title: From Fangs to Pharmacology: The Future of Snakebite Envenoming Therapy.
abstract: The snake is the symbol of medicine due to its association with Asclepius, the Greek God of medicine, and so with good reasons. More than 725 species of venomous snakes have toxins specifically evolved to exert potent bioactivity in prey or victims, and snakebites constitute a public health hazard of high impact in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and parts of Oceania. Parenteral administration of antivenoms is the mainstay in snakebite envenoming therapy. However, despite well-demonstrated efficacy and safety of many antivenoms worldwide, they are still being produced by traditional animal immunization procedures, and therefore present a number of drawbacks. Technological advances within biopharmaceutical development and medicinal chemistry could pave the way for rational drug design approaches against snake toxins. This could minimize the use of animals and bring forward more effective therapies for snakebite envenomings. In this review, current stateof- the-art in biopharmaceutical antitoxin development is presented together with an overview of available bioinformatics and structural data on snake venom toxins. This growing body of scientific and technological tools could define the basis for introducing a rational drug design approach into the field of snakebite envenoming therapy.
authors.forename: Andreas H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Laustsen
authors.forename: Mikael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Engmark
authors.forename: Christina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Milbo
authors.forename: Jónas
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Johannesen
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lomonte
authors.forename: José María
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Gutiérrez
authors.affiliation: Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. bril@sund.ku.dk.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lohse
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000997:Antivenins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015195:Drug Design; D006801:Humans; D012909:Snake Bites / Q000188:drug therapy*; D012910:Snake Venoms / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000633:toxicity; D012911:Snakes
chemical_list: D000997:Antivenins; D012910:Snake Venoms