Brazilian snake venom research led to development of blood pressure drug
The study of the Bothrops jararaca pit viper helped create captopril, an oral medicine approved in 1981 for hypertension.
Research into the venom of the Bothrops jararaca, a pit viper native to parts of South America including Brazil, led to the development of the blood pressure drug captopril, according to the Times of India.
The research began in 1965 when Brazilian pharmacologist Sergio Ferreira published a paper in the British Journal of Pharmacology based on his PhD thesis. Ferreira identified a substance in the snake venom that enhanced the effects of bradykinin, a peptide that widens blood vessels and lowers blood pressure.
Scientists found the venom contained bradykinin-potentiating peptides that interacted with the angiotensin-converting enzyme, or ACE. Under normal conditions, ACE converts angiotensin I into angiotensin II, which constricts blood vessels, and also breaks down bradykinin.
While the venom-derived peptide teprotide could inhibit ACE and lower blood pressure, it could not be administered orally. Researchers sought a compound that could be used as a tablet to provide a more practical treatment.
Captopril became the first ACE inhibitor approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration in 1981. The drug is used to treat hypertension, and ACE inhibitors have since become an established class of cardiovascular drugs used for heart failure and kidney disease.
The development of captopril occurred during a period of 15 to 20 years between the initial research and its eventual approval.