Snake enthusiast’s blood helps scientists develop prototype for universal antivenom

Tim Friede with a water cobra wrapped around his arm. (AP photo)

For more than a decade, Tim Friede, a snake enthusiast from Richfield, Wisconsin, injected himself with venom from some of the world’s deadliest snakes in a personal quest to develop immunity. Now, his blood has contributed to a scientific breakthrough: the development of a prototype for a universal antivenom, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Each year, more than two million people worldwide are bitten by venomous snakes, resulting in over 100,000 deaths. Current antivenoms are species-specific, offering protection only against certain snakes or related groups. The new prototype, described in Cell in May, fully protected mice from lethal doses of venom from 13 species, including black mambas and king cobras, and offered partial protection against venom from six additional species.

“Having something that could be used regardless of what bit you could be hugely beneficial,” said Steve Hall, a snakebite pharmacologist at Lancaster University in the U.K., who was not involved in the study.

Decades of self-immunization lead to scientific progress

Friede, 57, began his self-immunization journey in 2001, ordering venomous snakes from around the world. He would milk their venom, dehydrate it, reconstitute it in saline, and inject himself with increasing doses—eventually allowing some snakes to bite him directly. Over the years, Friede survived bites from more than 16 snake species and went into anaphylactic shock about a dozen times. “I just wanted to know if I could beat the bite,” he said.

His extreme efforts caught the attention of Jacob Glanville, founder and CEO of San Francisco-based biotech firm Centivax, and Peter Kwong, a vaccine researcher at Columbia University. Both had worked on developing vaccines that target multiple virus strains and wanted to apply their expertise to snakebites. After learning of Friede’s blood, Glanville said, “I would love to get my hands on your blood.”

Human-derived antibodies offer new hope

The Centivax team isolated two potent antibodies from Friede’s blood and combined them with varespladib, a drug known to have antivenom properties. The resulting cocktail was highly effective in protecting mice from snake venom. Researchers believe that using human antibodies could reduce allergic reactions commonly caused by traditional antivenoms, which are derived from the plasma of horses or sheep.

Conventional antivenoms, developed much the same way they were 130 years ago, are expensive to produce and can trigger severe allergic responses. Glanville noted that human antibodies should mitigate this risk.

Next steps: Testing and expanding potential

The Centivax team plans to begin testing the cocktail in dogs in Australia, where snakebites are a frequent concern. They also intend to analyse additional antibodies from Friede’s blood for potential antivenom applications. “He’s our reservoir,” Glanville said.

Friede’s role has also evolved—he now serves as Centivax’s director of herpetology, helping guide the company’s ambitious effort to create a universal antivenom.