DAYTON DAILY NEWS (Ohio) 21 July 06 Pit viper venom could save lives of some stroke victims (Anthony Gottschlich)

Kettering: The Malayan pit viper's venom destroys blood cells and tissue, eventually killing the snake's victim. But that same deadly venom now offers a potentially life-saving treatment to stroke victims.

Joining 65 research centers worldwide, researchers at Kettering Medical Center are working with a purified fraction of the pit viper's venom, known as ancrod or Viprinex, to test its potential for breaking up stroke-causing clots and restoring blood flow to the brain.

"We've had success with the drug t-PA (tissue Plasminogen Activator) restoring blood flow in stroke patients, and we think ancrod might be able to give us an extended period of time to administer early drug therapy for strokes," said Dr. Timothy Schoonover, principal investigator for the study and medical director for the Kettering Medical Center Stroke Team.

T-PA must be administered within the first three hours of a stroke to be effective, Schoonover said. Ancrod doubles the window to six hours, potentially saving tens of thousands from losing speech, cognitive ability, mobility and muscle function, he said.

The ancrod study will include approximately 650 subjects worldwide, 10 at Kettering if patients consent, Schoonover said. The drug is awaiting approval by the Federal Drug Administration.



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