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Khochare S, Jaglan A, Rashmi U, Dam P, Sunagar K. Harnessing the Cross-Neutralisation Potential of Existing Antivenoms for Mitigating the Outcomes of Snakebite in Sub-Saharan Africa. Int J Mol Sci 2024; 25:4213. [PMID: 38673799 PMCID: PMC11050326 DOI: 10.3390/ijms25084213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2024] [Revised: 04/03/2024] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Over 32,000 individuals succumb to snake envenoming in sub-Saharan Africa (sSA) annually. This results from several factors, including a lack of antivenom products capable of neutralising the venoms of diverse snake species in this region. Most manufacturers produce polyvalent antivenoms targeting 3 to 16 clinically important snake species in sSA. However, specific products are unavailable for many others, especially those with a restricted geographic distribution. While next-generation antivenoms, comprising a cocktail of broadly neutralising antibodies, may offer an effective solution to this problem, given the need for their clinical validation, recombinant antivenoms are far from being available to snakebite victims. One of the strategies that could immediately address this issue involves harnessing the cross-neutralisation potential of existing products. Therefore, we assessed the neutralisation potency of PANAF-Premium antivenom towards the venoms of 14 medically important snakes from 13 countries across sSA for which specific antivenom products are unavailable. Preclinical assays in a murine model of snake envenoming revealed that the venoms of most snake species under investigation were effectively neutralised by this antivenom. Thus, this finding highlights the potential use of PANAF-Premium antivenom in treating bites from diverse snakes across sSA and the utility of harnessing the cross-neutralisation potential of antivenoms.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.K.); (A.J.); (U.R.); (P.D.)
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Khalek IS, Senji Laxme RR, Nguyen YTK, Khochare S, Patel RN, Woehl J, Smith JM, Saye-Francisco K, Kim Y, Misson Mindrebo L, Tran Q, Kędzior M, Boré E, Limbo O, Verma M, Stanfield RL, Menzies SK, Ainsworth S, Harrison RA, Burton DR, Sok D, Wilson IA, Casewell NR, Sunagar K, Jardine JG. Synthetic development of a broadly neutralizing antibody against snake venom long-chain α-neurotoxins. Sci Transl Med 2024; 16:eadk1867. [PMID: 38381847 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.adk1867] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2023] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
Snakebite envenoming is a major global public health concern for which improved therapies are urgently needed. The antigenic diversity present in snake venom toxins from various species presents a considerable challenge to the development of a universal antivenom. Here, we used a synthetic human antibody library to find and develop an antibody that neutralizes long-chain three-finger α-neurotoxins produced by numerous medically relevant snakes. Our antibody bound diverse toxin variants with high affinity, blocked toxin binding to the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor in vitro, and protected mice from lethal venom challenge. Structural analysis of the antibody-toxin complex revealed a binding mode that mimics the receptor-toxin interaction. The overall workflow presented is generalizable for the development of antibodies that target conserved epitopes among antigenically diverse targets, and it offers a promising framework for the creation of a monoclonal antibody-based universal antivenom to treat snakebite envenoming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene S Khalek
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
| | - R R Senji Laxme
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India
| | - Yen Thi Kim Nguyen
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Suyog Khochare
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India
| | - Rohit N Patel
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool L3 5QA, UK
| | - Jordan Woehl
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
| | - Jessica M Smith
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
| | - Karen Saye-Francisco
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Yoojin Kim
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
| | - Laetitia Misson Mindrebo
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
| | - Quoc Tran
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
| | - Mateusz Kędzior
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
| | - Evy Boré
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool L3 5QA, UK
| | - Oliver Limbo
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
| | - Megan Verma
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
| | - Robyn L Stanfield
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Stefanie K Menzies
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool L3 5QA, UK
| | - Stuart Ainsworth
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool L3 5QA, UK
| | - Robert A Harrison
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool L3 5QA, UK
| | - Dennis R Burton
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- Consortium for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Development (CHAVD), Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Devin Sok
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
- Consortium for HIV/AIDS Vaccine Development (CHAVD), Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Ian A Wilson
- Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- Skaggs Institute for Chemical Biology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Nicholas R Casewell
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Department of Tropical Disease Biology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool L3 5QA, UK
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India
| | - Joseph G Jardine
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI Neutralizing Antibody Center, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
- IAVI, New York, NY 10004, USA
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3
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Jaglan A, Bhatia S, Martin G, Sunagar K. The Royal Armoury: Venomics and antivenomics of king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) from the Indian Western Ghats. Int J Biol Macromol 2023; 253:126708. [PMID: 37673142 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.126708] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Revised: 08/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/03/2023] [Indexed: 09/08/2023]
Abstract
Despite being famous as 'the king' of the snake world, the king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) has remained a mysterious species, particularly with respect to its venom ecology. In contrast, venom research has largely focussed on the 'big four' snakes that are greatly responsible for the burden of snakebite in the Indian subcontinent. This study aims to bridge the current void in our understanding of the O. hannah venom by investigating its proteomic, biochemical, pharmacological, and toxinological profiles via interdisciplinary approaches. Considering their physical resemblance, the king cobra is often compared to the spectacled cobra (Naja naja). Comparative venomics of O. hannah and N. naja in this study provided interesting insights into their venom compositions, activities, and potencies. Our findings suggest that the O. hannah venom, despite being relatively less complex than the N. naja venom, is equally potent. Finally, our in vitro and in vivo assays revealed that both Indian polyvalent and Thai Red Cross monovalent antivenoms completely fail to neutralise the O. hannah venom. Our findings provide guidelines for the management of bites from this clinically important yet neglected snake species in India.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anurag Jaglan
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India
| | - Siddharth Bhatia
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India
| | - Gerard Martin
- The Liana Trust, Survey #1418/1419 Rathnapuri, Hunsur 571189, Karnataka, India
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India.
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Khochare S, Senji Laxme RR, Jaikumar P, Kaur N, Attarde S, Martin G, Sunagar K. Fangs in the Ghats: Preclinical Insights into the Medical Importance of Pit Vipers from the Western Ghats. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24119516. [PMID: 37298463 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24119516] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2023] [Revised: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/07/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The socioeconomic impact of snakebites in India is largely attributed to a subset of snake species commonly known as the 'big four'. However, envenoming by a range of other clinically important yet neglected snakes, a.k.a. the 'neglected many', also adds to this burden. The current approach of treating bites from these snakes with the 'big four' polyvalent antivenom is ineffective. While the medical significance of various species of cobras, saw-scaled vipers, and kraits is well-established, the clinical impact of pit vipers from regions such as the Western Ghats, northeastern India, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands remains poorly understood. Amongst the many species of snakes found in the Western Ghats, the hump-nosed (Hypnale hypnale), Malabar (Craspedocephalus malabaricus), and bamboo (Craspedocephalus gramineus) pit vipers can potentially inflict severe envenoming. To evaluate the severity of toxicity inflicted by these snakes, we characterised their venom composition, biochemical and pharmacological activities, and toxicity- and morbidity-inducing potentials, including their ability to damage kidneys. Our findings highlight the therapeutic inadequacies of the Indian and Sri Lankan polyvalent antivenoms in neutralising the local and systemic toxicity resulting from pit viper envenomings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suyog Khochare
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - R R Senji Laxme
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Priyanka Jaikumar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Navneet Kaur
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Saurabh Attarde
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Gerard Martin
- The Liana Trust, Survey #1418/1419, Rathnapuri, Hunsur 571189, India
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
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5
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Abstract
Spider venoms are a complex concoction of enzymes, polyamines, inorganic salts, and disulfide-rich peptides (DRPs). Although DRPs are widely distributed and abundant, their bevolutionary origin has remained elusive. This knowledge gap stems from the extensive molecular divergence of DRPs and a lack of sequence and structural data from diverse lineages. By evaluating DRPs under a comprehensive phylogenetic, structural and evolutionary framework, we have not only identified 78 novel spider toxin superfamilies but also provided the first evidence for their common origin. We trace the origin of these toxin superfamilies to a primordial knot - which we name 'Adi Shakti', after the creator of the Universe according to Hindu mythology - 375 MYA in the common ancestor of Araneomorphae and Mygalomorphae. As the lineages under evaluation constitute nearly 60% of extant spiders, our findings provide fascinating insights into the early evolution and diversification of the spider venom arsenal. Reliance on a single molecular toxin scaffold by nearly all spiders is in complete contrast to most other venomous animals that have recruited into their venoms diverse toxins with independent origins. By comparatively evaluating the molecular evolutionary histories of araneomorph and mygalomorph spider venom toxins, we highlight their contrasting evolutionary diversification rates. Our results also suggest that venom deployment (e.g. prey capture or self-defense) influences evolutionary diversification of DRP toxin superfamilies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naeem Yusuf Shaikh
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science BangaloreBengaluruIndia
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science BangaloreBengaluruIndia
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6
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Sunagar K, Khochare S, Jaglan A, Senthil S, Suranse V. Stings on wings: Proteotranscriptomic and biochemical profiling of the lesser banded hornet ( Vespa affinis) venom. Front Mol Biosci 2022; 9:1066793. [PMID: 36601583 PMCID: PMC9806352 DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2022.1066793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2022] [Accepted: 12/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Distinct animal lineages have convergently recruited venoms as weaponry for prey capture, anti-predator defence, conspecific competition, or a combination thereof. Most studies, however, have been primarily confined to a narrow taxonomic breadth. The venoms of cone snails, snakes, spiders and scorpions remain particularly well-investigated. Much less explored are the venoms of wasps (Order: Hymenoptera) that are infamous for causing excruciating and throbbing pain, justifying their apex position on Schmidt's pain index, including some that are rated four on four. For example, the lesser banded wasp (V. affinis) is clinically important yet has only been the subject of a few studies, despite being commonly found across tropical and subtropical Asia. Stings from these wasps, especially from multiple individuals of a nest, often lead to clinically severe manifestations, including mastocytosis, myasthenia gravis, optic neuropathy, and life-threatening pathologies such as myocardial infarction and organ failure. However, their venom composition and activity remain unexplored in the Indian subcontinent. Here, we report the proteomic composition, transcriptomic profile, and biochemical and pharmacological activities of V. affinis venom from southern India. Our findings suggest that wasp venoms are rich in diverse toxins that facilitate antipredator defence. Biochemical and pharmacological assessments reveal that these toxins can exhibit significantly higher activities than their homologues in medically important snakes. Their ability to exert potent effects on diverse molecular targets makes them a treasure trove for discovering life-saving therapeutics. Fascinatingly, wasp venoms, being evolutionarily ancient, exhibit a greater degree of compositional and sequence conservation across very distant populations/species, which contrasts with the patterns of venom evolution observed in evolutionarily younger lineages, such as advanced snakes and cone snails.
