Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

February 21, 2024

22/02/2024

Snaking toward a universal antivenom Scripps Research scientists discovered antibodies that protect against a host of lethal snake venoms.

February 21, 2024

LA JOLLA, CA Scripps Research scientists have developed an antibody that can block the effects of lethal toxins in the venoms of a wide variety of snakes found throughout Africa, Asia and Australia.

The antibody, which protected mice from the normally deadly venom of snakes including black mambas and king cobras, is described on February 21, 2024, in Science Translational Medicine. The new research used forms of the toxins produced in the laboratory to screen billions of different human antibodies and identify one that can block the toxins' activity. It represents a large step toward a universal antivenom that would be effective against the venom of all snakes.

This antibody works against one of the major toxins found across numerous snake species that contribute to tens of thousands of deaths every year, says senior author Joseph Jardine, PhD, assistant professor of immunology and microbiology at Scripps Research. This could be incredibly valuable for people in low- and middle-income countries that have the largest burden of deaths and injuries from snakebites.

More than 100,000 people a year, mostly in Asia and Africa, die from snakebite envenoming rendering it more deadly than most neglected tropical diseases. Current antivenoms are produced by immunizing animals with snake venom, and each generally only works against a single snake species. This means that many different antivenoms must be manufactured to treat snake bites in the different regions.

Jardine and his colleagues have previously studied how broadly neutralizing antibodies against the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) can work by targeting areas of the virus that cannot mutate. They realized that the challenge of finding a universal antivenom was similar to their quest for an HIV vaccine; just like quickly evolving HIV proteins show small differences between each other, different snake venoms have enough variations that an antibody binding to one generally doesn't bind to others. But like HIV, snake toxins also have conserved regions that cannot mutate, and an antibody targeting those could possibly work against all variants of that toxin.

In the new work, which was largely conducted while Jardine and his colleagues were at the nonprofit scientific research organization IAVI, they isolated and compared venom proteins from a variety of elapids a major group of venomous snakes including mambas, cobras and kraits. They found that a type of protein called three-finger toxins (3FTx), present in all elapid snakes, contained small sections that looked similar across different species. In addition, 3FTx proteins are considered highly toxic and are responsible for whole-body paralysis, making them an ideal therapeutic target.

With the goal of discovering an antibody to block 3FTx, the researchers created an innovative platform that put the genes for 16 different 3FTx into mammalian cells, which then produced the toxins in the lab. The team then turned to a library of more than fifty billion different human antibodies and tested which ones bound to the 3FTx protein from the many-banded krait (also known as the Chinese krait or Taiwanese krait), which had the most similarities with other 3FTx proteins. That narrowed their search down to about 3,800 antibodies. Then, they tested those antibodies to see which also recognized four other 3FTx variants. Among the 30 antibodies identified in that screen, one stood out as having the strongest interactions across all the toxin variants: an antibody called 95Mat5.

We were able to zoom in on the very small percentage of antibodies that were cross-reactive for all these different toxins, says Irene Khalek, a Scripps Research scientist and first author of the new paper. This was only possible because of the platform we developed to screen our antibody library against multiple toxins in parallel.

Jardine, Khalek and their colleagues tested the effect of 95Mat5 on mice injected with toxins from the many-banded krait, Indian spitting cobra, black mamba and king cobra. In all cases, mice who simultaneously received an injection of 95Mat5 were not only protected from death, but also paralysis.

When the researchers studied exactly how 95Mat5 was so effective at blocking the 3FTx variants, they discovered that the antibody mimicked the structure of the human protein that 3FTx usually binds to. Interestingly, the broad-acting HIV antibodies that Jardine has previously studied also work by mimicking a human protein.

It's incredible that for two completely different problems, the human immune system has converged on a very similar solution, says Jardine. It also was exciting to see that we could make an effective antibody entirely synthetically we did not immunize any animals nor did we use any snakes.

While 95Mat5 is effective against the venom of all elapids, it does not block the venom of vipers the second group of venomous snakes. Jardine's group is now pursuing broadly neutralizing antibodies against another elapid toxin, as well as two viper toxins. They suspect that combining 95Mat5 with these other antibodies could provide broad coverage against many or all snake venoms.

We think that a cocktail of these four antibodies could potentially work as a universal antivenom against any medically relevant snake in the world, says Khalek.

In addition to Khalek and Jardine, authors of the study, Synthetic development of a broadly neutralizing antibody against snake venom long-chain -neurotoxins, include Yen Thi Kim Nguyen, Jordan Woehl, Jessica M. Smith, Karen Saye-Francisco, Yoojin Kim, Laetitia Misson Mindrebo, Quoc Tran, Mateusz K dzior, Oliver Limbo, Megan Verma, Robyn L. Stanfield, Dennis R. Burton,
LINK: https://www.scripps.edu/news-and-events/press-room/2024/20240221-jardi...
See more stories from scripps

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

04/08/2026

Dalet Announces Commercial Availability of Dalia, Bringing Media-Aware Agentic AI to Enterprise Productions

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

04/07/2026

Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in Dolby Cinemas Across Japan, Presented in Dolby Atmos and Dolby ...

