Snake venom wrinkle cure?

A hundred years ago there were traveling salesmen pitching health elixirs purported to cure everything from baldness to consumption. They became known as "snake oil" salesmen because that was often one of the "miracle" ingredients. (And the reason they were traveling salesmen is so that they would be long out of town before people got wise to the scam.) So now we see the latest wrinkle cure, a new face cream with a synthetic version of the venom from the temple viper, a type of poisonous rattlesnake commonly found in Thailand. According to the manufacturer, amino acids in the venom block nerve signals telling face muscles to contract, which helps stop wrinkles from forming. Snake venom has already been used in a lip-gloss called Lip Venom, which its manufacturer Du Wop says “plumps out the lips.” We are told that Gwyneth Paltrow is a fan of the product.
The idea may not be as outrageous as it seems though. A derivative of another type of snake venom has been in use to treat high blood pressure for years. In the case of the Du Wop product, it probaly works in a way similar to Botox, another toxin, though in this case applied in a cream rather than by injection. However, it would almost certainly not be as effective as Botox injections, and clinical trials are ongoing for a Botox cream, with promising results reported so far. Since Botox has such a long safety record, I think I'll wait for the topical version to be approved. (The snake venom product is sold at the British uscale department store Selfridges, but is not available in the U.S.)