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Senji Laxme RR, Khochare S, Attarde S, Kaur N, Jaikumar P, Shaikh NY, Aharoni R, Primor N, Hawlena D, Moran Y, Sunagar K. The Middle Eastern Cousin: Comparative Venomics of Daboia palaestinae and Daboia russelii. Toxins (Basel) 2022; 14:toxins14110725. [PMID: 36355975 PMCID: PMC9696752 DOI: 10.3390/toxins14110725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2022] [Revised: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Among the medically most important snakes in the world, the species belonging to the genus Daboia have been attributed to the highest number of human envenomings, deaths and disabilities. Given their significant clinical relevance, the venoms of Russell's vipers (D. russelii and D. siamensis) have been the primary focus of research. In contrast, the composition, activity, ecology and evolution of venom of its congener, the Palestine viper (D. palaestinae), have remained largely understudied. Therefore, to unravel the factors responsible for the enhanced medical relevance of D. russelii in comparison to D. palaestinae, we comparatively evaluated their venom proteomes, biochemical activities, and mortality and morbidity inflicting potentials. Furthermore, the synthesis and regulation of venom in snakes have also remained underinvestigated, and the relative contribution of each venom gland remains unclear. We address this knowledge gap by sequencing the tissue transcriptomes of both venom glands of D. palaestinae, and comparatively evaluating their contribution to the secreted venom concoction. Our findings highlight the disparity in the venom composition, function and toxicities of the two Daboia species. We also show that toxin production is not partitioned between the two venom glands of D. palaestinae.
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Affiliation(s)
- R. R. Senji Laxme
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Suyog Khochare
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Saurabh Attarde
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Navneet Kaur
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Priyanka Jaikumar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Naeem Yusuf Shaikh
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Reuven Aharoni
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel
| | - Naftali Primor
- Shulov Institute of Science, 10 Oppenheimer Street, Science Park, Rehovot 7670110, Israel
| | - Dror Hawlena
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel
| | - Yehu Moran
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9190401, Israel
- Correspondence: (Y.M.); (K.S.)
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
- Correspondence: (Y.M.); (K.S.)
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Suranse V, Jackson TNW, Sunagar K. Contextual Constraints: Dynamic Evolution of Snake Venom Phospholipase A 2. Toxins (Basel) 2022; 14:toxins14060420. [PMID: 35737081 PMCID: PMC9231074 DOI: 10.3390/toxins14060420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2022] [Revised: 05/30/2022] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Venom is a dynamic trait that has contributed to the success of numerous organismal lineages. Predominantly composed of proteins, these complex cocktails are deployed for predation and/or self-defence. Many non-toxic physiological proteins have been convergently and recurrently recruited by venomous animals into their toxin arsenal. Phospholipase A2 (PLA2) is one such protein and features in the venoms of many organisms across the animal kingdom, including snakes of the families Elapidae and Viperidae. Understanding the evolutionary history of this superfamily would therefore provide insight into the origin and diversification of venom toxins and the evolution of novelty more broadly. The literature is replete with studies that have identified diversifying selection as the sole influence on PLA2 evolution. However, these studies have largely neglected the structural/functional constraints on PLA2s, and the ecology and evolutionary histories of the diverse snake lineages that produce them. By considering these crucial factors and employing evolutionary analyses integrated with a schema for the classification of PLA2s, we uncovered lineage-specific differences in selection regimes. Thus, our work provides novel insights into the evolution of this major snake venom toxin superfamily and underscores the importance of considering the influence of evolutionary and ecological contexts on molecular evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vivek Suranse
- Evolutionary Venomics Laboratory, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India;
| | - Timothy N. W. Jackson
- Australian Venom Research Unit, Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, Australia;
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Laboratory, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India;
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +91-080-2293-2895
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Attarde S, Iyer A, Khochare S, Shaligram U, Vikharankar M, Sunagar K. The Preclinical Evaluation of a Second-Generation Antivenom for Treating Snake Envenoming in India. Toxins (Basel) 2022; 14:toxins14030168. [PMID: 35324665 PMCID: PMC8950585 DOI: 10.3390/toxins14030168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2021] [Revised: 01/03/2022] [Accepted: 01/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Snake envenoming afflicts the Indian subcontinent with the highest rates of mortality (47,000) and morbidity globally. The only effective treatment for snakebites is the administration of antivenom, which is produced by the hyperimmunisation of equines. Commercial Indian antivenoms, however, have been shown to exhibit a poor preclinical performance in neutralising venom, as a result of inter- and intrapopulation snake venom variation. Additionally, their poor dose effectiveness necessitates the administration of larger volumes of antivenom for treatment, leading to several harmful side effects in snakebite victims, including serum sickness and fatal anaphylaxis. In this study, we employed chromatographic purification to enhance the dose efficacy of commercial Indian antivenoms. The efficacy of this ‘second-generation’ antivenom was comparatively evaluated against six other marketed antivenoms using a number of in vitro and in vivo preclinical assays, which revealed its superior venom recognition capability. Enhanced purity also resulted in significant improvements in dose effectiveness, as the ‘second-generation’ antivenom exhibited a 3 to 4.5 times increased venom neutralisation potential. Furthermore, preclinical assays revealed the increased effectiveness of the ‘second-generation’ antivenom in countering morbid effects inflicted by the ‘big four’ Indian snakes. Thus, we demonstrate the role of simpler purification steps in significantly enhancing the effectiveness of snakebite therapy in regions that are most affected by snakebites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saurabh Attarde
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.A.); (A.I.); (S.K.)
| | - Ashwin Iyer
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.A.); (A.I.); (S.K.)
| | - Suyog Khochare
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.A.); (A.I.); (S.K.)
| | - Umesh Shaligram
- Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd., 212/2, Hadapsar, Off Soli Poonawalla Road, Pune 411028, Maharashtra, India; (U.S.); (M.V.)
| | - Mayur Vikharankar
- Serum Institute of India Pvt. Ltd., 212/2, Hadapsar, Off Soli Poonawalla Road, Pune 411028, Maharashtra, India; (U.S.); (M.V.)
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.A.); (A.I.); (S.K.)
