Study on natural inhibitors of snake venom toxins receives an award

A study of the Oswaldo Cruz Institute (IOC/Fiocruz) was received the Small Grants award of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (RSTMH). The research was made by post-doctorate student Viviane de Almeida Bastos, under the supervision of researchers Ana Gisele Ferreira and Richard Hemmi Valente, of the IOC’s Toxicology Laboratory, and investigates natural inhibitors of snake toxins, isolated from South American opossum Didelphis aurita, using the mass spectrometry technique.

“Our intention is to map the regions of the antiphonic proteins involved in the inhibition of target toxins, making it possible to develop bioactive molecules that can be exploited as a complementary therapy to the antiphonic serum”, explains Viviane.

The project is financed by the Fiocruz Program of Innovation Promotion, Inova Fiocruz, by means of the Fiocruz presidency, of the vice-presidencies of Health Innovation and Production (VPPIS) and of Biological Research and Collections (VPPCB), with actions articulated with the Vice-Presidency of Education, Information and Communication (VPEIC), Vice-Presidency of Environment and Care and Health Promotion (VPAAPS) and Vice-Presidency of Institutional Development and Management (VPGDI). “The support provided by the Inova Program was crucial to consolidate the technique in the institution, an innovative approach in the structural study of proteins and their molecular interactions in different relevant biological contexts”, she highlighted.

Founded in the United Kingdom in 1907, the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene is an association dedicated to searching for improvements in tropical medicine and global health. Activities include the funding and diffusion of multidisciplinary research by means of publications and of meetings and events, in addition to the offering of scholarships for international and UK research, and the awarding of researchers for their excellence and acknowledgment of emerging talents.