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LadyNTrainer -> RE: Snakes? (6/9/2010 1:34:09 PM)
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Massive, massive inaccuracies in that story. The FDA is in the late stages (as in, hospitals are already using the product on human patients) of approving Bioclon's Coralmyn product, which is the same freaking Micrurus antivenom as the Wyeth product was before their production plant got shut down for massive deficiencies including up to 300% batch variability in the product. This was not good stuff to begin with.
Political boundaries are not always very taxonomically or biochemically meaningful. Fort Dodge has massive back stocks of the Wyeth veterinary product, and there is no shortage of the much more expensive (and IMO clinically inferior to the Mexican Bioclon polyvalent, at least as long as they continue to do that final filtration process to remove all the long-chain fragments) human approved CroFab for general use on North American Viperidae envenomations.
It is fucking difficult to get bitten by a North American Micrurus, for various reasons both physiological and behavioral. Good luck achieving that even if you pick the snake up with your bare hands. It's possible, but still pretty damn unlikely. Current field conditions in the Gulf cleanup efforts are unlikely to increase anyone's chance of exposure to this primarily fossorial species, and may substantially decrease them.
MSNBC got hit by the stupid stick when they published that one, but no surprise. This story sucks and contains very little truth or accuracy. Ask anyone in the scientific community, in any field, what they think of the accuracy of popular news reports. Be prepared for a lot of descriptive four letter words.
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