Venomous snakes: a problem or an alternative in biotechnology?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22201/cuaieed.16076079e.2024.25.2.3Keywords:
Snakes, Venoms, Toxins, Antivenoms, TherapeuticAbstract
Snakes, despite playing a crucial role in ecosystems, have historically been classified as dangerous animals due to misinformation and unfounded beliefs. Snakebite, considered a public health problem, is estimated at around 5,400,000 cases annually, with consequences ranging from loss of functionality to death. Nevertheless, snake venoms, rich in proteins and peptides with biological activities, have captured scientific attention, driving research to understand their functioning and explore their therapeutic potential. These components demonstrate significant potential in treating various human diseases. The abstract emphasizes the need to increase environmental education programs to counter misinformation, highlight the ecological and biotechnological importance of snakes, and contribute to their conservation in natural habitats.
Despite the problem that this represents, snake venoms are rich in proteins and peptides with biological activities that have drawn the attention of scientists around the world, resulting in a growing number of investigations to know how they work and if it is possible to use them as therapeutic agents. The isolated components of venoms have shown enormous potential for the treatment of different human illnesses and diseases, which is why it is important to increase environmental education programs to end misinformation and help in the conservation of these animals.
References
Bordon, K. de C. F., Cologna, C. T., Fornari-Baldo, E. C., Pinheiro-Júnior, E. L., Cerni, F. A., Amorim, F. G., Anjolette, F. A. P., Cordeiro, F. A., Wiezel, G. A., Cardoso, I. A., Ferreira, I. G., De Oliveira, I. S., Boldrini-França, J., Pucca, M. B., Baldo, M. A., y Arantes, E. C. (2020). From Animal Poisons and Venoms to Medicines: Achievements, Challenges and Perspectives in Drug Discovery. Frontiers In Pharmacology, 11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphar.2020.01132.
Fernández-Rubio, F. (2017). El impacto de las serpientes sobre la mente humana. Argutorio: Revista de La Asociación Cultural “Monte Irago,” 37, 75–88. https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=5802997.
Global Snakebite Initiative. (2020). Global Snakebite Initiative USA Foundation. Global Snakebite Initiative eua Foundation. https://www.globalsnakebite.org/.
Kini, R. M., Sidhu, S. S., y Laustsen, A. H. (2018). Biosynthetic Oligoclonal Antivenom (boa) for Snakebite and Next-Generation Treatments for Snakebite Victims. Toxins, 10(12), 534. https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins10120534.
Lomonte, B., y Calvete, J. J. (2017). Strategies in ‘snake venomics’ aiming at an integrative view of compositional, functional, and immunological characteristics of venoms. Journal Of Venomous Animals And Toxins Including Tropical Diseases, 23(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40409-017-0117-8.
O’Shea, M. (2018b). The Book of Snakes. University of Chicago Press https://doi.org/10.7208/chicago/9780226459424.001.0001.
Oliveira, A., Viegas, M. F., Da Silva, S. L., Soares, A. M., Ramos, M. J., y Fernandes, P. A. (2022). The chemistry of snake venom and its medicinal potential. Nature Reviews Chemistry, 6(7), 451-469. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41570-022-00393-7.
Uetz, P., y Hošek, J. (2023). The Reptile Data Base. http://www.reptile-database.org.
World Health Organization (who). (2021). Snakebite envenoming. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/snakebite-envenoming.
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Revista Digital Universitaria
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Revista Digital Universitaria es editada por la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México se distribuye bajo una Licencia Creative Commons Atribución-NoComercial 4.0 Internacional. Basada en una obra en http://revista.unam.mx/.
