Bothrops asper is responsible for approximately half of the snakebite envenomations in Central America. Despite its medical relevance, only the venom of Costa Rican populations of this species has been studied to some detail, and there is very little information on intraspecies variability in venom composition and toxicity. Venom of B. asper from Guatemala was analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulphate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, and its basic pharmacological activities were investigated with standard laboratory assays. Venom has lethal, hemorrhagic, myotoxic, edema-forming, coagulant, defibrinating and phospholipase A2 activities, showing a similar toxicological profile to the one previously described for B. asper from Costa Rica. In addition, polyvalent antivenoms produced in Mexico and Costa Rica, and currently used in Guatemala, were tested for their ability to neutralize venom’s toxic activities. Both antivenoms were effective against all effects studied, although the Costa Rican product showed higher potency against most activities tested and higher antibody titer against venom components, as determined by enzyme immunoassay. It is suggested that different dosage regimes should be considered when using these antivenoms in B. asper envenomations in Guatemala.
En el centenario del nacimiento de "Clorita" Picado nos conviene recordar el reciente cincuentenario de la muerte de Santiago Ramón y Cajal, porque hay similitud en la vida del biólogo costarricense y del neurólogo español. Ambos crecieron el siglo pasado en países "carentes de tradición científica", ambos se aferraron a la investigación básica al tiempo que realizaban urgentes estudios aplicados, y después de fallecer, ambos han sido víctimas de una mitificación aduladora en sus países. López Piñero (1984) describe así el cincuentenario de Ramón y Caja1 en España "panegíricos fáciles y ... repeticiones sin rubor de tópicos hace ya mucho tiempo desmentidos".
