One step closer to reality every day

Chapter 223 Really?
The fourth day of arrival at the observatory.

No one in the mission team found any traces of the sea snake, no matter whether they were looking for it near the coast, or sailing out to dive underwater to search, or asking the fishermen to pay attention, there was no gain.

Feng Yi dived once, but he used the ship of the observatory, and the staff of the observatory was around him, so the search range was limited.

If you don't see them after searching for a few days, you have to go to the next observation station.

Feng Yi thought, he went to the sea to swim farther to catch one.I could smell it the day I arrived.

The people at the monitoring station may be worried about their safety, so they keep a close eye on them and prevent a single person from going out to sea.They are not allowed to leave the station at night, and can only act during the day.

Feng Yi thought about it, and asked Xiao Jia to find out where he could rent a boat, the kind that is stronger and bears a little more weight.

A suitable ship here must either be booked in advance by other members of the mission team, or have other missions.

The location of the observation station is relatively remote, some distance away from scenic spots and tourist areas, and there are no satisfactory boats nearby.

So Feng Yi thought, when the boat is rented and the weather is suitable, the two of them will go to sea without the observation station.

In the morning, Xiaojia went to the nearest tourist area to see if she could rent a boat.

Feng Yi trotted along the coast.

I didn't prepare to go into the water, so I didn't change my diving equipment.

Feng Yi didn’t bring sunglasses, masks, and hats, and he didn’t meet anyone on the route. The structure of the residents in this area is simple. As long as you don’t deliberately promote it, basically no one will pay attention to whether you are an Internet celebrity.

We are already familiar with this area, and also understand the scope of the search that various experts in the mission team choose to search.

Feng Yi has his own search route, but he found that the smell of sea snakes in the nearshore area is fading away. I don't know if there are too many people who have searched in the water recently, or for other reasons, there are no sea snakes nearby.

After running the route, Feng Yi turned around and went to the nearby streets to look for food.There are a little more people in the small streets, so put on plain glasses, find a small restaurant or a small stall, eat some local specialties, and listen to the chats of the residents in this area.

Some experts came to look for sea snakes, and many local residents knew about it.However, some people don't think there are really sea snakes here, and they haven't seen them for many years. Even if there are, it's hard to come across them on the shore.The fisherman said that there are sea snakes, but there are no pictures and no truth. Maybe they misunderstood and mistook the eels for sea snakes.

Feng Yi listened to their discussions, and when it came to sea snakes, they were still mostly afraid.

During the climate abnormal period, there was a period of time when semi-aquatic sea snakes appeared frequently. People in this area were bitten by sea snakes and could not be rescued.

Aside from seasonal and climatic factors, sea snakes are not as aggressive as land snakes and will not actively attack humans. However, most people pay more attention to the second half of the sentence "gentle temperament, high death rate from poisoning".

Feng Yi carried two packing boxes and walked back along the coast, thinking about the sea snake.

The task this time is mainly to find sea snakes and record some data.

The sea snakes after the climate anomaly period may have undergone certain mutations, and some unknown active substances have been added to the venom, and the toxicity is more complicated.There will be slight differences in different regions.

Due to the small fluctuations in the climate this year, many people are worried that the frequency of semi-aquatic sea snakes will increase, so they have to prepare in advance.

Without antivenom, bites by divers or fishermen can be very difficult to treat.

Sampling, poison collection, data analysis, serum preparation, and formulation of the latest treatment plan for sea snake bites all had to be done, but Feng Yi only participated in the task of catching snakes.

Compared with terrestrial snakes, the research on sea snake venom is more limited. There are few people who study it, limited resources, and it is difficult to breed artificially. The other is that sea snakes do not excrete a lot of toxins, and the venom proteins are easily inactivated.Research costs are high.

Like those venomous land snakes with high venom, when taking the venom, the fangs are nailed up and the venom bursts out, just like squeezing juice.

As for sea snake venom, their venom glands and fangs are not large, and the amount of poison produced is small. In the past, many people used the method of stripping the venom glands after execution.However, due to the current regulatory environment and continuous technological innovation, there is a new live harvesting method for sea snakes.

Feng Yi returned to the observatory with what he was thinking about, and just entered the gate when a voice came from the side:
"You are... Feng Yi?"

Feng Yi looked over, and there was a young man standing not far away, probably not a resident employee of the observatory, and he still had a strong smell of sea snakes on his body.

"you are?"

The young man strode forward, "Hello, my surname is Cui. I'm a student of Station Master Yan. Just call me Xiao Cui. I study flat-chinned sea snakes and don't work at the observatory. I'm here today to help deliver antivenom."

Flat-chinned sea snakes and green-ringed sea snakes are the dominant species in China. Those who do research on sea snakes will have to deal with these two snakes a lot.

"Hello." Feng Yi reached out to shake his hand and asked, "Is the serum only resistant to flat-chinned sea snake venom?"

"Well, there won't be too much serum stored here, and the nearby big hospitals will have reserves."

Xiao Cui is not a fan of Fengyi, but after knowing that Fengyi is here, he specially accepts the task of delivering serum.

In the circle, Feng Yi's ability to catch snakes is still very famous.

