Taming the sea snail

From Forbes.com

Poison Pill
Dennis Posadas

Venom from sea snails is used to treat chronic pain and may soon yield new drugs for Parkinson's and other brain disorders.

As a boy in his native Philippines, Baldomero Olivera spent countless hours scouring for seashells on the beach. Once he'd made his finds, he'd rush home and pore over marine-life books to identify his treasures. He was particularly intrigued with cone snails, beautiful but deadly sea snails that kill their prey with venom. Thirty years later Olivera's fascination with cone snails would open a new pipeline of drugs for discovery.

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