More than 100 thousand people die from snakebites every year, most of them in developing countries. At
A group of scientists led by molecularbiologist Hans Clevers from the University of Utrecht, as part of the experiment, isolated stem cells of the South African flap cobra (Aspidelaps lubricus) - a poisonous snake whose bite is dangerous to humans.
“We were afraid that we would not be able to isolate the stemcells from the future venom glands of the embryos, since we did not know what they looked like. It turned out that this was not a problem — the cells began immediately dividing and forming structures. Moreover, the analogues of the poisonous glands grew so quickly that within a week they could be divided into parts and started to be grown again."
Molecular biologist Gank Clevers
After isolation of stem cells, biologists succeededto grow from them miniature copies of the venom glands of the cobra, which even produce a large amount of poison. To start this process, scientists lowered the temperature of the nutrient medium from the usual for mammals to 37 ° C to 32 ° C, and then treated the stem cells with a special mixture of signaling molecules.
After this experiment, scientists managed to growgrow similar organoids from the germinal bodies of a number of other snakes, including Cape Cobras (Naja nivea), one of the most poisonous and dangerous reptiles in Africa, as well as Texas rattlesnakes (Crotalus atrox).
In the future, these experiments will allow biologists to acceleratethe creation of various types of antidotes for the bite of snakes, as well as substances that can be actively used in various areas of medicine or pharmaceuticals.