A portable device for the electrical extraction of scorpion venom

摘要

An attractive technique to extract scorpion venom is the use of a physiologically stimulating electrical signal across the muscles of the venom gland, resulting in the expression of venom from the aculeus. A Grass(TM) stimulator is typically used for this purpose, but is difficult to use in the field. The present communication describes a circuit which is battery-powered and simply constructed. Also described is the technique for its construction and housing. The circuit was successfully tested on two species of scorpion. The method for calculating the required values of passive circuit components is given to allow the adaptation and refinement of this circuit for producing different signals, as may be required for use in other species.