This snake oil is not ‘snake oil’.
The invasive Burmese python has become a major problem in the US, especially in swampy states such as Florida. But when it comes to coronavirus prevention, these giant snakes can be part of the solution – thanks to their medicinal snake oil.
Reptile hunters who once attempted to reduce the Everglades’ out-of-control python population are now following predators for a whole new reason – in search of their abundance of squalene, a lipid produced by the body’s sebaceous glands. The substance has become an important ingredient in the production of COVID-19 vaccines.
“There are really healing properties in the snake,” says Dusty Crum, aka the “Wildman,” according to Tampa Bay’s Fox 13. “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 is naturally found in many plants and animals, including humans, and is already commonly used in skin care and cosmetics as an emollient and skin-protecting antioxidant. In terms of medicinal uses, scientists say squalene facilitates our immune response to get the most out of vaccines – a therapeutic additive called an adjuvant. While the ingredient is not currently listed as part of the Pfizer or Moderna coronavirus vaccines, shark squalene has been 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 get our hands on reserve squalene is through shark livers, where the oil is plentiful, but concerns about overfishing have prompted researchers to look for a source elsewhere.
Enter: Florida’s invasive Burmese pythons, which have wreaked havoc on the state in recent years.
“A typical 3-meter python can make enough squalene for about 3,400 doses of vaccine,” said Daryl Thompson, spokesperson for Global Research and Discovery Group Sciences, in a statement for Fox 13.
“It’s not as much as a shark can get, but it’s much more durable,” added Thompson, who plans to present findings on python squalene to the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority as part of the government’s backed last year’s vaccine research program. Warp speed.
At the same time, Florida wildlife experts are eager to see an ethical solution to the state’s python problems.
“We take a bad situation and make a good out of it,” said Crum. “This has the potential to help many people heal and potentially save many lives.”
However, some animal advocates argue that the hunting of python squalene merely transfers a threat from one species to another.
“Harvesting anything from a wild animal will never be sustainable, especially if it is an apex predator that does not reproduce in large numbers,” Stefanie Brendl, founder of the shark conservation group Shark Allies, said in a recent statement to the Telegraph.
“We are not trying to slow down or hinder the production of a vaccine,” added Brendl. “We’re simply asking that testing of non-animal squalene be done in addition to shark squalene so it can be replaced as soon as possible.”