Locally made anti-venom soon
An Anti-venom Serum for snake reptile bites will soon see the day, from the Centre of Tropical Medicine based at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Peradeniya.
The Director of the Centre Professor S.A.M. Kularatne, Senior Professor and Chair of Medicine said that he and a team had been working on this aspect for some years and that it was possible before long, to bring out an Anti-venom Serum produced locally against the snake bites and stings of the reptiles in this country.
At the second International Conference on Tropical Medicine held over the weekend (December 8 and 9) there were a number of presentations, two of which covered the subject of snake bites.
Technical Director of Serum and Vaccine Centre in the District of Pune, India said that millions of people suffer from snake bites and also scorpion stings.
Every year in the world majority of the victims require anti venom treatment to prevent death, amputation or severe neurological disorders.
The process of producing anti venom is technically challenging. It is very important to delicately balance the productivity with the health of the donor animals.
Production of anti venom rising animals is becoming objectionable and the search for alternative methods of production, such as the use of egg yolk, mono-colonial antibodies as well as herbal anti-venoms are been investigated, he said.
Dr. Anjana Silva from Rajarata University Medical Faculty is also studying anti-venoms.
The Keynote Address was delivered at this second Congress on the theme Global Alliance to combat Tropical Disease by Professor J.S.M. Pieris of the University of Hong Kong, Chair Professor on Virology.
Technical Director of Serum and Vaccine Centre in the District of Pune, India said that millions of people suffer from snake bites and also scorpion stings.
He delivered his address titled Emerging Respiratory Viral Infections: From Influenza to MERS.
Professor Pieris said that novel emerging infectious diseases continue to arise in the 21st century posting unexpected threats.
While outbreaks such as Ebola and Zika have attracted much recent attention, respiratory epidemics are unique in the rapidity with which they spread across geographical boundaries, potentially leading to major social, economic and political as well as human health impact
Two respiratory viral infections of current concern are influenza and MERS. Influenza A (H3N2) and ( H1N1) and B Viruses cause repeated seasonal outbreaks though mutation in the virus surface proteins that allow emergence of variant viruses that evade pre- existing population immunity.
Seasonal influenza epidemics are estimated to infect ten to twenty percent of global population causing three to five million severe cases of Influenza disease and 0.3 - 0.67 million deaths (Largely to the elderly) every year.
Professor Pieris said that such outbreaks occur in most parts of the world, no region being exempt. Groups at risk of increased morbidity and mortality include young children and the elderly, pregnant women , those with underlying heart, lung ,kidney , liver or endocrine ( e.g. Diabetes ) diseases. Antivirus therapy or high risk patients can reduce morbidity and mortality and vaccination can protect against infection and disease. Pandemic influenza arises from influenza in animals and occurs at less predictable intervals but can cause height morbidity and mortality.
Another study presented at this Congress was on Hantavirus Infection and Chronic Kidney Disease by Ms Kumilo Yoshimatsu, from the Department of Microbiology, Hokkaido University, said that Hantaviruses cause a rodent borne Zootomic disease, Haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome ( HFRS), chronic kidney disease ( CKD) is recognized as a major public health problem worldwide.
A high prevalence in Chronic Kidney Disease in cases has been noted in the North Central Province of Sri Lanka since 1990’s,without known risk factors .
This disease, Dr. Yosshimatsu said is known as CKD or Chronic Kidney disease of Unknown Aetiology.
She said it has been reported that significant high seroprevalence of Hantavirus among CKD patients from Sri Lanka. (Seroprevalence is the number of persons in a population who test positive for a specific disease based on serology (blood serum) specimens; often presented as a percent of the total specimens tested or as a proportion per 100,000 persons tested.)
In her study, she says that it further examined the relationship between Hantavirus infection and CKDU by examination of Hantavirus seroptyping and seroprevalence in a new endemic area.
Dr. Yoshimatsu says that a total of 131 sera from CKDU patients and 200 serum samples were obtained from a CKDU endemic area, Girandurukotte, in the Badulla District.
Similarly 19 serum samples from CKDU patients and 50 control sera were collected from Wigamuwa, a sporadic endemic site in the Matale District. A total of 481 control sera were obtained from a known - endemic area of Matale district. Serum antibody level were screened by direct immuno-fluorescent antibody assay against Seoul, Thailand and Puumala virus antigens.
She says that Seroprevalence among CKDU patients (47.3%. 47%.4%) as higher than those among the control area ( 13.5 %-18% in Girandurukotte Wilgamuwa respectively.
Dr. Yoshimatsu concluded that to clarify the relationship between Hantavirus and Chronic Kidney Disease further extensive investigations in humans and rats are necessary. Fourteen Research findings were presented. Among the others who addressed the Congress were Professor R. Mudyanse, Professor S.A.M. Kularatne. Deputy Vice Chancellor Lakshman Wijeweera and Vice Chancellor Upul B. Dissanayake and Dr. Susiji Wickramasinghe.