ABSTRACT
Venoms generally are made up of a mixture of specific peptide toxins, enzymes, nontoxic proteins, and glycoproteins. The enzymes present in the venom, such as phospholipase A2, may also contribute to the neurotoxic, cardiotoxic, hemolytic, and lethal effects of individual venoms. Elapid and hydrophid venoms contain antigens of similar basic constitution and viperid and crotalid venoms also bear distinct interrelationships. Venoms of these two major groups can generally be distinguished immunologically, although Kulkarni and Rao and Latifi et al. observed that some viperid venoms may produce some precipitating antibodies in common with those produced by elapid venoms, and vice versa. The use of radioimmunoassay (RIA) for immunodiagnosis raises some practical and economic problems, and Sutherland and Coulter did stress that its prime use is as a research tool. The technique is expensive and requires considerable technical expertise in the handling of radioisotopes and the use of elaborate counting equipment.