- Correspondence:
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10
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Attarde S, Khochare S, Iyer A, Dam P, Martin G, Sunagar K. Venomics of the Enigmatic Andaman Cobra ( Naja sagittifera) and the Preclinical Failure of Indian Antivenoms in Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Front Pharmacol 2021; 12:768210. [PMID: 34759827 PMCID: PMC8573199 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2021.768210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Accepted: 10/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are an abode to a diversity of flora and fauna, including the many endemic species of snakes, such as the elusive Andaman cobra (Naja sagittifera). However, the ecology and evolution of venomous snakes inhabiting these islands have remained entirely uninvestigated. This study aims to bridge this knowledge gap by investigating the evolutionary history of N. sagittifera and its venom proteomic, biochemical and toxicity profile. Phylogenetic reconstructions confirmed the close relationship between N. sagittifera and the Southeast Asian monocellate cobra (N. kaouthia). Overlooking this evolutionary history, a polyvalent antivenom manufactured using the venom of the spectacled cobra (N. naja) from mainland India is used for treating N. sagittifera envenomations. Comparative evaluation of venoms of these congeners revealed significant differences in their composition, functions and potencies. Given the close phylogenetic relatedness between N. sagittifera and N. kaouthia, we further assessed the cross-neutralising efficacy of Thai monovalent N. kaouthia antivenom against N. sagittifera venoms. Our findings revealed the inadequate preclinical performance of the Indian polyvalent and Thai monovalent antivenoms in neutralising N. sagittifera venoms. Moreover, the poor efficacy of the polyvalent antivenom against N. naja venom from southern India further revealed the critical need to manufacture region-specific Indian antivenoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saurabh Attarde
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
| | - Suyog Khochare
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
| | - Ashwin Iyer
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
| | - Paulomi Dam
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
| | | | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
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Calvete JJ, Lomonte B, Saviola AJ, Bonilla F, Sasa M, Williams DJ, Undheim EA, Sunagar K, Jackson TN. Mutual enlightenment: A toolbox of concepts and methods for integrating evolutionary and clinical toxinology via snake venomics and the contextual stance. Toxicon X 2021; 9-10:100070. [PMID: 34195606 PMCID: PMC8234350 DOI: 10.1016/j.toxcx.2021.100070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2021] [Revised: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 06/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Snakebite envenoming is a neglected tropical disease that may claim over 100,000 human lives annually worldwide. Snakebite occurs as the result of an interaction between a human and a snake that elicits either a defensive response from the snake or, more rarely, a feeding response as the result of mistaken identity. Snakebite envenoming is therefore a biological and, more specifically, an ecological problem. Snake venom itself is often described as a "cocktail", as it is a heterogenous mixture of molecules including the toxins (which are typically proteinaceous) responsible for the pathophysiological consequences of envenoming. The primary function of venom in snake ecology is pre-subjugation, with defensive deployment of the secretion typically considered a secondary function. The particular composition of any given venom cocktail is shaped by evolutionary forces that include phylogenetic constraints associated with the snake's lineage and adaptive responses to the snake's ecological context, including the taxa it preys upon and by which it is predated upon. In the present article, we describe how conceptual frameworks from ecology and evolutionary biology can enter into a mutually enlightening relationship with clinical toxinology by enabling the consideration of snakebite envenoming from an "ecological stance". We detail the insights that may emerge from such a perspective and highlight the ways in which the high-fidelity descriptive knowledge emerging from applications of -omics era technologies - "venomics" and "antivenomics" - can combine with evolutionary explanations to deliver a detailed understanding of this multifactorial health crisis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan J. Calvete
- Evolutionary and Translational Venomics Laboratory, Instituto de Biomedicina de Valencia, CSIC, Valencia, Spain
| | - Bruno Lomonte
- Unidad de Proteómica, Instituto Clodomiro Picado, Facultad de Microbiología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Anthony J. Saviola
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Fabián Bonilla
- Laboratorio de Investigación en Animales Peligrosos (LIAP), Instituto Clodomiro Picado, Facultad de Microbiología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
| | - Mahmood Sasa
- Laboratorio de Investigación en Animales Peligrosos (LIAP), Instituto Clodomiro Picado, Facultad de Microbiología, Universidad de Costa Rica, San José, Costa Rica
- Museo de Zoología, Centro de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Ecología Tropical, Universidad de Costa Rica, Costa Rica
| | | | - Eivind A.B. Undheim
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, NTNU, Trondheim, Norway
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Timothy N.W. Jackson
- Australian Venom Research Unit, Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
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Tournière O, Dolan D, Richards GS, Sunagar K, Columbus-Shenkar YY, Moran Y, Rentzsch F. NvPOU4/Brain3 Functions as a Terminal Selector Gene in the Nervous System of the Cnidarian Nematostella vectensis. Cell Rep 2021; 30:4473-4489.e5. [PMID: 32234481 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.03.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2019] [Revised: 01/08/2020] [Accepted: 03/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Terminal selectors are transcription factors that control the morphological, physiological, and molecular features that characterize distinct cell types. Here, we show that, in the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis, NvPOU4 is expressed in post-mitotic cells that give rise to a diverse set of neural cell types, including cnidocytes and NvElav1-expressing neurons. Morphological analyses of NvPOU4 mutants crossed to transgenic reporter lines show that the loss of NvPOU4 does not affect the initial specification of neural cells. Transcriptomes derived from the mutants and from different neural cell populations reveal that NvPOU4 is required for the execution of the terminal differentiation program of these neural cells. These findings suggest that POU4 genes have ancient functions as terminal selectors for morphologically and functionally disparate types of neurons and they provide experimental support for the relevance of terminal selectors for understanding the evolution of cell types.
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Affiliation(s)
- Océane Tournière
- Sars International Centre for Marine Molecular Biology, University of Bergen, 5006 Bergen, Norway
| | - David Dolan
- Computational Biology Unit, Department for Informatics, University of Bergen, 5006 Bergen, Norway
| | - Gemma Sian Richards
- Sars International Centre for Marine Molecular Biology, University of Bergen, 5006 Bergen, Norway
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 9190401 Jerusalem, Israel; Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, India
| | - Yaara Y Columbus-Shenkar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 9190401 Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Yehu Moran
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 9190401 Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Fabian Rentzsch
- Sars International Centre for Marine Molecular Biology, University of Bergen, 5006 Bergen, Norway; Department for Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, 5006 Bergen, Norway.
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Kaur N, Iyer A, Sunagar K. Evolution Bites - Timeworn Inefficacious Snakebite Therapy in the Era of Recombinant Vaccines. Indian Pediatr 2021; 58:219-223. [PMID: 33713055 PMCID: PMC7610842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Snakebite is a neglected tropical disease that inflicts severe socioeconomic burden on developing countries by primarily affecting their rural agrarian populations. India is a major snakebite hotspot in the world, as it accounts for more than 58,000 annual snakebite mortalities and over three times that number of morbidities. The only available treatment for snakebite is a commercially marketed polyvalent antivenom, which is manufactured exclusively against the 'big four' Indian snakes. In this review, we highlight the influence of ecology and evolution in driving inter- and intra-specific venom variations in snakes. We describe the repercussions of this molecular variation on the effectiveness of the current generation Indian antivenoms in mitigating snakebite pathologies. We highlight the disturbing deficiencies of the conventional animal-derived antivenoms, and review next-generation recombinant antivenoms and other promising therapies for the efficacious treatment of this disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Navneet Kaur
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science. Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Ashwin Iyer
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science. Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science. Bangalore, Karnataka, India. Correspondence to: Dr Kartik Sunagar, Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science. Bengaluru 560 012, Karnataka, India.
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Senji Laxme RR, Khochare S, Attarde S, Suranse V, Iyer A, Casewell NR, Whitaker R, Martin G, Sunagar K. Biogeographic venom variation in Russell's viper (Daboia russelii) and the preclinical inefficacy of antivenom therapy in snakebite hotspots. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2021; 15:e0009247. [PMID: 33764996 PMCID: PMC7993602 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0009247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2020] [Accepted: 02/17/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Snakebite in India results in over 58,000 fatalities and a vast number of morbidities annually. The majority of these clinically severe envenomings are attributed to Russell's viper (Daboia russelii), which has a near pan-India distribution. Unfortunately, despite its medical significance, the influence of biogeography on the composition and potency of venom from disparate D. russelii populations, and the repercussions of venom variation on the neutralisation efficacy of marketed Indian antivenoms, remain elusive. METHODS Here, we employ an integrative approach comprising proteomic characterisation, biochemical analyses, pharmacological assessment, and venom toxicity profiling to elucidate the influence of varying ecology and environment on the pan-Indian populations of D. russelii. We then conducted in vitro venom recognition experiments and in vivo neutralisation assays to evaluate the efficacy of the commercial Indian antivenoms against the geographically disparate D. russelii populations. FINDINGS We reveal significant intraspecific variation in the composition, biochemical and pharmacological activities and potencies of D. russelii venoms sourced from five distinct biogeographic zones across India. Contrary to our understanding of the consequences of venom variation on the effectiveness of snakebite therapy, commercial antivenom exhibited surprisingly similar neutralisation potencies against the majority of the investigated populations, with the exception of low preclinical efficacy against the semi-arid population from northern India. However, the ability of Indian antivenoms to counter the severe morbid effects of Daboia envenoming remains to be evaluated. CONCLUSION The concerning lack of antivenom efficacy against the north Indian population of D. russelii, as well as against two other 'big four' snake species in nearby locations, underscores the pressing need to develop pan-India effective antivenoms with improved efficacy in high snakebite burden locales.
