Potential applications of drugs obtained from insect venoms

Abstract

Venoms are complex mixtures that vary depending on the producing species. Several proteins and peptides usually constitute them, along with nonprotein compounds such as carbohydrates, lipids, metal ions, and other unidentified substances. These compounds and their respective toxins have different pharmacological activities, and in their purified forms, offer nontoxic biological activities at picomolar to nanomolar concentrations. The research summarizes the recent studies on insect venoms (bees, wasps, scorpions, among others) and their possible therapeutic applications. There is currently research at preclinical and clinical levels to demonstrate its applicability in diverse areas, thanks to its antifibrinolytic, antiviral, antibacterial, antiparasitic, and immunological properties (for both cancer and autoimmune diseases). In this way, the commercialization of therapies based on them, or the products found in these mixtures, is expected to grow considerably in the coming years because of the biotechnological tools, such as recombinant DNA techniques, transcriptomics, and proteomics.