This snake oil is not a “snake oil”.
The invasive Burmese python has become a major problem in the United States, especially in swampy states like Florida. But when it comes to preventing coronavirus, these giant snakes can be part of the solution – thanks to medicinal snake oil.
Reptile hunters who previously sought to reduce the uncontrolled python population in the Everglades are now tracking predators for an entirely new reason – in search of their abundance of squalene, a lipid produced by the body’s sebaceous glands. The substance has become a key ingredient in the manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines.
“There are some really healing properties to the snake,” said Dusty Crum, aka “Wild Man,” according to Fox 13. of Tampa Bay. “If you go back to traditional medicine, they’ve been using python and python components for thousands of years, ”he told a reporter last month.
Squalene occurs naturally in many plants and animals, including humans, and is often used in skin care and cosmetics, as an emollient and antioxidant to protect the skin. In terms of its medicinal applications, scientists say that squalene facilitates our immune response to get the most out of vaccines – a therapeutic additive called an adjuvant. Although the ingredient is not currently listed as part of the Pfizer or Moderna coronavirus vaccines, the shark-derived squalene was used in at least five other potential vaccine recipes tested last year, according to data from the World Health Organization.
One of the most common ways we can get spare squalene is through shark liver, where oil is plentiful, but concerns about overfishing have led researchers to look elsewhere for a source.
Among: the invasive Burmese pythons from Florida, which have wreaked havoc in the state in recent years.
“A typical 3.6-meter python can make enough squalene for about 3,400 doses of the vaccine,” said Daryl Thompson, a spokesman for Global Research and Discovery Group Sciences, in a statement to Fox 13.
“It’s not as much as a shark can do, but it’s much more sustainable,” added Thompson, who plans to present the findings on the python squalene to the Advanced Biomedical Research and Development Authority, as part of the government-supported vaccine research program. from last year, Warp Speed Operation.
At the same time, Florida wildlife experts are eager to see an ethical solution to the state’s python problems.
“We are taking a bad situation and doing something good with it,” said Crum. “It has the potential to help heal many people and potentially save many lives.”
However, some animal advocates argue that the hunt for squalene python is only transferring the threat from one species to another.
“Harvesting something from a wild animal will never be sustainable, especially if it is a top predator that does not breed in large numbers,” said Stefanie Brendl, founder of shark conservation group Shark Allies, in a recent statement to the Telegraph.
“We are not trying to slow down or hinder the production of a vaccine,” added Brendl. “We simply ask that the non-animal derived squalene test be conducted together with shark squalene, so that it can be replaced as soon as possible.”