Toxicon : official journal of the International Society on Toxinology
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Bites by the mottled rock rattlesnake (Crotalus lepidus lepidus) are rare. There appear to be no reports of bites by this subspecies in the literature. This is a case report of a bite by a captive specimen of this diminutive pit viper, and includes a review of what is known regarding its venom.
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Snakebite affects around 2.5 million humans annually, with greater than 100,000 deaths. Coagulopathy is a significant cause of both morbidity and mortality in these patients, either directly, or indirectly. ⋯ Examples of clinical laboratory findings in selected types of snakebite coagulopathy are presented. Where available, antivenom is the most effective treatment, while standard treatments for other forms of coagulopathy, such as factor replacement therapy and heparin, are either ineffective or dangerous in snakebite coagulopathy, except in specific situations.
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Acute intoxication by seeding Crotalaria retusa occurred during the dry season, in a flock of 80 sheep, in the semi-arid region of the state of Paraiba, northeastern Brazil. Anorexia, severe depression, mild jaundice, incoordination and recumbence were observed in 16 sheep that died within 12 h. At necropsy the liver had a nutmeg appearance. ⋯ Clinical signs and gross and histologic lesions were similar to those observed in field outbreak. The seeds used in the experiment contained 1.4% of monocrotaline. It is concluded that hungry sheep can be affected spontaneously by acute monocrotaline intoxication when they ingest large amounts of C. retusa seeds in a short period of time.
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Comparative Study
Antinociceptive effects of intrathecally administered huwentoxin-I, a selective N-type calcium channel blocker, in the formalin test in conscious rats.
The present study was undertaken to elucidate the antinociceptive effect of intrathecal administration of huwentoxin-I (HWTX-I), a N-type calcium channel blocker from the venom of the Chinese bird spider Ornithoctonus huwena (Wang) [=Selenocosmia huwena wang], by comparison with omega-Conotoxin-MVIIA (omega-CTX-MVIIA) and morphine hydrochloride in the formalin test in conscious rats. Similar to omega-CTX-MVIIA and morphine, intrathecal pre-treatment with HWTX-I resulted in suppression of nociceptive behavior in a dose-dependent manner. The ED50 values of HWTX-I and omega-CTX-MVIIA were 0.28 and 0.19 microg/kg, respectively. ⋯ In contrast, HWTX-I did not show these side-effects at the doses of 0.5-1.0 microg/kg. Compared with HWTX-I and omega-CTX-MVIIA, the analgesic effect of intrathecal morphine hydrochloride was initiated faster, but lasted for a shorter time (about 2-3 h at 1.0 microg/kg) than that of HWTX-I and omega-CTX-MVIIA (about 4- 5 h at 1.0 microg/kg). Therefore, the present results show that, like omega-CTX-MVIIA, the intrathecal administration of HWTX-I is effective in antinociception in the rat model of the formalin test.