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Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

bbc.com

21–30 of 93 posts

Re: Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

#21

I would much rather tend a field of poppies than a mamba snake ranch. Poppies hardly ever run away from thunderstorms.

Any experts on here know whether it'd be possible to create a synthetic version? It would've expected that issue to be mentioned in the article tbh

Re: Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

#22
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On one side, this is an incredible medical advancement and opens the door to a lot of other developments, but on the other side if my doctor said I was getting injected with snake venom...

Your doctor wouldn’t say that. Your doctor would prescribe you polylepiscin or some other vaguelly medical and scientifical sounding name. You wouldn’t know that the compound originally was found in black mamba venom unless you like geeking out on medicine history. (And if you like geeking out on that you would already know that nearly all drugs comes from weird things.)

Yes exactly. Bacteria in probiotic yoghurt come in from the guts... no one says “fancy like eating your own shit”?

Re: Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

#23
post #10

FTA: They admit to being completely baffled about why the mamba would produce it. I would guess it keeps their target calm. A panicking prey is more likely to injure the snake than one that dies before it realizes it got seriously bitten.

>> FTA: They admit to being completely baffled about why the mamba would produce it. It's because they are scientists. Scientists are always "baffled", in the news.

"the mind that is not baffled is not employed

the impeded stream is the one that sings"

-- Wendell Berry

Re: Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

#24
post #10

FTA: They admit to being completely baffled about why the mamba would produce it. I would guess it keeps their target calm. A panicking prey is more likely to injure the snake than one that dies before it realizes it got seriously bitten.

>> FTA: They admit to being completely baffled about why the mamba would produce it. It's because they are scientists. Scientists are always "baffled", in the news.

Very frustrating. In practice the scientists are expressing uncertainty “we do no know/need to investigate further” not confusion or bewilderment

Re: Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

#25
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On one side, this is an incredible medical advancement and opens the door to a lot of other developments, but on the other side if my doctor said I was getting injected with snake venom...

Your doctor wouldn’t say that. Your doctor would prescribe you polylepiscin or some other vaguelly medical and scientifical sounding name. You wouldn’t know that the compound originally was found in black mamba venom unless you like geeking out on medicine history. (And if you like geeking out on that you would already know that nearly all drugs comes from weird things.)

I do enjoy geeking out over medical things in general and would trust that an approved pain killer would not be straight up venom and will happily take it, especially if it lives up to the hype. I'm still going to give any doctor that prescribes it to me just a little bit of grief, though.

Re: Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

#26
post #14
post #8

I really hope this goes somewhere. I've been left on the curbside with a caduceus up my backside because of self-righteousness, paranoia and hysterics. If an analgesic can be created without committing the atrocity of inadvertently imparting a synthetic sense of wellbeing too, much suffering would end. Just don't poison it with acetaminophen! Maybe I'll abandon my unfruitful hunt for opium lettuce and raise snakes in…

To those who through inhibition of self expression see all subjects as an arrow facing north or south, I pose a question for you to silently grate your arrows edge upon: Is it for the greater good that pain be palliated with the chronic use of ibuprofen and perforated ulcers, or acetaminophen and failing livers, or any nsaid and heart disease? Is insomnia now in fashion? Is lethargy and unproductivity encouraged? Or…

Fwiw - I enjoyed your posts The way I enjoy poetry : lovely, but largely incomprehensible.

I don't know if you're getting down voted due to people disagreeing or merely not understanding what your point and data is. It is possible if you contributed more clearly you'd find a more receptive audience.

I find frequently when there is topic near to people's heart aNd they spend a lot of time thinking about, they start at a hundred with a very strong and flowery language. My suggestion would be to understand others don't have same context and start at 1 and build your way up, whether logically or emotionally. You Gotta ask yourself are you writing for your own sake and enjoy your metaphors and alusions and poetry without regard for others (even finding gratification and martyrdom in not being understood), or are you actually trying to educate, persuade, build understanding. If the latter, focus on that goal most clearly and directly.

(I could be wrong - merely my 2 cents).

Re: Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

#27
post #10

FTA: They admit to being completely baffled about why the mamba would produce it. I would guess it keeps their target calm. A panicking prey is more likely to injure the snake than one that dies before it realizes it got seriously bitten.

>> FTA: They admit to being completely baffled about why the mamba would produce it. It's because they are scientists. Scientists are always "baffled", in the news.

Yeah for real this is a major issue in news and science communication.

There's "we don't know" (and we have no idea why), there's "we don't know" (just because we didn't prove it yet, but our money is on that) or (we think it's because so and so but haven't looked into it) and in-betweens.

Re: Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

#28
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your doctor wouldn’t say that. Your doctor would prescribe you polylepiscin or some other vaguelly medical and scientifical sounding name. You wouldn’t know that the compound originally was found in black mamba venom unless you like geeking out on medicine history. (And if you like geeking out on that you would already know that nearly all drugs comes from weird things.)

Yes exactly. Bacteria in probiotic yoghurt come in from the guts... no one says “fancy like eating your own shit”?

Thank you for reminding me that fecal transplants are a thing and have shown real world benefits. The one time a suppository is preferable to oral administration.

Re: Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

#29
post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To those who through inhibition of self expression see all subjects as an arrow facing north or south, I pose a question for you to silently grate your arrows edge upon: Is it for the greater good that pain be palliated with the chronic use of ibuprofen and perforated ulcers, or acetaminophen and failing livers, or any nsaid and heart disease? Is insomnia now in fashion? Is lethargy and unproductivity encouraged? Or…

Fwiw - I enjoyed your posts The way I enjoy poetry : lovely, but largely incomprehensible. I don't know if you're getting down voted due to people disagreeing or merely not understanding what your point and data is. It is possible if you contributed more clearly you'd find a more receptive audience. I find frequently when there is topic near to people's heart aNd they spend a lot of time thinking about, they start at…

> merely my 2 cents

Two 1943 wheat pennies, I'd say. Thanks.

Re: Black mamba venom is 'better painkiller' than morphine (2012)

#30
post #16
post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would guess it's just a genetic glitch and not some conscious decision or purposeful design.

It doesn't have to be a conscious decision or purposeful design to be "there for a reason". Evolution tends toward solutions because the population that happens to be closer to a solution are more likely to survive. Nothing the op said was incompatible with evolution.

Evolution doesn't have "reasons" (pre hoc is random mutation) but it has "justifications" (post hoc is natural selection).
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