Download - THE GILA MONSTER
THE GILA MONSTER
THE GILA MONSTER
Inactive from mid-November to early March
Active about 30% of the time during the hot wet season
A very sluggish animal
Yummy ! A hamster !
How can it be so inactive ?
But why is it so interesting ?
IMMUNE
7 min
< 2 min
Toxicity of the venom
IMMUNE
7 min
< 2 min
Toxicity of the venom
The Gila monster does not use its venom to hunt !
WHAT
Gradual paralysis of respiration
Gradual paralysis of the heart
Rapid drop in blood pressure
Coagulation of blood is stopped
DEATH Paralysis of the respiratory system
orCardiac failure
WHAT
Excruciating pain, edema,
rapid drop in blood pressure, hemorrhage in internal organs,
difficulty to breathe
Specialized salivary gland
Duct that delivers the venom to the teeth.
The venom apparatus
Groove for conduction of venomCapillarity
action
Temporary reservoirs for the venom discharged by the glands.
Lance-shaped at the tip
Complex teeth
Groove for conduction of venomCapillarity
action
Temporary reservoirs for the venom discharged by the glands.
Lance-shaped at the tip
Complex teeth
More than a dozen peptides and proteins have been isolated from the Gila monster's venom,
hyaluronidase, serotonin, phospholipase A2, and several kallikrein-like glycoproteins
Peptide : EXENDIN-4
The venom
50% similar to the human hormone glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) that increases the production of insulin when blood sugar levels
are high.
EXENDIN-4
May help to treat type-2 diabete
EXENATIDE
• remains effective much longer than the human hormone
its synthetic form helps diabetics keep their blood sugar levels from getting too high
• slows the emptying of the stomach and causes a decrease in appetite,
leads to weight loss
EXENDIN-4
It can kill
But it can heal.
GILA MONSTER