"Have you gained anything today?" Xiao Cui asked.

"No."

Xiao Cui was slightly disappointed, "I heard from Zuo Di, are you sure there are sea snakes here?"

"It must have existed before, but I don't know if it exists now." Feng Yi said.

It was impossible for him to tell others about his own plans, so Feng Yi changed the subject and asked, "Do you usually store anti-venom serum at the Observatory?"

"It depends on the situation. After all, there are not many people here. If you are bitten, you can take it directly to a nearby big hospital. It's not too far from here. The road conditions are good, and you'll be there soon. Although the poison of sea snakes is very scary, But its displacement is small, generally speaking, as long as it is sent to the doctor in time, and it is not a rare sea snake, there is no big problem."

As Xiao Cui stretched out his hand, "I was bitten when I was a child. I went fishing with my friends and met a little green ring by chance."

Speaking of this, Xiao Cui had a flash of complacency on his face.

Feng Yi: "..."

I have to say that there are really not many people who have been bitten by a snake and continue to study sea snakes after work.

Xiao Cui continued to share: "The tooth marks at the bite site are not obvious, after all, the teeth are small. There is no obvious pain, no obvious redness, swelling and ulceration, just the feeling of being stabbed a little, if you don't pay special attention , it is easy to ignore. Fortunately, the location of the net fish was not too far from the hospital at that time.”

Neurotoxin is an important lethal component in most sea snake venoms. If you didn't pay attention at that time, after the "incubation period", it will be too late when you feel the symptoms.

Feng Yi was curious: "You were bitten by the Qinghuan sea snake, why are you studying the flat-chin sea snake now?"

"The venom components of flat-chinned sea snakes are more diverse, and sometimes Qinghuan sea snakes are also studied. For example, when studying the venom composition and toxicity characteristics of these two dominant species, when comparative analysis is performed at the transcriptome and proteome levels. Purpose It's all about developing targeted antivenoms."

In terms of theory, Xiao Cui didn't intend to go into details, he knew that Feng Yi didn't understand this aspect.

"Have you ever been bitten by a snake?" Xiao Cui asked.

"Been nailed by fangs." Feng Yi said.

Xiao Cui nodded, "The masters are all bitten."

"……Um."

Feng Yi's heart: As long as I don't tell, no one will know that I have been bitten by my own fangs more than once!
"For those of you who are more familiar with snakes, you will pay attention to snakes when you encounter them. Some fishermen, or children who come here to play, don't know much about sea snakes. They don't know about sea snakes, or they don't pay attention to them. It's quite dangerous. If you're lucky Not good, when encountering extreme individuals or mutant individuals, even if there is anti-venom serum, it is quite dangerous, and small differences in the components of snake venom may bring about varying degrees of poisoning reactions, and the anti-venom effect of the original serum will be reduced.”

Antivenom is indeed a troublesome thing.

Anti-coronavirus, anti-cobra, anti-viper, and anti-snake snake serums cannot exert anti-venom effects in the face of sea snake venom, and even if they are used for treatment, they will have adverse reactions.

"If there are mutated or uncommon species of snakes in the sea, then we have to prepare additional targeted serums or research new treatment options, otherwise the bitten people can only wait to die."

Thinking of the ongoing research in the ancestor laboratory, Feng Yi said: "Perhaps, when broad-spectrum antivenom drugs are available, we can solve some difficult problems in special circumstances."

"Really?!" Xiao Cui was shocked.

"Ok!"

"I do not believe!"

"..."

"I can't imagine which antigen is used to prepare anti-venom with full immune coverage!"

Feng Yi: "Uh... Maybe it's not the serum form you are familiar with, but some kind of medicine? I don't know the specifics, I heard people say it."

Xiao Cui frowned and pondered for a moment, then shook his head: "As far as I know, antivenom is currently the most effective way to treat snakebite! However, antivenom is costly, has a long cycle, and has limited scope of application. Small hospitals in small places do not have reserves. .If there really is such a magic medicine that can solve most poisonous snake bites, it can save many people! However, even if there is such a medicine in the future, it will definitely not be cheap, and ordinary people can’t afford it.”

Feng Yi thought, the next time he contacts the ancestor factory, he will ask about the price.

The newly prepared anti-venom serum has been delivered, and Xiao Cui still has his own work tasks, so he can't stay here to chat with Feng Yi.

"Broad-spectrum antivenom drugs are still far away from us, so it's useless to think so much. In short, serum is still used now, and the antivenom I sent here today are all newly prepared.

"Don't have any psychological burden, think that you will be bitten or something. This thing is purely just in case. Moreover, fishermen or other local residents are more likely to be recruited than you. After all, you are all experts. This He is good at it, and he knows how to deal with it if he finds a snake. The chance of being caught is not high..."

Xiao Cui was walking out when suddenly someone rushed into the station like a gust of wind: "Hurry up! Where's the antivenom? Professor Shen was bitten by a sea snake!"

Xiao Cui: "..."

Feng Yi looked at him.

"Low chance".

　Unknowingly, the schedule is off again, and I have to change it!

Try to update before ten o'clock tonight!

　
(End of this chapter)