April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...

01/06/2026

Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026

January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026 Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...

21/05/2026

Study: Nearly Half of U.S. Viewers Watch Video With Captions

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

21/05/2026

Apple TV to Capture MLS Game Entirely on iPhone 17 Pro

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

21/05/2026

MPTS 2026 Draws Record Numbers for Landmark 10th Annivers...

The UK's leading event for the creative industries united thousands of professionals for two days of networking, debate, industry insight and getting hands-...

21/05/2026

Recreating Doug Trumbull's Slitscan VFX - After Effects Mastery

Recreating Doug Trumbull's Slitscan VFX - After Effects Mastery Graham Quince May 21, 2026 0 Comments In this After Effects tutorial, I'm divi...

21/05/2026

Cavalry: An Array of Fun Stuff

Cavalry: An Array of Fun Stuff Simon Ubsdell May 21, 2026 0 Comments Arrays are a really powerful feature of Cavalry and here we'll go over some o...

21/05/2026

Chyron Launches PRIME Scorebug

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

21/05/2026

Watch Brasil Selects Bitmovin to Improve Streaming Perfor...

Bitmovin, a leading provider of video streaming solutions, has announced that streaming service provider, Watch Brasil, has replaced its legacy systems with Bit...

21/05/2026

OWC Launches Dads and Grads Promotion with Exclusive Savings

OWC Launches Dads and Grads Promotion with Exclusive Savings Brie Clayton May 21, 2026 0 Comments The gifts they'll actually use - save on cutting...

21/05/2026

Spectrum Launches New California News Networks

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

21/05/2026

Vivid Unease Ashley Barron ACS Lights Netflixs How to Get...

For cinematographer Ashley Barron ACS ( Rivals , Dangerous Liaisons , Disney's Doctor Who ), setting the look of Netflix's How to Get to Heaven from ...

21/05/2026

Hensgens Pairs Airglow and LiteMat on Cannes 2026 Premier...

Jean-Fran ois Hensgens, AFC, SBC, (Tueurs, Six Days in Spring, Le Fil) brings his signature visual approach to Cannes 2026 premiering biopic L'Affaire Marie...

21/05/2026

2026 delegation for Partner with Australia (UK) initiative announced

2026 delegation for Partner with Australia (UK) initiative announced 21 May 2026 Screen Australia and Ausfilm have today announced the delegation for the 2026 ...

21/05/2026

Beeble launches Canvas, a node-based AI compositor for VFX and Virtual Production pipelines

Beeble launches Canvas, a node-based AI compositor for VFX and Virtual Productio...

21/05/2026

Shelly Johnson Elected President of American Society of Cinematographers

Shelly Johnson Elected President of American Society of Cinematographers Brie Clayton May 20, 2026 0 Comments The American Society of Cinematographers...

21/05/2026

ARRI expands Management Board to accelerate next phase of growth and innovation

ARRI expands Management Board to accelerate next phase of growth and innovation Brie Clayton May 20, 2026 0 Comments ARRI expands its Management Board...

21/05/2026

RT 2FM announces winner of nationwide search for next superstar DJ

Dublin DJ RKM333 wins 2FM competition and a coveted slot at this year's Forbidden Fruit Festival 2FM's search for the next big Irish DJ concluded this ...

21/05/2026

License to Stream: 007 First Light' Coming to GeForce NOW With an Ultimate Bundle

The mission begins now. GeForce NOW is dialing up the action with a blockbuster...

20/05/2026

New Nissan Stadium Is First NFL Venue With Permanent Built-In Music Stage

True to the Music City theme, the Tennessee Titans plan to make live music a prominent fixture on game days at the new venue Reflecting the continuing converge...

20/05/2026

NHL Taps Honeywell To Make Arenas, Facilities More Energy-Efficient

The long-term goal is innovation for the next generation of hockey rinks at both the professional and the community level The National Hockey League (NHL) toda...

20/05/2026

A Look Into the Future: What It Takes To Power the Next Generation of Sports Stadiums

End-users and vendors alike work toward cost-effective yet high-quality solution...

20/05/2026

Nasvhvilles New Nissan Stadium To Host Super Bowl LXIV in 2030

The National Football League has announced that Nashville will host Super Bowl LXIV in 2030 at the new Nissan Stadium. The announcement was made at the NFL Spri...

