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Their immune systems are pretty great at killing viruses and bacteria. Alligator serum is tough against: HIV, West Nile, and Herpes. A long, but good read, on

Their immune systems are pretty great at killing viruses and bacteria. Alligator serum is tough against: HIV, West Nile, and Herpes. A long, but good read, on lizard immune systems can be found here[0]. [0]http://jeb.biologists.org/content/213/5/661 http://jeb.biologists.org/content/213/5/661

ams6110 9y ago
Yet weirdly the Komodo Dragon lizard has so much bacteria in its mouth that is how it kills its prey. It just bites, and then waits around for the prey to die of infection.
- jojopotato 9y ago
  I was under the impression this wasn’t really believed anymore. The only discussion I can find for it is here though: http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2013/06/27/the-myth-of-the-komodo-dragons-dirty-mouth/ http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2013/06/27/the-myth-...
  - ams6110 9y ago
    Wow interesting that's the first I had heard that the bacteria theory was discredited.
    - EGreg 9y ago
      You see? You thought this was a cool FACT but turns out it's just a theory. Be careful about theories people have in biology or zoology.
  - saiya-jin 9y ago
    what about that BBC document (Planet earth if I recall correctly) where they watched group of dragons, they've closed on water buffalo resting in mud, bitten him couple of times (just surface scratches but bleeding), and then just stuck around for a month waiting for him to die? The filmmakers really documented the progress of buffalo's physique degradation, which was very obvious. I mean I wasn't around but usually these documents represent reality, and if this wouldn't be the case, dragons would behave differently. Pure scratches/shallow bites don't kill animals usually, otherwise nothing would survive in wilderness. Only other explanation I can think of is having actual poison, not bacteria. Or is there some other story to it?
- amelius 9y ago
  I suppose their immune system also doesn't kill off their gut bacteria.

ams6110 9y ago

Yet weirdly the Komodo Dragon lizard has so much bacteria in its mouth that is how it kills its prey. It just bites, and then waits around for the prey to die of infection.

jojopotato 9y ago
I was under the impression this wasn’t really believed anymore. The only discussion I can find for it is here though: http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2013/06/27/the-myth-of-the-komodo-dragons-dirty-mouth/ http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2013/06/27/the-myth-...
- ams6110 9y ago
  Wow interesting that's the first I had heard that the bacteria theory was discredited.
  - EGreg 9y ago
    You see? You thought this was a cool FACT but turns out it's just a theory. Be careful about theories people have in biology or zoology.
- saiya-jin 9y ago
  what about that BBC document (Planet earth if I recall correctly) where they watched group of dragons, they've closed on water buffalo resting in mud, bitten him couple of times (just surface scratches but bleeding), and then just stuck around for a month waiting for him to die? The filmmakers really documented the progress of buffalo's physique degradation, which was very obvious. I mean I wasn't around but usually these documents represent reality, and if this wouldn't be the case, dragons would behave differently. Pure scratches/shallow bites don't kill animals usually, otherwise nothing would survive in wilderness. Only other explanation I can think of is having actual poison, not bacteria. Or is there some other story to it?
amelius 9y ago
I suppose their immune system also doesn't kill off their gut bacteria.