Future Research
We know that the venom of V. komodoensis contains natriuretic-type toxins that cause vasodilation, inhibition of blood clotting, lowered blood pressure, muscle paralysis, and hypothermia. While these are all factors that may contribute to the death of prey and in turn lead to increased survivorship for the Komodo dragon, some of these effects could be used to our advantage in the medical field:
What sorts of projects could be done in order to expand our knowledge of natriuretic-type toxins such as those present in the venom of V. komodoensis, and learn how these toxins could be used for medicinal purposes?
- Vasodilators are an enormous class of medications used to treat hypertension, heart failure, and angina. These medications open blood vessels by acting directly on the muscular walls of arteries, preventing narrowing and tightening of walls and allowing blood to flow freely. This prevents the heart from overworking itself and dramatically lowers blood pressure.
- Muscle paralyzers such as succinylcholine (SUX) are neuromuscular paralytic drugs that paralyze every muscle in the body, including those used for breathing. They are used in conjunction with anesthesia for procedures such as electroconvulsive therapy, in which a patient must endure a series of controlled seizures. Patients must be intubated and given advanced respiratory support during this type of procedure, or the muscle paralyzer will cause fatal asphyxia.
- Anticoagulants, also known as blood thinners, are a wide class of medications used to lower the risk of blood clots in arteries and veins, which can lead to stroke and heart attack. These drugs can also be used to treat congenital heart defects, atrial fibrillation, and complications of heart valve surgery. Blood thinners such as warfarin (a.k.a. Coumadin) and heparin, work chemically to lengthen the times it takes for blood to clot. Another type of blood thinners, called anti-platelet drugs (e.g. Aspirin) are used to stop platelets from clumping together to form a blood clot.
What sorts of projects could be done in order to expand our knowledge of natriuretic-type toxins such as those present in the venom of V. komodoensis, and learn how these toxins could be used for medicinal purposes?
- Study and verify the mechanisms of the toxins found in V. komodoensis venom. An outlined mechanism would make it easier to understand how the venom production evolved.
- Examine the effects of V. komodoensis toxin types on vasodilation of arteries in patients with chronic hypertension
- Study the potential of V. komodoensis venom as a surgical aid that could potentially cause full muscle paralysis during surgery, when combined with a general anesthetic and proper respiratory support
- Explore the possibilities of V. komodoensis natriuretic-type proteins as anticoagulants in patients with congenital heart defects