Opossums are immune to just about any toxin that exists - snakebite, the toxin that causes botulism, even ricin, the toxin found in the castor oil plant. The American opossum produces a substance called Lethal Toxin-Neutralizing Factor (LTNF). Some research showed that the this substance, extracted from the opossum and injected in mice, protected the mice from various deadly snake venoms. This information came to light and was published in 1999. So why hasn't anyone carried to ball a little farther to see if LTNF could help humans? http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/opossum-protein-makes-them-immune-nearly-poisons-could-190604532.html
Maybe my mind makes oddball connections, but this story made me think of the the first Men in Black movie. The cat had the universe dangling from the collar around his neck. How many secrets and solutions are right in front of our faces, hiding in plain sight? How many times has someone stumbled upon something "interesting" and tossed it in a drawer? I had a high school history teacher who asked us to decide if things changed because of social, political, or economic pressure. I always seemed to conclude that money made the world go round. In this case, I suspect the pharmaceutical companies can reap greater financial rewards from something like Premarin. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premarin Snake bites and botulism can be treated with other products, so the opossum's cure all factor might upset the financial apple cart. There's also a social factor. The animal rights people might get up in arms if opossums have to begin producing LTNF the way mares have to produce urine for Premarin. That could wreck some political havoc in the upper echelons of biopharma.
Look at what that history teacher started! Thanks, Mr. McGeever.
Loved today's blog, but I must say, I have absolutely NO fond memories of Mr. McGeever. Joan Wilson and I took his inaugural Western Civ. class our sophomore year, and were subjected to his foisting his own, right-wing political views down our throats all year long. Imagine my extreme dismay upon dscovering that I would have him for U. S. History I the next year! Oh wait, this did spark a happy McGeever memory. Joan and I getting to Western Civ. class early, scribbling such witticisms as "The Bay of Pigs was Eisenhower's fault" on the blackboard, and sittign back and watching Mr. McGeever's reaction to our humor - and it was always a great reaction! Thanks for sparking the memory, Bev.
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