For us humans, snakes have been in
the enemy camp, from the time of Genesis. And there are no indications that this may change in future either. Anything associated with snakes, and our antennas are up with suspicion. For example the term “Snake
oil” has always been synonymous with quackery and fraud. Recently Prince
Charles was branded "Snake Oil salesman" when he put in a few
sympathetic words in favor of homeopathy and other alternate modes of medical
practices. The snake, it seems has taken it all in its loops (?)
with a large heart literally; at least as far as the python is
concerned. Indeed, they may actually be holding a recipe for instant
large hearts.
Ha before you
think I am delving into quackery, let me tell you about the paper that appeared in the 28th October 2011 issue of the leading international journal "Science". A group of
scientists from two U.S. University of Colorado ,
Boulder and University
of Alabama , Tuscaloosa
So what happens
after the meal? The scientists focused
their attention on that. Python’s metabolic activities shoot up to the zenith to the accompaniment of several rapid physiological changes. The leader in the orchestra is the gut, which demands elevated blood flow to put the digestive machinery in operation, and heart meekly complies with 4-5 fold increase in cardiac output. The research team
recorded a 40% increase in the heart mass!.
Technical term for the increased capacity and output of the heart is cardiac
hypertrophy and the underlying reasons could be either physiological ( read Good) or pathological(read Bad) The physiological variety often termed "athletic heart", is an enhancement of cardiac size and function due to exercise and indicative of a healthy heart . On the other hand pathological hypertrophy is due to stress, hypertension and clearly suggests
heart disease. In the case of python, post feast, it is purely physiological. Since stress induced cardiac disease figures top in the lists
of human ailments, it only made sense
that the researchers probe deeper to understand
the way python does it.
They were in for several surprises. During the elevated levels of metabolic
process the circulating blood was rich
in a variety of lipids. However post digestion analysis showed that , these never got deposited anywhere; but were quickly and efficiently disposed off. Along
with the increased production of
the cardioprotective enzyme superoxide dismutase, the team also
found a special package of fatty acids
in the python blood which facilitated
cardiac enlargement. Do I hear Snake Oil?
Here is the charmer: when this recipe was injected into lab animals they too had a change of heart for the better. Snake oil indeed ! It may take a while before clinical trials are done on humans. But I am afraid the snake charmers will be in
great demand now and the python soon an endangered species.
Reference
Science 28th October 2011,
Vol. 334, pages 528-531
