VIPER RESOURCE CENTER AT TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY-KINGSVILLE

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): New drugs are being developed each year for cancer, heart attacks, and strokes and some have been derived from snake venoms. Snake venoms are complex mixtures of molecules that can have therapeutic value in the treatment of clot-induced ischemia, cancer, and other human disorders. Snake venoms are rich, stable sources of disintegrins, metalloproteases, and fibrinolytic enzymes. The literature contains many references on how venom and/or venom components are being used in medicine. There are 44 subspecies of poisonous snakes within the U.S.. Despite the vast species diversity, 90% of the papers published have been with venom from a limited number of the more common species (Crotalus (C.) atrox, C. adamanteus, C. viridis viridis, Agkistrodon (A.) contortrix contortrix, A. contortrix laticinctus, and A. piscivorus piscivorus). Many of the snake venoms are not available for research. Therefore, venom composition and potential usefulness in medicine has not been explored. There is a need to develop a Center capable of providing quality venoms, venom fractions, tissues, organs, skins, and monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies for biomedical research. For over 28 years, TAMUK has maintained a strong venom research program and has developed a serpentarium that presently houses over 350 snakes composed of 14 species and 24 subspecies. Two years ago, the Texas A&M University System Board of Regents approved the development of a Natural Toxins Research Center (NTRC) at TAMUK. The mission of the NTRC is to provide global research, training, and resources that will lead to the discovery of medically important toxins found in venoms. The objectives of this proposal are to: 1) provide reliable sources of venoms and other snake products that are not available from other vendors; 2) breed poisonous snakes in captivity that are endangered or difficult to acquire; 3) characterize medically important venoms by electrophoretic titration (ET), high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), enzyme activities, and cell-based assays; 4) develop a research program that provides insights into structure/function relationships of venom proteins, and 5) develop a database that will be useful to other investigators. The database will allow the user to view the snakes, their geographical distribution and venom characteristics.