Venom and Poison as Medicine
The other day, I was listening to the “Ologies” podcast with Alie Ward about cone snails. They have some of the most beautiful shells. But if you see a cone shell in the wild, DO NOT PICK IT UP AND STUFF IT IN YOUR SWIM SHORTS! These remarkable creatures can mix a chemical cocktail powerful enough to kill. The venom of one cone snail has been hypothesized to kill up to 700 people!
Florida Museum photo by Kristen Grace
I love this excerpt from an article in The Atlantic by Katherine J. Wu:
“When the snails eat, they feast, filling their digestive tract with a glut of battered bodies in various states of drug-induced disarray. Depending on the snail species at hand, some of the corpses might be fish, limp from hypoglycemic shock; they could be worms, sexually stimulated and hot to trot. These poor souls are among the many victims of cone-snail venom—one of the deadliest and most dizzyingly complex substances ever described in an invertebrate.”
Photo by Paulo Oliveira for Alamy
I didn’t realize that these snails are astonishing venom chemists! Cone snail venom is being researched to find cures for diseases, pain relief, and drug-resistant infections. It got me thinking about other venomous animals. How are their venoms being used to help human ailments? When I began to investigate this question, I was not disappointed!
My upcoming collection will feature the beloved cone snails as well as:
- Scorpions: Their venom contains compounds that can kill staph and tuberculosis bacteria.
- Black Mambas: Compounds in their venom provide non-addictive pain relief as strong as morphine.
- Pit Vipers: Their venom helps with hypertension and heart failure.
- Blue-Ringed Octopuses: Their venom provides useful drugs for treating cancer and other types of chronic pain.
- Gila Monsters: Compounds in their venom have been developed into a drug to treat type 2 diabetes.
- Bees: Their venom has compounds with anti-inflammatory potential.
- Poisonous Plants:
- Belladonna: Used in traditional asthma treatments.
- Foxglove: Used for heart failure, fluid buildup in the body, and irregular heartbeat.
- Castor Oil Plant (Ricinus communi): Its oil is still used as a laxative.
My takeaway from learning about poisonous plants and venomous creatures is that they should be treated with deep respect and awe.