Spider venom may offer stroke therapy

[Northerner]

(Warning: has a picture of a big spider! 😱)


A protein in spider venom may help protect the brain from injury after a stroke, according to research.

Scientists found a single dose of the protein Hi1a worked on lab rats.

They said it showed "great promise as a future stroke treatment" but had not yet been tested in human trials.

The Stroke Association said the research was at its early stages but it would "welcome any treatment that has the potential to reduce the damage caused by stroke".

The researchers, from the University of Queensland and Monash University, travelled to Fraser Island in Australia to hunt for and capture three potentially deadly Australian funnel web spiders.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-39335367

 

[Lindarose]

well I didn't open the link! So long as the venom is extracted from the spiders and they don't put one on you ....😱

 

[Northerner]

well I didn't open the link! So long as the venom is extracted from the spiders and they don't put one on you ....😱

Yes, they 'milk' funnel web spiders using a pipette - this is what is shown in the picture 🙂

 

[mikeyB]

Yes, the extract they use is one of the non toxic bits of the venom. This is really interesting, the acute treatment of stroke is one of the successes of recent years. (Particularly in TV soaps🙄).