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Affiliation(s)
- R. R. Senji Laxme
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Suyog Khochare
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Saurabh Attarde
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Vivek Suranse
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Ashwin Iyer
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Nicholas R. Casewell
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Romulus Whitaker
- Madras Crocodile Bank Trust/Centre for Herpetology. East Coast Road, Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Gerard Martin
- The Liana Trust. Survey #1418/1419 Rathnapuri, Hunsur, Karnataka, India
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
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Senji Laxme RR, Attarde S, Khochare S, Suranse V, Martin G, Casewell NR, Whitaker R, Sunagar K. Biogeographical venom variation in the Indian spectacled cobra (Naja naja) underscores the pressing need for pan-India efficacious snakebite therapy. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2021; 15:e0009150. [PMID: 33600405 PMCID: PMC7924803 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0009150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2020] [Revised: 03/02/2021] [Accepted: 01/18/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Snake venom composition is dictated by various ecological and environmental factors, and can exhibit dramatic variation across geographically disparate populations of the same species. This molecular diversity can undermine the efficacy of snakebite treatments, as antivenoms produced against venom from one population may fail to neutralise others. India is the world’s snakebite hotspot, with 58,000 fatalities and 140,000 morbidities occurring annually. Spectacled cobra (Naja naja) and Russell’s viper (Daboia russelii) are known to cause the majority of these envenomations, in part due to their near country-wide distributions. However, the impact of differing ecologies and environment on their venom compositions has not been comprehensively studied. Methods Here, we used a multi-disciplinary approach consisting of venom proteomics, biochemical and pharmacological analyses, and in vivo research to comparatively analyse N. naja venoms across a broad region (>6000 km; seven populations) covering India’s six distinct biogeographical zones. Findings By generating the most comprehensive pan-Indian proteomic and toxicity profiles to date, we unveil considerable differences in the composition, pharmacological effects and potencies of geographically-distinct venoms from this species and, through the use of immunological assays and preclinical experiments, demonstrate alarming repercussions on antivenom therapy. We find that commercially-available antivenom fails to effectively neutralise envenomations by the pan-Indian populations of N. naja, including a complete lack of neutralisation against the desert Naja population. Conclusion Our findings highlight the significant influence of ecology and environment on snake venom composition and potency, and stress the pressing need to innovate pan-India effective antivenoms to safeguard the lives, limbs and livelihoods of the country’s 200,000 annual snakebite victims. Annually, India is burdened by the highest number of snake envenomations across the globe, with over 58,000 fatalities and three times the number of morbidities, predominantly affecting the rural agrarian communities. The spectacled cobra (Naja naja) and Russell’s viper (Daboia russelii) are responsible for the vast majority of envenomations in the country, in part, due to their near country-wide distributions. In this study, we unveil the astounding differences in venom composition of N. naja from six different biogeographical zones across the country (>6000 km). We provide a comprehensive account of their disparate venom proteomic profiles, biochemical and pharmacological effects, and the associated potencies. Our study uncovers alarming differences in the efficacy of the marketed polyvalent antivenoms in neutralising these venoms, thereby, emphasising the pressing need to develop dose-efficacious and pan-India effective antivenoms for the treatment of snakebites in the country. This study also highlights the significant influence of ecology and diverse environments on the venom variability, insinuating the necessity for innovating cost-effective and pan-India efficacious solutions to safeguard the lives, limbs and livelihoods of India’s two hundred thousand annual snakebite victims.
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Affiliation(s)
- R. R. Senji Laxme
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Saurabh Attarde
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Suyog Khochare
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Vivek Suranse
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
| | - Gerard Martin
- The Liana Trust, Survey #1418/1419 Rathnapuri, Hunsur, Karnataka, India
| | - Nicholas R. Casewell
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Romulus Whitaker
- Madras Crocodile Bank Trust/Centre for Herpetology, Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab. Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
- * E-mail:
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Sunagar K, Abraham SV. The Curious Case of the "Neurotoxic Skink": Scientific Literature Points to the Absence of Venom in Scincidae. Toxins (Basel) 2021; 13:toxins13020114. [PMID: 33546362 PMCID: PMC7913497 DOI: 10.3390/toxins13020114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2020] [Revised: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 02/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
In contrast to the clearly documented evolution of venom in many animal lineages, the origin of reptilian venom is highly debated. Historically, venom has been theorised to have evolved independently in snakes and lizards. However, some of the recent works have argued for the common origin of venom in “Toxicofera” reptiles, which include the order Serpentes (all snakes), and Anguimorpha and Iguania lizards. Nevertheless, in both these contrasting hypotheses, the lizards of the family Scincidae are considered to be harmless and devoid of toxic venoms. Interestingly, an unusual clinical case claiming neurotoxic envenoming by a scincid lizard was recently reported in Southern India. Considering its potentially significant medicolegal, conservation and evolutionary implications, we have summarised the scientific evidence that questions the validity of this clinical report. We argue that the symptoms documented in the patient are likely to have resulted from krait envenomation, which is far too frequent in these regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India
- Correspondence:
| | - Siju V Abraham
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Jubilee Mission Medical College and Research Institute, Thrissur 680005, Kerala, India;
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Sunagar K, Khochare S, Senji Laxme RR, Attarde S, Dam P, Suranse V, Khaire A, Martin G, Captain A. A Wolf in Another Wolf's Clothing: Post-Genomic Regulation Dictates Venom Profiles of Medically-Important Cryptic Kraits in India. Toxins (Basel) 2021; 13:toxins13010069. [PMID: 33477742 PMCID: PMC7832344 DOI: 10.3390/toxins13010069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2020] [Revised: 12/30/2020] [Accepted: 01/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The Common Krait (Bungarus caeruleus) shares a distribution range with many other ‘phenotypically-similar’ kraits across the Indian subcontinent. Despite several reports of fatal envenomings by other Bungarus species, commercial Indian antivenoms are only manufactured against B. caeruleus. It is, therefore, imperative to understand the distribution of genetically distinct lineages of kraits, the compositional differences in their venoms, and the consequent impact of venom variation on the (pre)clinical effectiveness of antivenom therapy. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted phylogenetic and comparative venomics investigations of kraits in Southern and Western India. Phylogenetic reconstructions using mitochondrial markers revealed a new species of krait, Romulus’ krait (Bungarus romulusi sp. nov.), in Southern India. Additionally, we found that kraits with 17 mid-body dorsal scale rows in Western India do not represent a subspecies of the Sind Krait (B. sindanus walli) as previously believed, but are genetically very similar to B. sindanus in Pakistan. Furthermore, venom proteomics and comparative transcriptomics revealed completely contrasting venom profiles. While the venom gland transcriptomes of all three species were highly similar, venom proteomes and toxicity profiles differed significantly, suggesting the prominent role of post-genomic regulatory mechanisms in shaping the venoms of these cryptic kraits. In vitro venom recognition and in vivo neutralisation experiments revealed a strong negative impact of venom variability on the preclinical performance of commercial antivenoms. While the venom of B. caeruleus was neutralised as per the manufacturer’s claim, performance against the venoms of B. sindanus and B. romulusi was poor, highlighting the need for regionally-effective antivenoms in India.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.K.); (R.R.S.L.); (S.A.); (P.D.); (V.S.)
