Proteome and Peptidome of Vipera berus berus Venom

Abstract

Snake venom is a rich source of peptides and proteins with a wide range of actions. Many of the venom components are currently being tested for their usefulness in the treatment of many diseases ranging from neurological and cardiovascular to cancer. It is also important to constantly search for new proteins and peptides with properties not yet described. The venom of Vipera berus berus has hemolytic, proteolytic and cytotoxic properties, but its exact composition and the factors responsible for these properties are not known. Therefore, an attempt was made to identify proteins and peptides derived from this species venom by using high resolution two-dimensional electrophoresis and MALDI ToF/ToF mass spectrometry. A total of 11 protein classes have been identified mainly proteases but also L-amino acid oxidases, C-type lectin like proteins, cysteine-rich venom proteins and phospholipases A 2 and 4 peptides of molecular weight less than 1500 Da. Most of the identified proteins are responsible for the highly hemotoxic properties of the venom. Presence of venom phospholipases A 2 and L-amino acid oxidases cause moderate neuro-, myo-and cytotoxicity. All successfully identified peptides belong to the bradykinin-potentiating peptides family. The mass spectrometry data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD004958.

Is coagulopathy a common consequence of a Vipera berus bite? A retrospective single centre study

“…In a different study from Poland, only one case of mild thrombocytopenia has been reported [16]. Another Polish study reported thrombocytopenia below 50x10 9 /L in 6 of 26 patients, which is contrary to findings in the presented study [17].…”

“…The mean platelet count in the study group was 239.94×10 9 /L (SD = 56.56) which was lower than that of the control group 248.77×10 9 /L (SD=57.82). This difference did not reach statistical significance.…”

“…In the presented group of 127 patients with PLT count measured, only 2 patients were below normal count. However, in both cases the PLT count was above 100x10 9 /L. In the study group, PLT count did not differ significantly from the control group.…”

“…The above observations apply mainly to tropical snakes, including the viperous species. However, a recent study performed by Polish and Slovak researchers demonstrated that the venom of Vipera berus contains a full spectrum of haemotoxins [9]. These are thrombin like enzymes, serine proteases, activators of protein C, phospjholipases A2, C-type lectin like proteins and snake venom metalloproteinases.…”

Proteomic Analyses of Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix Venom Using 2D Electrophoresis and MS Techniques

“…These differences may be due to many factors: gender, age of snakes, geographical origin or type of food [19]. As shown in our previous work, the differences may also occur when other analytical techniques are used to analyze the venom composition (RP-HPLC + SDS-PAGE vs. 2DE) [20]. As described before, procedure combining HPLC and SDS-PAGE allows for recovery of all venom components in the broad molecular mass range, while it cannot be achieved by conventional 2D-SDS-PAGE.…”