Snake venom components and their applications in biomedicine

Snake envenomation is a socio-medical problem of considerable magnitude. About 2.5 million people are bitten by snakes annually, more than 100,000 fatally. However, although bites can be deadly, snake venom is a natural biological resource that contains several components of potential therapeutic value. Venom has been used in the treatment of a variety of pathophysiological conditions in Ayurveda, homeopathy and folk medicine. With the advent of biotechnology, the efficacy of such treatments has been substantiated by purifying components of venom and delineating their therapeutic properties. This review will focus on certain snake venom components and their applications in health and disease. Received 6 July 2006; received after revision 14 August 2006; accepted 28 September 2006     

陕西蝮蛇蛇毒的比较研究

对陕西分布的日本蝮蛇短尾亚种（Agkistrodon blomhoffii breuicaudus)，秦岭蝮（A.qinlingensis)及中介蝮（A.intermedius)的蛇毒进行了聚丙烯酰胺凝胶电泳研究，结果表明，蝮蛇蛇毒电泳具有种的特异性，三种蛇毒泳图谱无论在带的数目，含量及分布特征方面均存在明显差异，三者之间应为种间关系。