- Correspondence:
| | - Suyog Khochare
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.K.); (R.R.S.L.); (S.A.); (P.D.); (V.S.)
| | - R. R. Senji Laxme
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.K.); (R.R.S.L.); (S.A.); (P.D.); (V.S.)
| | - Saurabh Attarde
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.K.); (R.R.S.L.); (S.A.); (P.D.); (V.S.)
| | - Paulomi Dam
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.K.); (R.R.S.L.); (S.A.); (P.D.); (V.S.)
| | - Vivek Suranse
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India; (S.K.); (R.R.S.L.); (S.A.); (P.D.); (V.S.)
| | - Anil Khaire
- Indian Herpetological Society, 7/47, Pune Satara Road, Pune 411009, Maharashtra, India;
| | - Gerard Martin
- The Liana Trust, Survey #1418/1419 Rathnapuri, Hunsur 571189, Karnataka, India;
| | - Ashok Captain
- 3/1 Boat Club Road, Pune 411001, Maharashtra, India;
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Casewell NR, Jackson TNW, Laustsen AH, Sunagar K. Causes and Consequences of Snake Venom Variation. Trends Pharmacol Sci 2020; 41:570-581. [PMID: 32564899 PMCID: PMC7116101 DOI: 10.1016/j.tips.2020.05.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 157] [Impact Index Per Article: 39.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2020] [Revised: 05/25/2020] [Accepted: 05/31/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Snake venoms are mixtures of toxins that vary extensively between and within snake species. This variability has serious consequences for the management of the world’s 1.8 million annual snakebite victims. Advances in ‘omic’ technologies have empowered toxinologists to comprehensively characterize snake venom compositions, unravel the molecular mechanisms that underpin venom variation, and elucidate the ensuing functional consequences. In this review, we describe how such mechanistic processes have resulted in suites of toxin isoforms that cause diverse pathologies in human snakebite victims and we detail how variation in venom composition can result in treatment failure. Finally, we outline current therapeutic approaches designed to circumvent venom variation and deliver next-generation treatments for the world’s most lethal neglected tropical disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas R Casewell
- Centre for Snakebite Research and Interventions, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, Liverpool, L3 5QA, UK.
| | - Timothy N W Jackson
- Australian Venom Research Unit, Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Andreas H Laustsen
- Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, DK-2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Laboratory, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore 560012, Karnataka, India
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Modica MV, Sunagar K, Holford M, Dutertre S. Editorial: Diversity and Evolution of Animal Venoms: Neglected Targets, Ecological Interactions, Future Perspectives. Front Ecol Evol 2020. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2020.00065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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Casewell NR, Petras D, Card DC, Suranse V, Mychajliw AM, Richards D, Koludarov I, Albulescu LO, Slagboom J, Hempel BF, Ngum NM, Kennerley RJ, Brocca JL, Whiteley G, Harrison RA, Bolton FMS, Debono J, Vonk FJ, Alföldi J, Johnson J, Karlsson EK, Lindblad-Toh K, Mellor IR, Süssmuth RD, Fry BG, Kuruppu S, Hodgson WC, Kool J, Castoe TA, Barnes I, Sunagar K, Undheim EAB, Turvey ST. Solenodon genome reveals convergent evolution of venom in eulipotyphlan mammals. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2019; 116:25745-25755. [PMID: 31772017 PMCID: PMC6926037 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1906117116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Venom systems are key adaptations that have evolved throughout the tree of life and typically facilitate predation or defense. Despite venoms being model systems for studying a variety of evolutionary and physiological processes, many taxonomic groups remain understudied, including venomous mammals. Within the order Eulipotyphla, multiple shrew species and solenodons have oral venom systems. Despite morphological variation of their delivery systems, it remains unclear whether venom represents the ancestral state in this group or is the result of multiple independent origins. We investigated the origin and evolution of venom in eulipotyphlans by characterizing the venom system of the endangered Hispaniolan solenodon (Solenodon paradoxus). We constructed a genome to underpin proteomic identifications of solenodon venom toxins, before undertaking evolutionary analyses of those constituents, and functional assessments of the secreted venom. Our findings show that solenodon venom consists of multiple paralogous kallikrein 1 (KLK1) serine proteases, which cause hypotensive effects in vivo, and seem likely to have evolved to facilitate vertebrate prey capture. Comparative analyses provide convincing evidence that the oral venom systems of solenodons and shrews have evolved convergently, with the 4 independent origins of venom in eulipotyphlans outnumbering all other venom origins in mammals. We find that KLK1s have been independently coopted into the venom of shrews and solenodons following their divergence during the late Cretaceous, suggesting that evolutionary constraints may be acting on these genes. Consequently, our findings represent a striking example of convergent molecular evolution and demonstrate that distinct structural backgrounds can yield equivalent functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas R Casewell
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, L3 5QA Liverpool, United Kingdom;
| | - Daniel Petras
- Institut für Chemie, Technische Universität Berlin, 10623 Berlin, Germany
- Collaborative Mass Spectrometry Innovation Center, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093
| | - Daren C Card
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76010
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138
- Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138
| | - Vivek Suranse
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, 560012 Bangalore, India
| | - Alexis M Mychajliw
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
- Department of Rancho La Brea, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA 90036
- Institute of Low Temperature Science, Hokkaido University, 060-0819 Sapporo, Japan
| | - David Richards
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, University Park, NG7 2RD Nottingham, United Kingdom
- Biomedical Research Centre, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, NR4 7TJ Norwich, United Kingdom
| | - Ivan Koludarov
- Ecology and Evolution Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, Onna, Kunigami-gun, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan
| | - Laura-Oana Albulescu
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, L3 5QA Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Julien Slagboom
- Division of BioAnalytical Chemistry, Amsterdam Institute of Molecules, Medicines and Systems, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 LA Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | - Neville M Ngum
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, University Park, NG7 2RD Nottingham, United Kingdom
| | - Rosalind J Kennerley
- Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, Les Augrès Manor, Trinity, Jersey JE3 5BP, British Channel Islands, United Kingdom
| | - Jorge L Brocca
- SOH Conservación, Apto. 401 Residencial Las Galerías, Santo Domingo, 10130, Dominican Republic
| | - Gareth Whiteley
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, L3 5QA Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Robert A Harrison
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, L3 5QA Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Fiona M S Bolton
- Centre for Snakebite Research & Interventions, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, L3 5QA Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Jordan Debono
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, QLD 4067, Australia
| | - Freek J Vonk
- Naturalis Biodiversity Center, 2333 CR Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Jessica Alföldi
- Vertebrate Genomics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142
| | - Jeremy Johnson
- Vertebrate Genomics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142
| | - Elinor K Karlsson
- Vertebrate Genomics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Program in Bioinformatics and Integrative Biology, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01655
| | - Kerstin Lindblad-Toh
- Vertebrate Genomics, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142
- Science for Life Laboratory, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Uppsala University, 751 23 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Ian R Mellor
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nottingham, University Park, NG7 2RD Nottingham, United Kingdom
| | | | - Bryan G Fry
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, QLD 4067, Australia
| | - Sanjaya Kuruppu
- Monash Venom Group, Department of Pharmacology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, VIC 3800, Australia
- Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, VIC 3800, Australia
| | - Wayne C Hodgson
- Monash Venom Group, Department of Pharmacology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, VIC 3800, Australia
| | - Jeroen Kool
- Division of BioAnalytical Chemistry, Amsterdam Institute of Molecules, Medicines and Systems, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, 1081 LA Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Todd A Castoe
- Department of Biology, University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX 76010
| | - Ian Barnes
- Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, SW7 5BD London, United Kingdom
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, 560012 Bangalore, India
| | - Eivind A B Undheim
- Centre for Advanced Imaging, The University of Queensland, Brisbane QLD 4072, Australia
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane QLD 4072, Australia
- Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Oslo 0316, Norway
| | - Samuel T Turvey
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, Regent's Park, NW1 4RY London, United Kingdom
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Shenkar YY, Sachkova M, Macrander J, Fridrich A, Sunagar K, Reitzel A, Moran Y. Applying systems biology and genomic manipulation approaches for characterizing the dynamics and complexity of venom production in a cnidarian. Toxicon 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2018.11.321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Sachkova MY, Columbus-Shenkar YY, Fridrich A, Modepalli V, Sunagar K, Moran Y. Starlet sea anemone venom: Dynamics across the life cycle. Toxicon 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2018.10.131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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Sunagar K, Columbus-Shenkar YY, Fridrich A, Gutkovich N, Aharoni R, Moran Y. Cell type-specific expression profiling unravels the development and evolution of stinging cells in sea anemone. BMC Biol 2018; 16:108. [PMID: 30261880 PMCID: PMC6161364 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-018-0578-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2018] [Accepted: 09/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Cnidocytes are specialized cells that define the phylum Cnidaria. They possess an “explosive” organelle called cnidocyst that is important for prey capture and anti-predator defense. An extraordinary morphological and functional complexity of the cnidocysts has inspired numerous studies to investigate their structure and development. However, the transcriptomes of the cells bearing these unique organelles are yet to be characterized, impeding our understanding of the genetic basis of their biogenesis. Results In this study, we generated a nematocyte reporter transgenic line of the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis using the CRISPR/Cas9 system. By using a fluorescence-activated cell sorter (FACS), we have characterized cell type-specific transcriptomic profiles of various stages of cnidocyte maturation and showed that nematogenesis (the formation of functional cnidocysts) is underpinned by dramatic shifts in the spatiotemporal gene expression. Among the genes identified as upregulated in cnidocytes were Cnido-Jun and Cnido-Fos1—cnidarian-specific paralogs of the highly conserved c-Jun and c-Fos proteins of the stress-induced AP-1 transcriptional complex. The knockdown of the cnidocyte-specific c-Jun homolog by microinjection of morpholino antisense oligomer results in disruption of normal nematogenesis. Conclusions Here, we show that the majority of upregulated genes and enriched biochemical pathways specific to cnidocytes are uncharacterized, emphasizing the need for further functional research on nematogenesis. The recruitment of the metazoan stress-related transcription factor c-Fos/c-Jun complex into nematogenesis highlights the evolutionary ingenuity and novelty associated with the formation of these highly complex, enigmatic, and phyletically unique organelles. Thus, we provide novel insights into the biology, development, and evolution of cnidocytes. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12915-018-0578-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartik Sunagar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 9190401, Jerusalem, Israel. .,Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, 560012, India.
