NEW YORK, July 27 (UPI) -- Dolphins have a remarkable ability to survive a shark attack that would kill a human within hours from bleeding or a subsequent infection, a researcher says.
Dolphins are frequently attacked by sharks but can survive assaults that leave gaping holes bigger than a basketball, ABC News reported Wednesday.
One researcher says that raises a host of intriguing questions.
"Why don't they bleed to death?" asks Michael Zasloff, professor of surgery and immunology at Georgetown University Medical Center. "Why don't they get infections? Why aren't they eaten after the injury? Why doesn't the shark finish the job?"
Zasloff says his interest in the sea-going mammals began when he learned that 70 to 80 percent of the dolphins living in the waters near Australia have shark bites.
"When I heard that I was taken aback," he said. "How in the heck does a mammal, like you and me, survive a shark bite in the ocean, unattended, with no antibiotics?"
The shark leaves "the worst collection of toxic organisms" in the wound, he said.
Infection and shock would kill a human within two or three days if not hospitalized, he said, so how does a dolphin survive without medical treatment?
Zasloff theorizes the injured dolphin may be able to produce stem cells that can morph into whatever is needed to fill in the wound, and may carry its own natural antibiotics to fight infection.
Zasloff published his findings in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology.
