Professor José Roberto Giglio and toxinnology in Brazil: 48 years in research: [review]

This work succinctly describes the professional and scientific life of Dr. José R. Giglio, one of the most outstanding Brazilian researchers in the field of Toxinology. During his long and successful career, he has made major contributions, especially in elucidating the function, structure, and mechanisms of action of animal venom proteins (from snakes, scorpions and spiders) as well as the characterization of antibodies and several inhibitors of venoms and toxins. We present here a brief history of Dr. Giglio’s personal and professional life, also reporting some of his numerous published scientific articles on venoms from snakes (Bothrops, Crotalus, and other genera), scorpions (Tityus sp), spiders (Phoneutria sp), their isolated toxins and natural inhibitors. Thus, this work is a tribute to Dr. Giglio in his 73rd birthday, having devoted 48 years of his life studying animal venoms, an effort that has continued even after his formal retirement from university duties.

An experimental study on evaluation of chemical antagonists induced snake venom neutralization.

The present investigation explored the snake venom neutralizing capacity of four chemical compounds (2-hydroxy-4-methoxy benzoic acid, anisic acid, salicylic acid and aspirin) in experimental animals. The venoms of common Indian snakes Viper russellii, Echis carinatus, Naja kaouthia and Ophiophagus hannah were taken to evaluate the lethal, haemorrhagic and defibrinogenation action neutralization. Lethal action of venom was maximum neutralized with 2-hydroxy-4-methoxy benzoic acid and anisic acid, both in in vitro and in vivo studies. Haemorrhagic activity of venom (Viper and Echis) was maximum neutralized with salicylic acid. Viper venom induced defibrination was maximally neutralized with 2-hydroxy-4-methoxy benzoic acid and anisic acid in vitro studies. The exact mechanisms of venom neutralization by the chemical compounds were not established, except for 2-hydroxy-4-methoxy benzoic acid, where the functional groups, methoxy and hydroxy were partly responsible for the neutralization of the lethal effect and haemorrhagic activity.

Avaliacao da eficacia do antiveneno botropico administrado no local da inoculacao intramuscular do veneno de Bothrops jararaca: estudo experimental em camundongos / Evaluation of the efficacy of antivenom injection at the site of the intramuscular inoculation of Bothrops jararaca venom in mice

Foi determinada, em camundongos de 18 a 20g, a dose efetiva 50 por cento do antiveneno botropico, por via intraperitoneal (ip), imediatamente (DE50 Oh) e 30 minutos (DE50 30') apos a inoculacao de 2 DL50 do veneno de B. jararaca, por via intramuscular (im). A DE50 30' foi tres vezes maior do que a DE50 Oh. A eficacia do antiveneno administrado no local da inoculacao do veneno foi avaliada inoculando-se duas DL50 do veneno, por via im, e administrando-se a DE50 do antiveneno imediatamente (DE50 Oh) e 30 minutos apos (DE50 30'), de duas formas a saber: totalmente por via ip (primeira) e metade por via ip e metade por via im (segunda), no mesmo local de inoculacao do veneno....

Descripción de un programa para la determinación de capacidad de los antivenenos para neutralizar la actividad hemolítica de los venenos / Description of a program to determinate neutralizing antihemolitic capacity of antivenems

Se describe un programa en lenguaje Pascal para calcular la capacidad de los anntivenenos para neutralizar la actividad hemolítica indirecta de los venenos de serpientes, cuando se emplea la técnica de hemólisis radial descrita por Gutiérrez et al. el operador debe suministrar el número de niveles, asi como los niveles mayor y menor, el diámetro de los halos, de hemólisis y el diámetro del orificio que se hace en el gel para aplicar las muestras. El resultado se expresa como dosis efectiva 50%(DE50), definida como la razón Ul de antiveneno/mg de veneno en la que se neutraliza en un 50%la actividad hemolítica del veneno.