Preclinical evaluation of the efficacy of antivenoms for snakebite envenoming: State-of-the-art and challenges ahead

Fecha

2017-05

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artículo original

Autores

Solano Trejos, María Gabriela
Pla Ferrer, Davinia
Herrera Vega, María
Segura Ruiz, Álvaro
Vargas Arroyo, Mariángela
Villalta Arrieta, Mauren
Sánchez Brenes, Andrés
Sanz, Libia
Lomonte, Bruno
León Montero, Guillermo

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Resumen

Animal-derived antivenoms constitute the mainstay in the therapy of snakebite envenoming. The efficacy of antivenoms to neutralize toxicity of medically-relevant snake venoms has to be demonstrated through meticulous preclinical testing before their introduction into the clinical setting. The gold standard in the preclinical assessment and quality control of antivenoms is the neutralization of venom-induced lethality. In addition, depending on the pathophysiological profile of snake venoms, the neutralization of other toxic activities has to be evaluated, such as hemorrhagic, myotoxic, edema-forming, dermonecrotic, in vitro coagulant, and defibrinogenating effects. There is a need to develop laboratory assays to evaluate neutralization of other relevant venom activities. The concept of the 3Rs (Replacement, Reduction, and Refinement) in Toxinology is of utmost importance, and some advances have been performed in their implementation. A significant leap forward in the study of the immunological reactivity of antivenoms against venoms has been the development of “antivenomics”, which brings the analytical power of mass spectrometry to the evaluation of antivenoms. International partnerships are required to assess the preclinical efficacy of antivenoms against snake venoms in different regions of the world in order to have a detailed knowledge on the neutralizing profile of these immunotherapeutics

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Antivenoms, Neutralization tests, Preclinical efficacy, Antivenomics, The 3Rs, Snake venom

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