Snakebite Research: Liverpool School and Humanised Antibodies

snakebite research: The consortium will seek an antidote comprised of humanised antibodies rather than conventional animal-based therapies, which can sometimes cause adverse effects in snakebite victims, said Prof Robert Harrison, who heads the centre for snakebite research and interventions at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, according to The Guardian. We're pursuing what we call the next generation' of snakebite therapies, which we hope will be able to treat bites from any snake in Africa or India, in a community setting, and without the need for a cold chain, said Harrison. A new consortium of venom specialists in India, Kenya, Nigeria, Britain and the US will locate and develop antibodies to treat critical illness from snakebites, which harm nearly 3 million people worldwide each year. Facebook Twitter Pinterest A carpet viper rests on the ground in Kenya's Baringo county, where venomous snake attacks are frequent. This can cause adverse side effects and, because of that, the antivenom has to be administered in a hospital setting. Photograph Tony Karumba/AFP/Getty Images The conventional method of producing antivenom to treat snakebite involves purifying antibodies from venom-immunised horses or sheep and injecting this into patients. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.