20/05/2026

NFL Awards Minnesota as Host Site of 2028 NFL Draft

The NFL has announced that the 2028 NFL Draft presented by Bud Light will take place in Minnesota, uniting fans from around the world to celebrate one of the mo...

20/05/2026

Lawo Highlights Edge One at InfoComm 2026

As professional AV workflows continue to evolve, expectations around audio, video, networking, and control are rising rapidly. At InfoComm 2026 in Las Vegas, La...

20/05/2026

Haivision to Showcase Video Wall, IPTV, and Ultra-Low Latency Video Innovations at InfoComm 2026

Haivision will showcase its latest innovations at InfoComm 2026, taking place fr...

20/05/2026

Spotify House Returns to CMA Fest With 3 Days of Nonstop Country Music

For the seventh year, Spotify is returning to CMA Fest with Spotify House, the festival's premiere destination for fans. We're taking over downtown Nash...

20/05/2026

Aero 2 from Acustica Audio

Amp-simulation software expanded Acustica Audio's latest release greatly expands on their amp-simulation platform, turning it into a complete amplifica...

20/05/2026

Arturia update the KeyLab Mk3

MainStage integration, Analog Lab improvements & more Arturia have just announced the release of an update that brings an assortment of new features to thei...

20/05/2026

SGL Carbon holds successful Annual General Meeting with strong approval of proposed resolutions

At the Annual General Meeting held on May 20, 2026, the shareholders of SGL Carb...

20/05/2026

From Gulkula to the nation: Yothu Yindi Foundation and NITV deepen national access to Garma Festival

From Gulkula to the nation: Yothu Yindi Foundation and NITV deepen national acce...

20/05/2026

SBS appoints David Fernandez as National Manager, Digital & TV Sales

SBS appoints David Fernandez as National Manager, Digital & TV Sales 20 May, 2026 Media releases SBS has appointed David Fernandez as National Manager, Dig...

20/05/2026

Rohde & Schwarz and INFOZAHYST: A strategic alliance set to redefine modern defense

Rohde & Schwarz and INFOZAHYST: A strategic alliance set to redefine modern defe...

20/05/2026

L3Harris Achieves Major Milestones With Latest Series of Rotating Detonation Engine Tests

A Rotating Detonation Engine being hot fire tested at Purdue University's Zu...

20/05/2026

VAMPIRE Confirms Integrated Capability During Live Exercises

A U.S. Army VAMPIRE system, assigned to Bravo Battery, 1st Battalion, 51st Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 7th Infantry Division/Multi-Domain Command - Pacific ...

20/05/2026

NCAA Tournaments Spark March Madness for Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery in Nielsen's The Gauge

Cable Captures Only Monthly Increase Among Viewing Categories in March, Earns it...

20/05/2026

The Gauge: Poland | April 2026

April brought a symbolic decrease in the overall time spent in front of television screens. On average, Poles watched video content for 3 hours and 51 minutes a...

20/05/2026

DirecTV Asks FCC to Block Scripps' INYO Acquisition

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

20/05/2026

RTS Technology Centre Launches the RTS Technology Awards...

The Royal Television Society Technology Centre today announces the launch of the RTS Technology Awards 2026, celebrating excellence, innovation and achievement ...

20/05/2026

Lightware powers immersive video spectacle for The Hunger...

In the heart of London's financial district, the new purpose-built Troubadour Canary Wharf Theatre invites audiences to experience Suzanne Collins' inte...

20/05/2026

New LiveU LU900Q Powers Record Breaking Broadcast of the...

LiveU, the leader in live IP-video solutions, today announced that production powerhouse BCC Live successfully deployed the new LU900Q intelligent production un...

20/05/2026

Nella Mente di Narciso Docuseries Uses Blackmagic Design Workflow

Nella Mente di Narciso Docuseries Uses Blackmagic Design Workflow Brie Clayton May 19, 2026 0 Comments PYXIS 6K full frame camera and DaVinci Resolve ...

20/05/2026

Beeble launches Canvas, a node-based AI compositor for VFX and Virtual Production pipelinesx

Beeble launches Canvas, a node-based AI compositor for VFX and Virtual Productio...

20/05/2026

DSPolitical and FreeWheel Partner on Political CTV Ads

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

20/05/2026

Amazon, Netflix and Google to Capture Half of CTV Ad Market by 2030

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

20/05/2026

Roku Introduces 'Creator Hub

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

20/05/2026

First Nations Factual Co-production Development Fund launched to elevate Indigenous storytelling in global markets

First Nations Factual Co-production Development Fund launched to elevate Indigen...

20/05/2026

TLC Announces All-Star Comedy Line-Up for Mock the Week: Summer Specials' on TLC

TLC Announces All-Star Comedy Line-Up for Mock the Week: Summer Specials' o...