How a Deadly Snake’s Venom Could Mean Pain Relief

The black mamba snake is one of the deadliest reptiles in the world — but it may just have become a pain patient's best friend.

By Veronique Greenwood
Oct 5, 2012 5:00 AMNov 12, 2019 5:43 AM

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At first you might feel a slight sting as the fangs enter. Then, a tingling will spread throughout your limbs. But within minutes your central nervous system will start shutting down, culminating in convulsions, paralysis, and a suffocating death. The venom of the black mamba snake, one of the world’s deadliest poisons administered by one of the world’s deadliest reptiles, can kill you within half an hour. Untreated bites have a mortality rate of 100%.

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