| | - Yaara Y Columbus-Shenkar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 9190401, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Arie Fridrich
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 9190401, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Nadya Gutkovich
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 9190401, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Reuven Aharoni
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 9190401, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Yehu Moran
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, 9190401, Jerusalem, Israel.
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Baumann K, Dashevsky D, Sunagar K, Fry B. Scratching the Surface of an Itch: Molecular Evolution of Aculeata Venom Allergens. J Mol Evol 2018; 86:484-500. [DOI: 10.1007/s00239-018-9860-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2018] [Accepted: 07/24/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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Columbus-Shenkar YY, Sachkova MY, Fridrich A, Modepalli V, Sunagar K, Moran Y. Dynamics of venom composition across a complex life cycle are revealed by the study of a model sea anemone. Toxicon 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2018.02.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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Columbus-Shenkar YY, Sachkova MY, Macrander J, Fridrich A, Modepalli V, Reitzel AM, Sunagar K, Moran Y. Dynamics of venom composition across a complex life cycle. eLife 2018; 7:35014. [PMID: 29424690 PMCID: PMC5832418 DOI: 10.7554/elife.35014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2018] [Accepted: 02/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Little is known about venom in young developmental stages of animals. The appearance of toxins and stinging cells during early embryonic stages in the sea anemone Nematostella vectensis suggests that venom is already expressed in eggs and larvae of this species. Here, we harness transcriptomic, biochemical and transgenic tools to study venom production dynamics in Nematostella. We find that venom composition and arsenal of toxin-producing cells change dramatically between developmental stages of this species. These findings can be explained by the vastly different interspecific interactions of each life stage, as individuals develop from a miniature non-feeding mobile planula to a larger sessile polyp that predates on other animals and interact differently with predators. Indeed, behavioral assays involving prey, predators and Nematostella are consistent with this hypothesis. Further, the results of this work suggest a much wider and dynamic venom landscape than initially appreciated in animals with a complex life cycle. Some animals produce a mixture of toxins, commonly known as venom, to protect themselves from predators and catch prey. Cnidarians – a group of animals that includes sea anemones, jellyfish and corals – have stinging cells on their tentacles that inject venom into the animals they touch. The sea anemone Nematostella goes through a complex life cycle. Nematostella start out life in eggs. They then become swimming larvae, barely visible to the naked eye, that do not feed. Adult Nematostella are cylindrical, stationary ‘polyps’ that are several inches long. They use tentacles at the end of their tube-like bodies to capture small aquatic animals. Sea anemones therefore change how they interact with predators and prey at different stages of their life. Most research on venomous animals focuses on adults, so until now it was not clear whether the venom changes along their maturation. Columbus-Shenkar, Sachkova et al. genetically modified Nematostella so that the cells that produce distinct venom components were labeled with different fluorescent markers. The composition of the venom could then be linked to how the anemones interacted with their fish and shrimp predators at each life stage. The results of the experiments showed that Nematostella mothers pass on a toxin to their eggs that makes them unpalatable to predators. Larvae then produce high levels of other toxins that allow them to incapacitate or kill potential predators. Adults have a different mix of toxins that likely help them capture prey. Venom is often studied because the compounds it contains have the potential to be developed into new drugs. The jellyfish and coral relatives of Nematostella may also produce different venoms at different life stages. This means that there are likely to be many toxins that we have not yet identified in these animals. As some jellyfish venoms are very active on humans and reef corals have a pivotal role in ocean ecology, further research into the venoms produced at different life stages could help us to understand and preserve marine ecosystems, as well as having medical benefits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yaara Y Columbus-Shenkar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Maria Y Sachkova
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Jason Macrander
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, United States
| | - Arie Fridrich
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Vengamanaidu Modepalli
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Adam M Reitzel
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, United States
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.,Evolutionary Venomics Lab, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
| | - Yehu Moran
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
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Sunagar K, Moran Y. The Rise and Fall of an Evolutionary Innovation: Contrasting Strategies of Venom Evolution in Ancient and Young Animals. PLoS Genet 2015; 11:e1005596. [PMID: 26492532 PMCID: PMC4619613 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1005596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2015] [Accepted: 09/18/2015] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Animal venoms are theorized to evolve under the significant influence of positive Darwinian selection in a chemical arms race scenario, where the evolution of venom resistance in prey and the invention of potent venom in the secreting animal exert reciprocal selection pressures. Venom research to date has mainly focused on evolutionarily younger lineages, such as snakes and cone snails, while mostly neglecting ancient clades (e.g., cnidarians, coleoids, spiders and centipedes). By examining genome, venom-gland transcriptome and sequences from the public repositories, we report the molecular evolutionary regimes of several centipede and spider toxin families, which surprisingly accumulated low-levels of sequence variations, despite their long evolutionary histories. Molecular evolutionary assessment of over 3500 nucleotide sequences from 85 toxin families spanning the breadth of the animal kingdom has unraveled a contrasting evolutionary strategy employed by ancient and evolutionarily young clades. We show that the venoms of ancient lineages remarkably evolve under the heavy constraints of negative selection, while toxin families in lineages that originated relatively recently rapidly diversify under the influence of positive selection. We propose that animal venoms mostly employ a ‘two-speed’ mode of evolution, where the major influence of diversifying selection accompanies the earlier stages of ecological specialization (e.g., diet and range expansion) in the evolutionary history of the species–the period of expansion, resulting in the rapid diversification of the venom arsenal, followed by longer periods of purifying selection that preserve the potent toxin pharmacopeia–the period of purification and fixation. However, species in the period of purification may re-enter the period of expansion upon experiencing a major shift in ecology or environment. Thus, we highlight for the first time the significant roles of purifying and episodic selections in shaping animal venoms. While the influence of positive selection in diversifying animal venoms is widely recognized, the role of purifying selection that conserves the amino acid sequence of venom components such as peptide toxins has never been considered. In addition to unraveling the unique strategies of evolution of toxin gene families in centipedes and spiders, which are amongst the first terrestrial venomous lineages, we highlight the significant role of purifying selection in shaping the composition of animal venoms. Analysis of numerous toxin families, spanning the breadth of the animal kingdom, has revealed a striking contrast between the evolution of venom in ancient and evolutionarily young animal groups. Our findings enable the postulation of a new theory of venom evolution. The proposed ‘two-speed’ mode of evolution of venom captures the fascinating evolutionary history and the dynamics of this complex biochemical cocktail.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartik Sunagar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, The Alexander Silberman Institute for Life Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- * E-mail: (KS); (YM)
| | - Yehu Moran
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, The Alexander Silberman Institute for Life Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- * E-mail: (KS); (YM)
