A universal snake antivenom is a step closer after scientists found a person who was hyper-immune to snake bites.
Centivax CEO Jacob Glanville said Californian Tim Friede had self-induced his hyper-immunity over almost 20 years by subjecting himself to hundreds of snake bites.
Mr Glanville said by using Mr Friede’s antibodies, scientists had developed the most broadly effective antivenom to date, which was protective against the likes of the black mamba, king cobra, and tiger snakes in mouse trials.
He said the antivenom combined protective antibodies and a small molecule inhibitor and opened a path toward a universal antiserum.
“The donor, for a period of nearly 18 years, had undertaken hundreds of bites and self-immunizations with escalating doses from 16 species of very lethal snakes that would normally a kill a horse.”
Mr Glanville said researchers found that by exposing himself to the venom of various snakes over several years, Mr Friede had generated antibodies that were effective against several snake neurotoxins at once.
“What was exciting about the donor was his once-in-a-lifetime unique immune history.
“Not only did he potentially create these broadly neutralizing antibodies, in this case, it could give rise to a broad-spectrum or universal antivenom.”
Read the full study: Snake venom protection by a cocktail of varespladib and broadly neutralizing human antibodies.
