Lab of terror
From the outside, Alagón's Cuernavaca laboratory looks like any other—white block building with the vague scent of lab animals as one enters. But his animals aren't fluffy rabbits and mice. In one room are boxes upon boxes of deadly scorpions (the most dangerous are in open-top crates that inspire a morbid desire to stick one's hand inside). Another room holds huge spiders; a third, shelf after shelf of deadly snakes. Like their teacher, Alagón's students are a cheerful and enthusiastic bunch that catch tarantulas with their bare hands in their spare time.
Alongside private pharmaceutical company, Instituto Bioclon, the team has been mastering a new generation of antivenoms.* First, using a protein-eating enzyme called pepsin, they chemically cut the tail off the 'Y' exactly at the joint, making it a 'V' that cannot interact with the body. Then they process out the impurities and turn the antivenom into a powder that can sit unrefrigerated on the shelf for three years. Alagón says that the updated formula is far safer than the old one and much cheaper than an overnight stay in the hospital.
Furthermore, he says, it costs less to develop. That's why his lab is also working on antivenoms that will treat bites and stings from spiders and snakes found in Africa, where many pharmaceutical companies simply don't see a market.
"[Globally] there are several species of black widow, but they all share the same venom," Alagón says. "What we are trying to do is have antivenoms that are multivalent—that work for the largest number of different species. Otherwise they are not practical."
Instituto Bioclon's multivalent scorpion antivenom, called Anascorp, cleared FDA scrutiny last year and is now available to patients.* A third treatment, for rattlesnake bites, is beginning phase III trials. Their black widow treatment is currently in phase III trials in—among other places—Spano's hospital, where she is also an assistant professor.* During the summer months the hospital sees about one black widow bite per week. Spano says she can't be sure who is getting the drug or the placebo but that in many cases the symptoms just simply dissipate in minutes.
*Editor's note (12/19/12): Three sentences in this story, marked with asterisks, were edited after posting to clarify the roles of the individuals and institutions involved in this antivenom research.
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5 Comments
Add CommentCuernavaca scorpions are some of the deadliest around, and since they coexist with humans more and more as Cuernavaca grows, they account for hundreds of deaths per year. Many of these deaths are due to the old antivenoms themselves. The article mentions how rare the side effects are for the black widow's antivenom; but for the scorpion's old antidote they are way more frequent. Also, people could seldom receive a second treatment (as in another sting) and survive the allergic reaction to the antidote - it was a once-only treatment.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWhen I was stung by a Cuernavaca scorpion, I sat at hospital for hours, receiving antihistamines and just being watched. Back then antivenom was not administered until it was obvious that the scorpion was "a bad one" and antihistamines were not working. In my case, luckily antivenom was not necessary, although I did get really, really sick for hours. And mine was a 'mild case'.
A safer antidote will make a huge difference in places like that, where stings are frequent and so is the need for a low-risk treatment.
"the most dangerous are in open-top crates that inspire a morbid desire to stick one's hand inside". Ha-ha. No thanks.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisGreat to see your story, Acoyauh2.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisErik, good article. I'm impressed at this team--tapping into a market that's not covered, the result is a low cost, effective, and safe product.
"First, using a protein-eating enzyme called pepsin, they chemically cut the tail off the 'Y' exactly at the joint, making it a 'V' that cannot interact with the body."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThis sentence is a little unclear, what 'Y' are you referring to? Do they also first manufacture an anti-venom by using a host animal that can produce it ( like a horse in the example of the Y -shaped black widow anti-venom ) or is there a new process to making the initial anti-venom also?
The 'Y' they are referring to is the antibody, or immunoglobulin, that they use in the antivenom. Antibodies are Y shaped proteins that recognise foreign bodies, but the tail of the Y was interfering with the body causing adverse reactions so they found a way to cleave it. It sounds like they made it using the usual method, injecting it into a horse and harvesting the antibodies.
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