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Ujvari B, Casewell NR, Sunagar K, Arbuckle K, Wüster W, Lo N, O'Meally D, Beckmann C, King GF, Deplazes E, Madsen T. Widespread convergence in toxin resistance by predictable molecular evolution. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2015; 112:11911-6. [PMID: 26372961 PMCID: PMC4586833 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1511706112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 114] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The question about whether evolution is unpredictable and stochastic or intermittently constrained along predictable pathways is the subject of a fundamental debate in biology, in which understanding convergent evolution plays a central role. At the molecular level, documented examples of convergence are rare and limited to occurring within specific taxonomic groups. Here we provide evidence of constrained convergent molecular evolution across the metazoan tree of life. We show that resistance to toxic cardiac glycosides produced by plants and bufonid toads is mediated by similar molecular changes to the sodium-potassium-pump (Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase) in insects, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals. In toad-feeding reptiles, resistance is conferred by two point mutations that have evolved convergently on four occasions, whereas evidence of a molecular reversal back to the susceptible state in varanid lizards migrating to toad-free areas suggests that toxin resistance is maladaptive in the absence of selection. Importantly, resistance in all taxa is mediated by replacements of 2 of the 12 amino acids comprising the Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase H1-H2 extracellular domain that constitutes a core part of the cardiac glycoside binding site. We provide mechanistic insight into the basis of resistance by showing that these alterations perturb the interaction between the cardiac glycoside bufalin and the Na(+)/K(+)-ATPase. Thus, similar selection pressures have resulted in convergent evolution of the same molecular solution across the breadth of the animal kingdom, demonstrating how a scarcity of possible solutions to a selective challenge can lead to highly predictable evolutionary responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Beata Ujvari
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC 3216, Australia; Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Nicholas R Casewell
- Alistair Reid Venom Research Unit, Department of Parasitology, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool L3 5QA, United Kingdom;
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, The Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | - Kevin Arbuckle
- Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZB, United Kingdom
| | - Wolfgang Wüster
- Molecular Ecology and Fisheries Genetics Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, Bangor University, Bangor LL57 2UW, United Kingdom
| | - Nathan Lo
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia
| | - Denis O'Meally
- Institute for Applied Ecology, University of Canberra, Bruce, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Christa Beckmann
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC 3216, Australia
| | - Glenn F King
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Evelyne Deplazes
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Thomas Madsen
- Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC 3216, Australia; School of Molecular Biosciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia; School of Biological Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW 2522, Australia
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Sunagar K, Morgenstern D, Reitzel AM, Moran Y. Ecological venomics: How genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics can shed new light on the ecology and evolution of venom. J Proteomics 2015; 135:62-72. [PMID: 26385003 DOI: 10.1016/j.jprot.2015.09.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2015] [Revised: 09/02/2015] [Accepted: 09/09/2015] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Animal venom is a complex cocktail of bioactive chemicals that traditionally drew interest mostly from biochemists and pharmacologists. However, in recent years the evolutionary and ecological importance of venom is realized as this trait has direct and strong influence on interactions between species. Moreover, venom content can be modulated by environmental factors. Like many other fields of biology, venom research has been revolutionized in recent years by the introduction of systems biology approaches, i.e., genomics, transcriptomics and proteomics. The employment of these methods in venom research is known as 'venomics'. In this review we describe the history and recent advancements of venomics and discuss how they are employed in studying venom in general and in particular in the context of evolutionary ecology. We also discuss the pitfalls and challenges of venomics and what the future may hold for this emerging scientific field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartik Sunagar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | - David Morgenstern
- Proteomics Resource Center, Langone Medical Center, New York University, New York, USA.
| | - Adam M Reitzel
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, Charlotte, NC 28223, USA
| | - Yehu Moran
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel.
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Jouiaei M, Sunagar K, Federman Gross A, Scheib H, Alewood PF, Moran Y, Fry BG. Evolution of an ancient venom: recognition of a novel family of cnidarian toxins and the common evolutionary origin of sodium and potassium neurotoxins in sea anemone. Mol Biol Evol 2015; 32:1598-610. [PMID: 25757852 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msv050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite Cnidaria (sea anemones, corals, jellyfish, and hydroids) being the oldest venomous animal lineage, structure-function relationships, phyletic distributions, and the molecular evolutionary regimes of toxins encoded by these intriguing animals are poorly understood. Hence, we have comprehensively elucidated the phylogenetic and molecular evolutionary histories of pharmacologically characterized cnidarian toxin families, including peptide neurotoxins (voltage-gated Na(+) and K(+) channel-targeting toxins: NaTxs and KTxs, respectively), pore-forming toxins (actinoporins, aerolysin-related toxins, and jellyfish toxins), and the newly discovered small cysteine-rich peptides (SCRiPs). We show that despite long evolutionary histories, most cnidarian toxins remain conserved under the strong influence of negative selection-a finding that is in striking contrast to the rapid evolution of toxin families in evolutionarily younger lineages, such as cone snails and advanced snakes. In contrast to the previous suggestions that implicated SCRiPs in the biomineralization process in corals, we demonstrate that they are potent neurotoxins that are likely involved in the envenoming function, and thus represent the first family of neurotoxins from corals. We also demonstrate the common evolutionary origin of type III KTxs and NaTxs in sea anemones. We show that type III KTxs have evolved from NaTxs under the regime of positive selection, and likely represent a unique evolutionary innovation of the Actinioidea lineage. We report a correlation between the accumulation of episodically adaptive sites and the emergence of novel pharmacological activities in this rapidly evolving neurotoxic clade.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahdokht Jouiaei
- Venom Evolution Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, The Alexander Silberman Institute for Life Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Aya Federman Gross
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Holger Scheib
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia
| | - Paul F Alewood
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia
| | - Yehu Moran
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, The Alexander Silberman Institute for Life Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Bryan G Fry
- Venom Evolution Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia
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Fry BG, Koludarov I, Jackson TN, Holford M, Terrat Y, Casewell NR, Undheim EAB, Vetter I, Ali SA, Low DHW, Sunagar K. CHAPTER 1. Seeing the Woods for the Trees: Understanding Venom Evolution as a Guide for Biodiscovery. Drug Discovery 2015. [DOI: 10.1039/9781849737876-00001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
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Koludarov I, Jackson TNW, Sunagar K, Nouwens A, Hendrikx I, Fry BG. Fossilized venom: the unusually conserved venom profiles of Heloderma species (beaded lizards and gila monsters). Toxins (Basel) 2014; 6:3582-95. [PMID: 25533521 PMCID: PMC4280549 DOI: 10.3390/toxins6123582] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2014] [Revised: 12/17/2014] [Accepted: 12/18/2014] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Research into snake venoms has revealed extensive variation at all taxonomic levels. Lizard venoms, however, have received scant research attention in general, and no studies of intraclade variation in lizard venom composition have been attempted to date. Despite their iconic status and proven usefulness in drug design and discovery, highly venomous helodermatid lizards (gila monsters and beaded lizards) have remained neglected by toxinological research. Proteomic comparisons of venoms of three helodermatid lizards in this study has unravelled an unusual similarity in venom-composition, despite the long evolutionary time (~30 million years) separating H. suspectum from the other two species included in this study (H. exasperatum and H. horridum). Moreover, several genes encoding the major helodermatid toxins appeared to be extremely well-conserved under the influence of negative selection (but with these results regarded as preliminary due to the scarcity of available sequences). While the feeding ecologies of all species of helodermatid lizard are broadly similar, there are significant morphological differences between species, which impact upon relative niche occupation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivan Koludarov
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, the University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.
| | - Timothy N W Jackson
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, the University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, the Alexander Silberman Institute for Life Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel.
| | - Amanda Nouwens
- School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.
| | - Iwan Hendrikx
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, the University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.
| | - Bryan G Fry
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, the University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.
