this should be interesting... gene splicing and exploitation of alligators. lets see how the world handles this one.
Gators have an amazing innate immune system and don't need to be previously exposed to an infectious agent to build a protective effect as we do to some microorganisms. If the researchers can identify the specific proteins involved in this non-specific immune response to such a wide array of microbial pathogens and can search for human homologs or design drugs that act similarly, that might mean the end of many causes of sepsis and treatments for hard to treat infections.
Everyone is trying to clone that Gator blood so that they can win national championships.....oh sorry off topic
Horseshoe crabs have the same sort of immune systems... Saw an incredible story about that on Discovery a couple months ago...
They have built up defenses and anti bodies from the earliest times of life on earth and have survived several extinctions and natural disasters. They are truly survivors
The crocodilia family in general has the most amazing ability, in perhaps the whole animal kingdom, to survive horrific injuries. I agree that if they can synthesize even a fraction of the gator's ability to adapt to and fight off infections, it would be a major coup for the medical community. The ability to effectively eliminate sepsis and other post-op infections would be a HUGE step forward in patient survival and recovery, not to mention the treatment of diabetic ulcers and bedsores in the elderly and infirmed. My mom would be OVERJOYED. (She's a wound care Doc with the VA.) It sounds very promising- now lets see what they can do.