Anne Baron from the Institute of Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology in Valbonne, France, and her colleagues, hunted through hundreds of compounds for one that blocks acid-sensing ion channels in nerves.

u00a0

These are key in a common pain pathway. The victorious compound turned out to be venom from the black mamba, New Scientist reported.

u00a0

Baron’s team then identified the proteins in the venom that blocked the ion channels, before naming them mambalgins and purifying them to produce a drug.

u00a0