Venom Costs and Optimization in Scorpions

Evans, Edward R. J.; Northfield, Tobin D.; Daly, Norelle L.; Wilson, David T.

doi:10.3389/fevo.2019.00196

Cited by 44 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…Whilst the effects of adenosine and inosine in mammalian targets are relatively well understood, scorpions do not solely utilise their venom to defend against mammals [ 61 ]. Unlike elapid and viperid snakes, which frequently target vertebrates, scorpions predominantly hunt invertebrates, although in certain environments they are known to take small vertebrates such as blind snakes [ 62 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Small Molecules in the Venom of the Scorpion Hormurus waigiensis

et al. 2020

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Despite scorpion stings posing a significant public health issue in particular regions of the world, certain aspects of scorpion venom chemistry remain poorly described. Although there has been extensive research into the identity and activity of scorpion venom peptides, non-peptide small molecules present in the venom have received comparatively little attention. Small molecules can have important functions within venoms; for example, in some spider species the main toxic components of the venom are acylpolyamines. Other molecules can have auxiliary effects that facilitate envenomation, such as purines with hypotensive properties utilised by snakes. In this study, we investigated some non-peptide small molecule constituents of Hormurus waigiensis venom using LC/MS, reversed-phase HPLC, and NMR spectroscopy. We identified adenosine, adenosine monophosphate (AMP), and citric acid within the venom, with low quantities of the amino acids glutamic acid and aspartic acid also being present. Purine nucleosides such as adenosine play important auxiliary functions in snake venoms when injected alongside other venom toxins, and they may have a similar role within H. waigiensis venom. Further research on these and other small molecules in scorpion venoms may elucidate their roles in prey capture and predator defence, and gaining a greater understanding of how scorpion venom components act in combination could allow for the development of improved first aid.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Small Molecules in the Venom of the Scorpion Hormurus waigiensis

et al. 2020

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“…When delivered into a target organism, these components interact to create a functional response, typically to subjugate prey or deter threats [5][6][7][8][9]. While venom has evolved in response to several factors [10][11][12], for species that use venom for predation, various functional aspects of their venoms, such as their potency, are expected to reflect the evolutionary pressures related to capturing prey [5]. In particular, as the functional ability of such venoms are selected through their efficacy against the organisms they are most frequently targeted towards, they are expected to show patterns of prey-specific potencies [13,14].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diet Breadth Mediates the Prey Specificity of Venom Potency in Snakes

Lyons

Dugon

Healy

2020

Toxins

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Venoms are best known for their ability to incapacitate prey. In predatory groups, venom potency is predicted to reflect ecological and evolutionary drivers relating to diet. While venoms have been found to have prey-specific potencies, the role of diet breadth on venom potencies has yet to be tested at large macroecological scales. Here, using a comparative analysis of 100 snake species, we show that the evolution of prey-specific venom potencies is contingent on the breadth of a species’ diet. We find that while snake venom is more potent when tested on species closely related to natural prey items, we only find this prey-specific pattern in species with taxonomically narrow diets. While we find that the taxonomic diversity of a snakes’ diet mediates the prey specificity of its venom, the species richness of its diet was not found to affect these prey-specific potency patterns. This indicates that the physiological diversity of a species’ diet is an important driver of the evolution of generalist venom potencies. These findings suggest that the venoms of species with taxonomically diverse diets may be better suited to incapacitating novel prey species and hence play an important role for species within changing environments.

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“…These characteristics led to a hypothesis of high metabolic cost of venom biosynthesis [27]. However, this has only been studied in scorpions and snakes [28][29][30], with no studies in cnidarians. Moreover, even in snakes, there are contrasting views regarding the cost of venom to individuals [31].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Some like it hot: population-specific adaptations in venom production to abiotic stressors in a widely distributed cnidarian

et al. 2020

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Background In cnidarians, antagonistic interactions with predators and prey are mediated by their venom, whose synthesis may be metabolically expensive. The potentially high cost of venom production has been hypothesized to drive population-specific variation in venom expression due to differences in abiotic conditions. However, the effects of environmental factors on venom production have been rarely demonstrated in animals. Here, we explore the impact of specific abiotic stresses on venom production of distinct populations of the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis (Actiniaria, Cnidaria) inhabiting estuaries over a broad geographic range where environmental conditions such as temperatures and salinity vary widely. Results We challenged Nematostella polyps with heat, salinity, UV light stressors, and a combination of all three factors to determine how abiotic stressors impact toxin expression for individuals collected across this species’ range. Transcriptomics and proteomics revealed that the highly abundant toxin Nv1 was the most downregulated gene under heat stress conditions in multiple populations. Physiological measurements demonstrated that venom is metabolically costly to produce. Strikingly, under a range of abiotic stressors, individuals from different geographic locations along this latitudinal cline modulate differently their venom production levels. Conclusions We demonstrate that abiotic stress results in venom regulation in Nematostella. Together with anecdotal observations from other cnidarian species, our results suggest this might be a universal phenomenon in Cnidaria. The decrease in venom production under stress conditions across species coupled with the evidence for its high metabolic cost in Nematostella suggests downregulation of venom production under certain conditions may be highly advantageous and adaptive. Furthermore, our results point towards local adaptation of this mechanism in Nematostella populations along a latitudinal cline, possibly resulting from distinct genetics and significant environmental differences between their habitats.

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Venom Costs and Optimization in Scorpions

Cited by 44 publications

References 52 publications

Small Molecules in the Venom of the Scorpion Hormurus waigiensis

Small Molecules in the Venom of the Scorpion Hormurus waigiensis

Diet Breadth Mediates the Prey Specificity of Venom Potency in Snakes

Some like it hot: population-specific adaptations in venom production to abiotic stressors in a widely distributed cnidarian

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