Taking On Venom 

Self-taught venom expert Tim Friede could be described as a modern-day Mithridates VI, an ancient king known for developing an immunity to poisons by regularly taking non-lethal doses. 

The former truck driver from Wisconsin has developed such a strong immunity to the venom of various snakes that scientists are now using his blood to develop a super antidote. 

In a span of 18 years, Friede envenomed himself 856 times with the venom of a variety of snakes, including black mambas, cobras, and rattlesnakes –via direct injections or bites. 

It nearly cost him his life when he was bitten by an Egyptian cobra and a monocled cobra in the span of one hour. 

“I basically flat-lined and died,” he told National Geographic. “It wasn’t fun. I had enough immunity for one bite, but not for two. I completely screwed up.” 

His unique abilities caught the attention of Jacob Glanville, immunologist and CEO of Centivax, who saw the potential in Friede’s hyperimmune antibodies. 

“What was exciting about the donor was his once-in-a-lifetime unique immune history,” Glanville said in a statement. “Not only did he potentially create these broadly neutralizing antibodies, in this case, it could give rise to a broad-spectrum or universal antivenom.” 

In their study, Glanville and his colleagues thoroughly studied Friede’s antibodies and developed a special antivenom that was tested on mice. 

They also created a testing panel with 19 of the World Health Organization’s category 1 and 2 deadliest snakes across the elapid family, a group which contains roughly half of all venomous species of snakes, according to Science Alert. 

The research team created the new antivenom by combining two special antibodies – LNX-D09 and SNX-B03 – and a small molecule of varespladib, a known toxin inhibitor. 

The findings showed that the antidote proved very effective at offering protection against the venom of different snake species. 

“By the time we reached three components, we had a dramatically unparalleled breadth of full protection for 13 of the 19 species and then partial protection for the remaining that we looked at,” Glanville noted. 

Traditional antivenoms use antibodies from horses or sheep, which only protect against single-species venom and carry the risk of triggering adverse reactions in humans. 

While the new concoction is not a universal anti-venom, it is the next best thing – although scientists plan to conduct rigorous clinical tests before making it available.