, evolution has been perfecting its own brand of biological warfare: venom. The toxic compounds in venom are finely honed weapons capable of launching precision attacks against cells in the nervous system, bloodstream, and organs. Now, medical researchers are tapping these potent chemical cocktails to develop new therapies for cancer, heart disease, and chronic pain. Nature’s swords, it turns out, can make powerful medical ploughshares.
Launch Interactive
Toxic compounds in animal venom could yield new drugs for heart disease, cancer, and chronic pain.
Sources
Targeting cancer
Anonymous. 2009. "Scorpion venom with nanoparticles slows spread of brain cancer." ScienceDaily, 17 April 2009. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090416133816.htm
Anonymous. 2006. "Radioactive scorpion venom for fighting cancer." ScienceDaily, 27 June 2006. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/06/060627174755.htm
Keeping tumors in check
Pyrko, P. et al. 2005. "The role of contortrostatin, a snake venom disintegrin, in the inhibition of tumor progression and prolongation of survival in a rodent glioma model." Journal of Neurosurgery, 2005 Sep; 103(3):526-37. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16235686
Finn, Robert. 2001. "Snake venom protein paralyzes cancer cells." Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 93 (4): 261-262. http://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/content/93/4/261.full
Killing cancer cells
Ericson, Gwen. 2009. "Tumors feel the deadly sting of nanobees." Washington University in St. Louis newsroom website, 10 August 2009. http://news.wustl.edu/news/Pages/14432.aspx
Loftus, Peter. 2009. "The buzz: Targeting cancer with bee venom." The Wall Street Journal, 28 September 2009. http://on.wsj.com/omngQ
Controlling blood pressure
Mayo Clinic staff. "Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors." Mayo Clinic website, accessed 3 February 2011. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/ace-inhibitors/HI00060
Patlak, Margie. 2004. "From viper's venom to drug design: treating hypertension." Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, 1 March 2004. http://www.fasebj.org/content/18/3/421.1.full
Relieving pain
Zapp Machalek, Alisa. 2005. "Sea snail venom yields powerful new painkiller." NIH Record, 1 March 2005. http://nihrecord.od.nih.gov/newsletters/2005/03_01_2005/story03.htm
Credits
IMAGES:
- (death stalker scorpion)
- © Arie van der Meijden
- (copperhead)
- CDC/James Gathany
- (bees)
- Jon Sullivan
- (Bothropoides jararaca)
- Daniel Loebmann
- (pygmy rattlesnake)
- © Maik Dobiey
- (Conus magus)
- © Richard Ling. Licensed under GFDL
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