A third prevents electrical signals from moving along muscles. In all three cases, the result is that the nerves are unable to tell muscles to contract. The victim dies from paralysis, including an inability to breathe. A California biotechnology company recently completed animal experiments in which one snail's venom toxin was used to prevent brain damage from strokes, Olivera said. Human safety tests will start soon, he added.
Strokes occur when a clogged artery blocks blood flow to part of the brain.
Nerve cells die, resulting in paralysis, speech impediments and other stroke symptoms. Researchers believe the snail toxin blocks certain ion channels to prevent the release of other chemicals that kill the nerve cells, Olivera said. Patients produce a certain kind of antibody in response to the cancer, and that antibody also reacts with certain ion channels to cause the muscle weakness, he said. Because the snail toxin also attaches to the same channels, it can be used in a test to detect the antibody and thus diagnose oat cell lung cancer.