Irradiation of the Crude Venom of Bothrops jararacussu to Obtain Toxoid

The aim of this work was to reduce the toxicity of Bothrops jararacussu venom using gamma-rays of low-energy coming from a source of Americium-241 (E = 59.6 keV and 3.7x109 Bq of activity) in order to obtain a toxoid. The radiation dose that each sample received was controlled by exposure time of the venom to the radiation beam. Mouse nerve phrenic-diaphragm preparation was used for testing the loss of venom toxicity, since the venom causes an irreversible neuromuscular blockade. In this condition, the several samples of irradiated venom, when assayed in neuromuscular preparation showed that with a dose of 0.051 Gy the paralysis caused by the irradiated venom was of 91%, at 0.360 Gy was of 79%, at 1.662 Gy was of 50% and at 2.448 Gy was of 42%. Therefore, it can be concluded that the irradiation model was able to induce a progressive loss of the venom toxicity.