Substances known as cationic antimicrobial peptides (CAMPs) are produced by nearly all living creatures and are an essential part of the innate immune system. And now, scientists from George Mason University have isolated substances in the blood of a Komodo dragon that appear to have powerful germ-killing abilities. Serum from these animals had already shown to have antibacterial activity.
But these somehow do not affect the dragon – suggesting that they are immune. Indeed, Komodo dragons have a mouth full of different aggressive bacteria, some of which can even cause blood poisoning or sepsis.
If the toxins that lower blood pressure, cause massive bleeding, prevent clotting, and induce shock, don’t do the job, then some of the 80 bacterial strains living in the Komodo’s mouth certainly will With only one bite, the prey has little chance of survival. How? They lay and wait, using their tongue to detect the scent of potential prey. These massive lizards live on five small islands in Indonesia and eat almost everything, from deer to large buffalos and even humans. Komodo dragons are the largest, heaviest lizards in the world and one of the few with a venomous bite.
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