As many Canadians trade snow for surf over the Christmas break, few think about the painful surprises that can come with a beach vacation. Jellyfish, fire听coral听and听the听invasive lionfish can turn a sunny afternoon into a medical emergency, with pain strong enough to cut a trip short.听
That problem is what led 91丝瓜视频 pain researcher听Reza Sharif-Naeini听to create听, a topical cream now used by divers and beachgoers around the world to听treat听potentially debilitating stings.听听
The breakthrough听wasn鈥檛听part of his research agenda. It began on a plane.听
鈥淚 was flipping through an in-flight magazine and there was an article about lionfish,鈥� Sharif-Naeini听said. 鈥淚t has spines packed with venom and they cause excruciating pain.鈥澨�
For divers and听fishermen, he adds, 鈥渢he sting doesn鈥檛 kill you, but you wish you were dead.鈥澨�
The curiosity followed him off the flight.听听
鈥淚 got to Montreal in the lab and searched the literature and nobody had looked at the pain from this venom,鈥� he听said. 鈥淚听thought,听let鈥檚 try it.鈥澨�
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From curiosity to discovery听
As听Director of the Alan Edwards Centre听for Research on Pain,听Sharif-Naeini听has听a听background听in pain transmission听that听made the leap natural. He had previously worked in San Francisco with a researcher focused on toxins and venoms, including the Texas coral snake. Within weeks of returning to Montreal, he sourced lionfish from local pet shops, purified the听venom听and began testing it on neurons.听
The results were immediate. The venom activated a distinct class of pain fibres and produced explosive, long-lasting pain signals. Divers told Sharif-Naeini听the only known treatment was scalding hot water.听听
鈥淭hey鈥檇 put the stung area in water as hot as they could manage, pull it out, then put it back in for an hour,鈥� he听said. 鈥淭hey got maybe 20鈥損er鈥揷ent decrease in pain.鈥澨�
After听Sharif-Naeini鈥檚 team听identified听a synthetic molecule that blocked the venom鈥檚 effect, they hit a wall. The molecule belonged to a major pharmaceutical company that refused permission to use it.听听
鈥淚 was听not happy,鈥� he听said. 鈥淲e have all these people getting stung. We found a way to block it, but听we听weren鈥檛听allowed to pursue it.鈥澨�
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Bootstrapping a solution听
Sharif-Naeini听kept looking and eventually found a similar blocker occurring naturally in a plant extract. That discovery meant he could create a topical cream without the听lengthy, expensive听clinical trial process听required听for synthetic drugs.听
Investors encouraged the effort but declined to commit funds.听听
鈥淭hey said the market was too small, because there are only听10,000-20,000 lionfish stings a year,鈥� Sharif-Naeini听said.听
So,听he bootstrapped the project.听听
鈥淲e borrowed money, line of credit, everything, to file the patent and register the company,鈥� he听said. Within a year they had a manufacturer and distributor.听
But before selling it, they wanted听first鈥揾and听proof.听
Sharif-Naeini听and his student injected themselves with purified venom.听
听鈥淭he pain shoots up to an eight or nine out of听10听within two seconds,鈥� he听said听with a chuckle. 鈥淎s long as you don鈥檛 treat it, it stays there.鈥澨�
After five minutes,听they applied the cream.听
听鈥淲ithin three or four minutes, the pain dropped to a four.鈥澨�
They repeated the tests, including stings from live lionfish. The results held.听听
鈥淲e were able to show we were back to doing our regular thing within an hour,鈥澨齋harif-Naeini听said. For divers, that meant a ruined day could become a brief delay.听
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Beyond lionfish听
Once the cream reached users, something unexpected happened. Divers began reporting broader effects.听听
鈥淧eople started to get back to us and say, your cream works even faster on jellyfish stings,鈥� Sharif-Naeini said. Others said it relieved sea urchin and fire coral stings. Others reported StingMaster relieved wasp and bee stings and even offered relief from the itch of mosquitos and black fly bites.听
Mechanistically, it made sense. Many venoms activate the same pain pathway, and the cream blocks that pathway. What began as a niche tool for lionfish encounters became a versatile sting treatment for travellers and families.听
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A 91丝瓜视频 success story听
Sharif-Naeini听says the experience shows how 91丝瓜视频-based research can ripple out into the world.听听
鈥淚t鈥檚 interesting for 91丝瓜视频 to know that a discovery made in the labs is actually having an impact on people who get stung,鈥� he听said.听
