This madman took over 200 snake bites in the name of Science
Needless to say, the venom of snakes such as black mamba ( Dendroaspis polylepis ), rattlesnake ( Crotalus durissus ) or coastal taipan ( Oxyuranus scutellatus ) can be lethal, right? For an American named Tim Friede not only took more than 200 bites of these and other equally dangerous creatures voluntarily, but injected himself with the toxins of these animals more than 700 times, even though he knew he was in serious danger of dying. Why? To help scientists develop a universal antiphid serum - and prevent thousands of deaths from snake bites from happening every year in the world.
Noble cause or madness?
It's been over 20 years since Tim - a 51-year-old Wisconsin resident who never went to college and worked as a truck driver before becoming a human subject - has been dedicated to this incredibly dangerous project. The idea is to take bites or inject into your body the toxins produced by the most deadly snakes on the planet, thus developing immune defenses against the action of the poison. Crazy thing and something that should never be done? No doubt! But it seems that the American has made progress with this madness.
A few years ago, Tim began posting videos on YouTube in which he appears holding lethal snakes and poking at them. As they say, the intention is not to earn fame - let alone motivate other fools like him to do something similar - but to attract the attention of doctors and scientists to support him in his cause.
However, the American has become the target of a flood of criticism, and many researchers, snake venom experts and doctors accuse him of adopting unethical and extraordinarily dangerous practices. To give you an idea, Tim has already undergone bites followed by 2 of the most venomous snakes on the planet and on one occasion proposed to bite 5 of these animals within 48 hours, but decided to stop after the 4th bite. !
In addition, he has been to the hospital numerous times, had to receive emergency treatment after receiving very high doses of poison or overestimate his resistance to a certain toxin, and even fell into a coma and was very close to death. However, Tim's (almost) suicidal mission worked, and the rather unorthodox approach served to draw some scientists to his cause.
Autoimmunization
While the vast majority of scientists agree that the dangers the American exposes him to are far greater than the benefits - after all, with every bite, he risks developing infections, allergies, organ failure, necrosis, and more. of course, bootstrapping - tests have shown that Tim's body has twice as many antibodies to fight any snake bites as a normal person.
Moreover, some (few) experts believe that Tim's madness can indeed help develop more effective sera and perhaps lead to the emergence of a universal antidote. One of these researchers, immunologist Jacob Glanville, decided to step down as Pfizer's chief scientist to set up his own company and focus on developing anti-acid serums.
Traditionally, to produce snakebite antidotes, test drugs are first applied in the laboratory to animals, and only after their safety has been proven are they used in humans - always in controlled environments and following strict protocols. In this case, Jacob's company owns Tim's blood samples, and from them is conducting research and experiments to create a universal serum.
According to data from the World Health Organization (WHO), about 5.4 million people are bitten by snakes every year, and of these more than 400, 000 end up developing serious sequelae as a result of the attacks - and between 81, 000 and 138, 000 end up losing their lives. Tim says he exposes himself to the danger of reversing this outlook, but despite being a little crazy, the American has nothing silly, and has secured a contract that will earn him a lot of money if the years of autoimmunization give rise to a new antidote.
This madman took over 200 snake bites in the name of Science via TecMundo
