Abstract：
Echis ocellatus is one of the commonest snakes responsible for envenomation in Nigeria. Antivenom is the only effective treatment, but the country suffers from a limited supply of effective antivenom. This study therefore aimed to explore the feasibility of effective, mono-specific antibodies production through immunization in rabbits using the venom of Echis ocellatus from Nigeria. The World Health Organization guide on antivenom production was employed in the immunization and the resultant antibodies were purified using protein A agarose column chromatography. Antibody titer reached a high plateau by 2-month immunization, and SDS PAGE of the sera suggests the presence of intact immunoglobulins accompanied with the heavy (50 kDa) and light (25 kDa) chains. The venom has an intravenous LD50 of 0.35 mg/kg in mice, and the venom lethality at a challenge dose of 2 LD50 was effectively neutralized by the antibodies with a potency value of 0.83 mg venom per g antibodies. The antibodies also neutralized the procoagulant activity of the venom with an effective dose (ED) of 13 ± 0.66 μl, supporting its use for hemotoxic envenomation. The study establishes the feasibility of developing effective, mono-specific antibodies against the Nigerian Carpet viper.
摘要：
Echisocellatus是尼日利亚最常见的毒蛇之一。抗蛇毒血清是唯一有效的治疗方法,但是该国的有效抗蛇毒血清供应有限。因此,本研究旨在探索有效的可行性,使用尼日利亚的Echisocellatus毒液通过免疫兔子产生单特异性抗体。在免疫中采用世界卫生组织抗蛇毒血清生产指南，并使用蛋白A琼脂糖柱层析纯化所得抗体。通过2个月的免疫接种，抗体滴度达到较高的平台，和血清的SDSPAGE表明存在完整的免疫球蛋白，并伴有重链（50kDa）和轻链（25kDa）。毒液在小鼠中的静脉LD50为0.35mg/kg，并且在2LD50的攻击剂量下的毒液致死性被抗体有效地中和，其效力值为每g抗体0.83mg毒液。抗体还以13±0.66ul的有效剂量（ED）中和了毒液的促凝血活性，支持其用于血液毒性毒害。研究确立了开发有效、针对尼日利亚地毯毒蛇的单特异性抗体。
