Can Bat Spit Save Lives?

<via National Geographic>

A substance in the saliva of vampire bats could help victims of strokes survive, according to researchers at the University of Monash in Melbourne, Australia.

Strokes can happen when a blood clot blocks blood flow to the brain.

An anticlotting substance in bat spit keeps the bloodsucker victim's blood flowing freely, so the bat can continue to feed. The researchers think the same clot-busting substance may be able to dissolve blood clots in stroke patients.

Fortunately the substance would be contained in medicine, and vampire bats would not be required to bite patients!

It is amazing what researchers can study and learn about to save lives.

This brought a lot of questions to my mind. Do you do that? Here's some questions I had as I was reading the article.

• Where did the word saliva come from? Where did the word spit come from?
• In what other unusual ways can lives be saved?

Let us know the questions that come to your mind. If you think you can answer any of the questions that readers share, give it a try! We can gain information through questioning and work as a team from many parts of the world. I think that's cool.  I know that there are lots of 'questioning minds' out there! Question away!

Update per request on comment from Jess:

From a Moment of Silence:

Vampire bat spit contains a different compound, DSPA, which does the good things tPA does with far fewer side-effects. DSPA is now being tried on patients who have suffered a stroke, and the data should be in within a year. If it works, doctors might just have found an unlikely friend--the vampire bat. 

and from Action News in Philadelphia:

The Cleveland Clinic in  Ohio is working on a potential medical breakthrough. Doctors are using saliva from the "Vampire Bat" to help prevent strokes. Doctors say that when a bat bites someone something in the saliva prevents the blood from clotting. Researchers are proving a genetically-engineered version of the bat spit does not harm brain tissue. In fact, patients have fewer brain hemorrhages than with traditional clot-busting drugs. If studies are successful, this could have a dramatic impact on how stroke patients are treated.

Comments

[graciela]

I think your topic is interesting. Although bats give the creeps.I saw your comment, I'm sorry i got your topic.Do you still like your topic?What got you to choose it?

[Jess]

That's amazing! Who would have thought that bat spit could possibly save a human's life? Is this medication on the market yet or is it still being tested?

[Anne_Davis]

Graciela,
I was reading through some articles in National Geographic Kids News and this just caught my eye. The picture got my attention first. There's nothing like good visuals, don't you agree?

[Anne_Davis]

Jess,
It's not on the market yet. I put an update in the article. It is amazing to me, too!

[derrick]

I think that is so cool but what if the spit does not work and it makes them sicker.I would test on a animal or aliving thing besides a human!

[Jason]

I would test the spit on some kind of animal.

[Schontal]

Wow! This information would be very helpful in a paper.

[Nancy]

Yesterday I suspected that I had seen and heard everything. An add in the local paper advertised a cashmere jump rope at Saks for $200.00. Today I am told that bat spit has medical value. The older I get the more I know I don't know.

[Kennedy & Nicole]

We think that it is really cool that bat spit can prevent you from a stroke. We never thought bats could be so helpful.

[Eric/Dustin]

I think it can and hi Kennedy/Nicole.

[Zachary]

WOAH!!! Now that is AWSOME!!!!!!!

[Chloe]

That is amazing!!! I wonder how they discover things like that. I presume that they think "a stroke victm's got a blood clot. What disolves a blood clot?" and they eventuly figure this out. Amazing, huh? It's really cool!!
P.S. Sliva proabably come from some old word, no doubt!!

[jossep]

hi my name is jossep
i'm from israel
i just return from china few days ago
during my visit i mate some friends that told me that the bat spit is good for the skin and blood
i test it / it's mix with syrope as orange test
i feel nothing but if 1 billion know / so it's not wrong
the chinese woman eat it against wrinkle skin // thank you