Spider Venom May Help Create Medicine that Can Kill Chronic Pain

You wouldn't think that spider venom could help those in pain--but that seems to be the case, according to a new study. Scientists have discovered seven compounds from spider venom that block a key step in the body's ability to pass pain signals to the brain.

Chronic pain can ruin people's lives, and one in five people worldwide suffer from this condition. In fact, chronic pain in the U.S. alone is estimated to cost about $600 billion a year.

People feel pain when nerves from the affected area send signals to the brain through what is called the pain pathway. Blocking these channels can reduce or even stop pain.

"A compound that blocks Nav1.7 channels is of particular interest for us," said Glenn King, the research team leader, in a news release. "Previous research shows indifference to pain among people who lack Nav1.7 channels due to naturally-occurring genetic mutation-so blocking these channels has the potential of turning off pain in people with normal pain pathways."

Part of research for new pain medications has focused on the world's 45,000 species of spiders. Many of these arachnids kill their prey with venoms that contain hundreds or thousands of protein molecules. Some of the molecules block nerve activity.

Intrigued by this, the scientists built a system that could rapidly analyze the compounds in spider venoms. Using this approach, the researchers screened venoms from 206 species of spiders. They found that 40 percent of the venoms contained at least one compound that blocked human Nav1.7 channels. Of seven promising compounds that were identified, one was particularly potent. It had a chemical structure that suggested it would have high levels of chemical, thermal and biological stability, which would be essential for administering a new medicine.

"Untapping this natural source of new medicines brings a distinct hope of accelerating the development of a new class of painkillers that can help people who suffer from chronic pain that cannot be treated with current treatment options," said Julie Kaae Klint, one of the researchers.

The findings are published in the journal British Journal of Pharmacology.

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