‘It is hoped that this trial marks the beginning of an era’

Many people are aware that the changing climate is altering mosquito behavior and creating ideal conditions for mosquitoes to thrive where they never have before.

But climate shifts are also increasing the likelihood of snakebites, which can be deadly and pose a new public health challenge.

Fortunately, researchers are working on solutions to improve snakebite treatments and reduce these risks.

As Science News reported, a team of researchers associated with programs in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Kenya tested a drug commonly used for heavy-metal poisoning to treat venomous snakebites.

They found that unithiol can block venom proteins from many dangerous snakes. The researchers conducted a Phase I clinical trial to see how various dosages affected people. They screened 175 subjects in the study and gave unithiol to 64 of them.

As they reported in eBioMedicine, they found unithiol effective for snakebites and did not uncover any safety issues.

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Unithiol works by blocking proteins to prevent tissue damage and death. It has advantages over antivenom treatments because those medications are expensive, not readily available, and can cause severe allergic reactions.

This new “speedy treatment” for snakebites is promising because it could improve health and safety in vulnerable communities, especially in low-income regions and remote places.

“Unithiol is affordable, stable at room temperature, and has the potential to be given orally in remote rural clinics,” the researchers wrote.

With climate shifts contributing to 20,000 snakebites and 4,000 related deaths every year in Kenya, treatments such as this keep people safe. Unithiol could become a viable alternative to antivenom treatments in the future or an initial treatment to keep a patient stable until they can travel from a remote area to a hospital.

The researchers noted the need to determine the precise dosage to treat snakebites in humans. They established a three-dose regimen for testing in future trials.

“Future trials should be based in low-middle income settings, where the greatest burden of snakebite exists,” the researchers wrote. “… It is hoped that this trial marks the beginning of an era of modernised therapeutics in the field of snakebite, which will be essential to achieving the World Health Organization target of reducing snakebite associated morbidity and mortality by 50%.”

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