Rhopalurus junceusAND THE TREATMENT OF CANCER

Natividad Hernandez-Cruz

A toxin is any substance, usually poisonous, that is produced by a living organism and can negatively affect another organism.

Venom is a toxin that interferes with normal cell function, it can either have a positive or negative effect.

The use of venom is a widely talked about topic in current cancer research.

This presentation looks into discussing the use of the Cuban scorpion Rhopalurus junceus as a treatment for cancer.

Rhopalurus junceusR. junceus also known as “Blue or Red Scorpion” due to its red body and its blue tail and stinger.

R. junceus is native to Cuba and Dominican Republic.

Adults can reach 55-100mm in lengths.

Its life span can be from three to five years, although in captivity it decreases to about 6 months.

Reproduction in captivity is difficult. In nature, the female scorpion gives birth to about 42 to 47 live young.

The scorpion molds up to 7 times before reaching maturity, making it difficult to differentiate between a scorpion at stage 6 of molting and an adult scorpion.

LD 50 is of 8.0 mg/kg, which is barely enough to harm a human. A few cases of anaphylactic shock have been reported following a hypersensitivity immune reaction.

Rhopalurus junceus

It is reported that Cuba has 14 hatcheries, one in each providence, with approximately 5,000 scorpions in each.

The venom is extracted by electrical stimulus to the scorpion.

Each scorpion can give off approximately 0.02mL of venom, equivalent to two or three drops.

Rhopalurus junceusThe toxin from the scorpion has proteins with a very low molecular weight whose action is anti-tumor.

The toxin has analgesic, anti-inflammatory and anti-tumoral properties.

It also is said to increase the production of white blood cells.

Ideal for the treatment of lung, uterus, prostate, and pancreatic cancers.

Extraction of R. junceus venom is used in the production of Escozul, an oral suspension ingested to aid in killing off cancer cells.

Escozul

Escozul is the name of the oral medication containing the venom from R. junceus.

The dosage varies by the types of cancer and its stage.

Escozul is usually effective within three months of starting treatment.

VIDATOX is a homeopathic version, which is believed to have a placebo effect.

Escozulsigns of improvementIndicators that the medication was working included

Decrease of pain

Reappearance of appetite and sleep

Decreases in metabolic activity of tumor

Decrease of tumor markers

Toxic Effects of EscozulNo toxic side effects have been shown.

In laboratory testing, mice were given different doses of Escozul.

The mice showed different clinical signs such as motor function, reflex, convulsion, sedation, etc.

NO MORTALITY, weight loss or alteration of internal organs.

Only significant observations were sedation and reflex reduction.

NO SIDE EFFECTS HAVE BEEN REPORTED BY HUMANS!!!

Escozul as an AnalgesicIn laboratory setting, mice were induced pain by injecting acetic acid.

The number of contortions the mice suffered in a 10 minute period were counted.

The number of contortions was used a pain indicator.

Treatment with Escozul showed a decrease in the number of contortions.

The following graph shows that high concentrations of Escozul can inhibit up to 55% of pain.

This experiment shows why cancer patients who use Escozul show a reduction in pain.

Escozul as an Analgesic

The graphic shows the results of an experimental model of chemical analgesia. Six groups of laboratory mice subjected to different concentrations of ESCOZUL were examined, a control (+) group subjected to ASA and a control (-) group without any analgesic. The mice were induced pain by injecting acetic acid into them after which the specialists counted the number of contortions the mice suffered in a period of 10 minutes. The number of contortions is a pain indicator. The different letters inside the bars indicate significant statistical differences in the number of contortions between treatments. On the contrary, the treatments with equal letters indicate there are no differences between them. Thus, it can be observed that ESCOZUL has analgesic activity and that there are no differences between the treatment effects with ASA, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 50 mg/Kg of ESCOZUL. The graphic shows the inhibition percentage of the contortions for each treatment. It can be seen in the graphic that the treatments with high concentrations of ESCOZUL can inhibit up to 55% of pain. This experiment with mice could explain why cancer patients who are treated with ESCOZUL show a pain reduction.

Escozul as an Anti-inflammatory

Laboratory mice were injected with croton oil to induce inflammation.

The mice were weighed during course of experiment.

The use of Escozul was able to inhibit up to 38% of inflammation.

Escozul as an Anti-inflammatory

The graphic shows the results of the acute anti-inflammatory experimental model. Three groups of laboratory mice subjected orally to different concentrations of ESCOZUL were examined, a group control (+) subjected to dexamet and a group control (-) without any anti-inflammatory. They were induced the inflammation by injecting croton oil into them and the effects were evaluated taken into account the mice's weight. The different letters inside the bars show significant statistical differences in weight between treatments, on the contrary, the treatments with equal letters show there are no differences between them. Thus, it can be seen that ESCOZUL has anti-inflammatory activity and that there are no differences between the effects of treatments with 5, 10 and 20 mg/Kg of ESCOZUL. The graphic shows the percentage of the inflammation inhibition for each treatment. It can be seen that the treatments with high concentrations of ESCOZUL can get to inhibit up to 38% of the inflammation. This experiment with mice could explain why cancer patients who are treated with ESCOZUL show a reduction in the appearance of edemas and inflammations.

Escozul as an Anti-carcinogenic:MechanismThe mechanism of Escozul as an anti-carcinogenic

is unknown, although theories exist:It is believed that it has an immune-modulator effectAlso, it has angiogenesis inhibitorOr, apoptosis potentiator

First Action: stops the cancer from spreading

Second Action: Escozul inhibits the growth of blood vessels around cancer

Death of tumor cells occur because of lack of nutrients carried by blood.

Escozul as an Anti-carcinogenic:Mechanism

Cellular membranes are gradually destroyed when Escozul is added to tumor cell cultures.

Escozul as an Anti-carcinogenic

The graphic shows the percentage of cell growth of different cell cultures when treated with dissimilate doses of ESCOZUL. It can be observed that ESCOZUL has antiproliferative activity and the more concentrated the dose, the lower the cell proliferation will be. The greater reduction was obtained for the lung and larynx cell lines.

Side Notes about Escozul

Escozul was only available in Cuba, and was not approved by the Oncological Society of Cuba as an effective treatment.

There is much speculation whether the Oncological Society of Cuba refuses to display research for reasons regarding the ecological stance of the scorpion.

Cuba has also stopped producing Escozul, yet have distributed VidaTox, the homeopathic solution.

• Escozul can however be obtained from Cuban independent producers. Other countries also sell Escozul, but not all are realiable.

References

• Biochemical and molecular characterization of the venom from the Cuban scorpion Rhopalurus junceus. Toxicon. 2011. 58: 18-27.

• Cuba venderá veneno de alacrán para tratar cáncer http://www.elmanana.com.mx/notas.asp?id=206495

• Escozul-Cancer http://www.escozul-cancer.com/index.html

• Estudian alacrán azul cubano por las propiedades curativas de su veneno, además de las relacionadas con el cáncer http://newsgroups.derkeiler.com/pdf/Archive/Soc/soc.culture.cuba/2006-05/msg01854.pdf

• Estudian uso del veneno de alacrán contra tumores cancerígenos http://www.salud.com/cancer/estudian-uso-del-veneno-alacran-contra-tumores-cancerigenos.asp

• Rhopalurus junceus (Herbst, 1800), http://www.ntnu.no/ub/scorpion-files/r_junceus.php