Tag: spider

A devastating form of childhood epilepsy that is resistant to traditional drugs may have met its match in spider venom. Researchers from The University of Queensland and the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health discovered that a peptide in spider venom can restore the neural deficiencies that trigger seizures associated with Dravet syndrome. UQ

A team of Russian scientists together with foreign colleagues, reports that the venom of the crab spider Heriaeus melloteei may be used as a basis for a treatment against hypokalemic periodic paralysis. This disease is caused by genetic mutation that leads to the occurrence of the so-called ω-currents, or leakage currents, via voltage-gated ion channels