Human beings are naturally afraid of venomous animals. But scientists studying these creatures say that their toxins have the potential to be therapeutic if used properly.
Christie Wilcox, a Hawaii-based marine biologist, has written about venomous creatures in her book titled "Venomous: How Earth's Deadliest Creatures Mastered Biochemistry."
In her book, Wilcox investigates these feared creatures and reveals how their venoms function and affect the human body. While the toxins could be lethal, she explains that scientists and pharmacologist have started to exploit venoms to harvest lifesaving drugs.
Speaking to Gizmodo, Wilcox explained that a toxin and a pharmaceutical are just two sides of the same coin. Whereas a toxin is something that causes harm to the human body in small doses, a pharmaceutical is something that causes the human body to react in a desired way. Based on the analogy, if scientist tweak the dose of a toxin, the properties that make it deadly can be turned into something life-saving.
For example, Wilcox mentioned that back in the 1920's, cobra venom was used as a pain killer. The cobra's venom contains a lot of neurotoxins that can block pain neurons just as they can block muscle neurons.
Currently, Medical Daily reported that the neurotoxins found in snake venom has been developed into drugs that treat Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.
Wilcox noted that venomous creatures are key species that can play an important role in the field of medicine. Instead of looking at them with fear, people may soon learn to appreciate and protect these creatures.
Watch a documentary about the most poisonous creatures on earth below: