Scientists at the University of Utah have discovered that the venom of centipedes may actually be a more powerful painkiller than morphine, a new study has concluded.
The venom from the Chinese red-headed centipede apparently contains a compound that blocks pain receivers in the body, and would work better than the standard morphine currently being used for sufferers of acute, chronic pain.
Experiments conducted on mice in a laboratory have shown that the centipede venom is highly effective in stopping pain and in some instances can actually work better, but without the terrible side effects of morphine. Another positive is that mice given the venom did not develop an addiction to the drug because it does not block the same receptors that morphine does.
The drug will have to go through a battery of more tests to prove how safe it is and pass muster with the FDA before being introduced to the US market.
This kind of gives a new twist to that creepily awful movie The Human Centipede...
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