Efficacy of oxygen-ozone therapy against the pro-necrotic action of Loxosceles rufescens toxic bite
The bite of the Mediterranean recluse spider (Loxosceles rufescens Dufour, 1820, Araneae, Sicaridae) (Fig. 1A) has recently appeared in Italian news as the cause of fatal injuries that have led at least four people to death due to severe necrotic-inflammatory complications following exposure to the spider's toxic venom [1]. Following Loxosceles spiders’ bite, unless the victim has realized that the spider was close to him and due to the frequent absence of a verified culprit, a dramatic skin inflammatory and necrotic reaction can occur in rapid times, dumbfounding the victim. The reaction is known as loxoscelism and often involving phospholipases D as major components of the spider’s venom [2]. These ubiquitous group of enzymes, producing phosphatidic acid as a signaling molecule from degrading membrane phospholipids, induces an oxidative stress-mediated necrosis of tissues, for example vascular tissues [3]. Blocking the oxidative stress might be a possible therapeutical approach to halting the inflammatory necrotizing response caused by spiders of the Loxosceles genus.
Valdenassi, L., Franzini, M., Ricevuti, G., Tirelli, U., Carlo Galoforo, A., Vaiano, F., & Chirumbolo, S. (2024). Efficacy of oxygen-ozone therapy against the pro-necrotic action of Loxosceles rufescens toxic bite.
International Immunopharmacology,
142, 113112.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intimp.2024.113112
