Roughly one hundred thousand people die annually from the effects of a snake bite and four times as many sustain chronic injuries. Research into how snake venom works is needed to arrive at a solution, but remains difficult to implement. A research team from the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU), MIMETAS and Naturalis Biodiversity Center, has now proven for the first time that snake venom can be examined on 3D imitation blood vessels. Their study was published in Scientific Reports .
Organ-on-a-chip
This new approach to 3D imitation blood vessels improves on traditional research methods, such as using laboratory animals or cell cultures, by mimicking human blood vessels. "The advantage of such a blood vessel model for venom research is that it takes into account several important influences that the body faces," explains venom expert and first author of the study, Mátyás Bittenbinder of VU and Naturalis. "Like the flow of blood, or the construction and shape of a blood vessel."The 3D blood vessel model, called MIMETAS’ OrganoReady Blood Vessel HUVEC , thus contributes to better understanding the damaging effects of snake venom on blood vessels and the rest of the body. "The model provides accurate insight into how toxins attack blood vessels. This knowledge will help us develop better methods to treat snake bites, while also reducing the need to do studies on mice," says Bittenbinder.