Differential toxicity and venom gland gene expression in Centruroides vittatus

McElroy, Thomas; McReynolds, C. Neal; Gulledge, Alyssa A.; Knight, Kelci R.; Smith, Whitney E.; Albrecht, Eric A.

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0184695

Cited by 13 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…Our transcriptomic and proteomic data align with other studies of Centruroides venom transcript and proteomic studies showing the majority of toxin transcripts are those of sodium toxins [7,9,10]. If sodium toxin transcripts and protein diversity are compared to each other, we show 19 transcripts but only seven sodium toxin variants in the proteome.…”

Section: Sodium β Toxin Transcriptome and Proteomesupporting

confidence: 87%

“…Recent studies show intraspecific complexity and diversity in the protein and peptide constitution of the venom components [6,7]. In addition, age-specific and sex-specific variation has been reported in Centruroides vittatus and C. hentzi [8][9][10]. These studies suggest that a rich evolution of venom components as Centruroides species and their populations expanded and diversified into their present geographic range.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 86%

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Reduced Toxicity of Centruroides vittatus (Say, 1821) May Result from Lowered Sodium β Toxin Gene Expression and Toxin Protein Production

Bowman

Fitzgerald

Pummill

et al. 2021

Toxins

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Body tissue and venom glands from an eastern population of the scorpion Centruroides vittatus (Say, 1821) were homogenized and molecular constituents removed to characterize putative sodium β toxin gene diversity, RT-qPCR, transcriptomic, and proteomic variation. We cloned sodium β toxins from genomic DNA, conducted RT-qPCR experiments with seven sodium β toxin variants, performed venom gland tissue RNA-seq, and isolated venom proteins for mass spectrophotometry. We identified >70 putative novel sodium β toxin genes, 111 toxin gene transcripts, 24 different toxin proteins, and quantified sodium β toxin gene expression variation among individuals and between sexes. Our analyses contribute to the growing evidence that venom toxicity among scorpion taxa and their populations may be associated with toxin gene diversity, specific toxin transcripts variation, and subsequent protein production. Here, slight transcript variation among toxin gene variants may contribute to the major toxin protein variation in individual scorpion venom composition.

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Section: Sodium β Toxin Transcriptome and Proteomesupporting

confidence: 87%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 86%

Reduced Toxicity of Centruroides vittatus (Say, 1821) May Result from Lowered Sodium β Toxin Gene Expression and Toxin Protein Production

Bowman

Fitzgerald

Pummill

et al. 2021

Toxins

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“…Juveniles appear to have less deadly (higher LD 50 ) venom than the adults, at least when using crickets as a target species. This may be mediated by a quantitative rather than qualitative change in expression of the different toxins with ontogenetic state [ 253 ]. Additionally, scorpions may select different prey according to the amount of venom in their venom glands.…”

Section: Ecological Role Of Scorpion Weapons In Feeding Defense and Intraspecific Agonismmentioning

confidence: 99%

Armed stem to stinger: a review of the ecological roles of scorpion weapons

Simone¹,

Meijden²

2021

J. Venom. Anim. Toxins incl. Trop. Dis

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Scorpions possess two systems of weapons: the pincers (chelae) and the stinger (telson). These are placed on anatomically and developmentally well separated parts of the body, that is, the oral appendages and at the end of the body axis. The otherwise conserved body plan of scorpions varies most in the shape and relative dimensions of these two weapon systems, both across species and in some cases between the sexes. We review the literature on the ecological function of these two weapon systems in each of three contexts of usage: (i) predation, (ii) defense and (iii) sexual contests. In the latter context, we will also discuss their usage in mating. We first provide a comparative background for each of these contexts of usage by giving examples of other weapon systems from across the animal kingdom. Then, we discuss the pertinent aspects of the anatomy of the weapon systems, particularly those aspects relevant to their functioning in their ecological roles. The literature on the functioning and ecological role of both the chelae and the telson is discussed in detail, again organized by context of usage. Particular emphasis is given on the differences in morphology or usage between species or higher taxonomic groups, or between genders, as such cases are most insightful to understand the roles of each of the two distinct weapon systems of the scorpions and their evolutionary interactions. We aimed to synthesize the literature while minimizing conjecture, but also to point out gaps in the literature and potential future research opportunities.

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“…Many toxins belong to multi‐gene families of proteins, with genes encoding toxic variants and others that encode non‐toxic ones (Giorgianni et al., 2020). Variations in gene expression shape the venoms from different species, influencing their ecological role and adaptive potential (Laws, 2017; McElroy et al., 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecological and biogeographic processes drive the proteome evolution of snake venom

Siqueira-Silva

Lima

Chaves-Silveira

et al. 2021

Global Ecol Biogeogr

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Aim The emergence of venom is an evolutionary innovation that favoured the diversification and survival of snakes. The composition of snake venoms is known in detail from venom gland proteomic data. However, there is still a gap of knowledge about the forces that lead to the expression of different toxins in different proportions in the venom cocktail across space and time. Location World. Time period Modern. Major taxa studied Elapidae and Viperidae. Methods We integrated proteomic data with phylogenetic comparative methods to understand how ecological and biogeographic processes drive the evolution of snake venom. Results We observed that more productive environments favour a more complex venom, with more toxins in similar proportions. We found that taxa that live on islands, where there is lower variability of resources, tended to present less complex venom dominated by few toxins. In such cases, the extent of an island's isolation seems to be a relevant factor for faster fixation of specific venom compositions. Main conclusion We show that ecological and biogeographic processes, which can act differentially over time and space, affect the gene expression of toxins in snake venoms.

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Differential toxicity and venom gland gene expression in Centruroides vittatus

Cited by 13 publications

References 54 publications

Reduced Toxicity of Centruroides vittatus (Say, 1821) May Result from Lowered Sodium β Toxin Gene Expression and Toxin Protein Production

Reduced Toxicity of Centruroides vittatus (Say, 1821) May Result from Lowered Sodium β Toxin Gene Expression and Toxin Protein Production

Armed stem to stinger: a review of the ecological roles of scorpion weapons

Ecological and biogeographic processes drive the proteome evolution of snake venom

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