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Mondol S, Kumar NS, Gopalaswamy A, Sunagar K, Karanth KU, Ramakrishnan U. Identifying species, sex and individual tigers and leopards in the Malenad-Mysore Tiger Landscape, Western Ghats, India. CONSERV GENET RESOUR 2014. [DOI: 10.1007/s12686-014-0371-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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Maldonado E, Sunagar K, Almeida D, Vasconcelos V, Antunes A. IMPACT_S: integrated multiprogram platform to analyze and combine tests of selection. PLoS One 2014; 9:e96243. [PMID: 25329307 PMCID: PMC4203653 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0096243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2013] [Accepted: 04/04/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Among the major goals of research in evolutionary biology are the identification of genes targeted by natural selection and understanding how various regimes of evolution affect the fitness of an organism. In particular, adaptive evolution enables organisms to adapt to changing ecological factors such as diet, temperature, habitat, predatory pressures and prey abundance. An integrative approach is crucial for the identification of non-synonymous mutations that introduce radical changes in protein biochemistry and thus in turn influence the structure and function of proteins. Performing such analyses manually is often a time-consuming process, due to the large number of statistical files generated from multiple approaches, especially when assessing numerous taxa and/or large datasets. We present IMPACT_S, an easy-to-use Graphical User Interface (GUI) software, which rapidly and effectively integrates, filters and combines results from three widely used programs for assessing the influence of selection: Codeml (PAML package), Datamonkey and TreeSAAP. It enables the identification and tabulation of sites detected by these programs as evolving under the influence of positive, neutral and/or negative selection in protein-coding genes. IMPACT_S further facilitates the automatic mapping of these sites onto the three-dimensional structures of proteins. Other useful tools incorporated in IMPACT_S include Jmol, Archaeopteryx, Gnuplot, PhyML, a built-in Swiss-Model interface and a PDB downloader. The relevance and functionality of IMPACT_S is shown through a case study on the toxicoferan-reptilian Cysteine-rich Secretory Proteins (CRiSPs). IMPACT_S is a platform-independent software released under GPLv3 license, freely available online from http://impact-s.sourceforge.net.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emanuel Maldonado
- CIIMAR/CIMAR – Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- CIIMAR/CIMAR – Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Daniela Almeida
- CIIMAR/CIMAR – Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Vitor Vasconcelos
- CIIMAR/CIMAR – Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Agostinho Antunes
- CIIMAR/CIMAR – Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
- * E-mail:
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Dutertre S, Jin AH, Vetter I, Hamilton B, Sunagar K, Lavergne V, Dutertre V, Fry BG, Antunes A, Venter DJ, Alewood PF, Lewis RJ. Evolution of separate predation- and defence-evoked venoms in carnivorous cone snails. Nat Commun 2014; 5:3521. [PMID: 24662800 PMCID: PMC3973120 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms4521] [Citation(s) in RCA: 219] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2013] [Accepted: 02/26/2014] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Venomous animals are thought to inject the same combination of toxins for both predation and defence, presumably exploiting conserved target pharmacology across prey and predators. Remarkably, cone snails can rapidly switch between distinct venoms in response to predatory or defensive stimuli. Here, we show that the defence-evoked venom of Conus geographus contains high levels of paralytic toxins that potently block neuromuscular receptors, consistent with its lethal effects on humans. In contrast, C. geographus predation-evoked venom contains prey-specific toxins mostly inactive at human targets. Predation- and defence-evoked venoms originate from the distal and proximal regions of the venom duct, respectively, explaining how different stimuli can generate two distinct venoms. A specialized defensive envenomation strategy is widely evolved across worm, mollusk and fish-hunting cone snails. We propose that defensive toxins, originally evolved in ancestral worm-hunting cone snails to protect against cephalopod and fish predation, have been repurposed in predatory venoms to facilitate diversification to fish and mollusk diets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sébastien Dutertre
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072 Queensland, Australia
- Institut des Biomolécules Max Mousseron, UMR 5247, Université Montpellier 2—CNRS, Place Eugène Bataillon, Montpellier Cedex 5 34095, France
| | - Ai-Hua Jin
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072 Queensland, Australia
| | - Irina Vetter
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072 Queensland, Australia
- School of Pharmacy, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4102 Queensland, Australia
| | - Brett Hamilton
- Pathology Department, and Mater Research Institute, Mater Health Services, South Brisbane, 4101 Queensland, Australia
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Rua dos Bragas, 177, Porto 4050-123, Portugal
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, Porto 4169-007, Portugal
| | - Vincent Lavergne
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072 Queensland, Australia
| | - Valentin Dutertre
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072 Queensland, Australia
| | - Bryan G. Fry
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072 Queensland, Australia
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072 Queensland, Australia
| | - Agostinho Antunes
- CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Rua dos Bragas, 177, Porto 4050-123, Portugal
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, Porto 4169-007, Portugal
| | - Deon J. Venter
- Pathology Department, and Mater Research Institute, Mater Health Services, South Brisbane, 4101 Queensland, Australia
- Department of Medicine, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072 Queensland, Australia
| | - Paul F. Alewood
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072 Queensland, Australia
| | - Richard J. Lewis
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, 4072 Queensland, Australia
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Pineda SS, Sollod BL, Wilson D, Darling A, Sunagar K, Undheim EAB, Kely L, Antunes A, Fry BG, King GF. Diversification of a single ancestral gene into a successful toxin superfamily in highly venomous Australian funnel-web spiders. BMC Genomics 2014; 15:177. [PMID: 24593665 PMCID: PMC4029134 DOI: 10.1186/1471-2164-15-177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2013] [Accepted: 02/26/2014] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Spiders have evolved pharmacologically complex venoms that serve to rapidly subdue prey and deter predators. The major toxic factors in most spider venoms are small, disulfide-rich peptides. While there is abundant evidence that snake venoms evolved by recruitment of genes encoding normal body proteins followed by extensive gene duplication accompanied by explosive structural and functional diversification, the evolutionary trajectory of spider-venom peptides is less clear. RESULTS Here we present evidence of a spider-toxin superfamily encoding a high degree of sequence and functional diversity that has evolved via accelerated duplication and diversification of a single ancestral gene. The peptides within this toxin superfamily are translated as prepropeptides that are posttranslationally processed to yield the mature toxin. The N-terminal signal sequence, as well as the protease recognition site at the junction of the propeptide and mature toxin are conserved, whereas the remainder of the propeptide and mature toxin sequences are variable. All toxin transcripts within this superfamily exhibit a striking cysteine codon bias. We show that different pharmacological classes of toxins within this peptide superfamily evolved under different evolutionary selection pressures. CONCLUSIONS Overall, this study reinforces the hypothesis that spiders use a combinatorial peptide library strategy to evolve a complex cocktail of peptide toxins that target neuronal receptors and ion channels in prey and predators. We show that the ω-hexatoxins that target insect voltage-gated calcium channels evolved under the influence of positive Darwinian selection in an episodic fashion, whereas the κ-hexatoxins that target insect calcium-activated potassium channels appear to be under negative selection. A majority of the diversifying sites in the ω-hexatoxins are concentrated on the molecular surface of the toxins, thereby facilitating neofunctionalisation leading to new toxin pharmacology.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Bryan G Fry
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, 306 Carmody Road, St Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia.
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Sunagar K, Undheim EAB, Scheib H, Gren ECK, Cochran C, Person CE, Koludarov I, Kelln W, Hayes WK, King GF, Antunes A, Fry BG. Intraspecific venom variation in the medically significant Southern Pacific Rattlesnake (Crotalus oreganus helleri): biodiscovery, clinical and evolutionary implications. J Proteomics 2014; 99:68-83. [PMID: 24463169 DOI: 10.1016/j.jprot.2014.01.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2013] [Revised: 01/11/2014] [Accepted: 01/13/2014] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
UNLABELLED Due to the extreme variation of venom, which consequently results in drastically variable degrees of neutralization by CroFab antivenom, the management and treatment of envenoming by Crotalus oreganus helleri (the Southern Pacific Rattlesnake), one of the most medically significant snake species in all of North America, has been a clinician's nightmare. This snake has also been the subject of sensational news stories regarding supposed rapid (within the last few decades) evolution of its venom. This research demonstrates for the first time that variable evolutionary selection pressures sculpt the intraspecific molecular diversity of venom components in C. o. helleri. We show that myotoxic β-defensin peptides (aka: crotamines/small basic myotoxic peptides) are secreted in large amounts by all populations. However, the mature toxin-encoding nucleotide regions evolve under the constraints of negative selection, likely as a result of their non-specific mode of action which doesn't enforce them to follow the regime of the classic predator-prey chemical arms race. The hemorrhagic and tissue destroying snake venom metalloproteinases (SVMPs) were secreted in larger amounts by the Catalina Island and Phelan rattlesnake populations, in moderate amounts in the Loma Linda population and in only trace levels by the Idyllwild population. Only the Idyllwild population in the San Jacinto Mountains contained potent presynaptic neurotoxic phospholipase A2 complex characteristic of Mohave Rattlesnake (Crotalus scutulatus) and Neotropical Rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus terrificus). The derived heterodimeric lectin toxins characteristic of viper venoms, which exhibit a diversity of biological activities, including anticoagulation, agonism/antagonism of platelet activation, or procoagulation, appear to have evolved under extremely variable selection pressures. While most lectin α- and β-chains evolved rapidly under the influence of positive Darwinian selection, the β-chain lectin of the Catalina Island population appears to have evolved under the constraint of negative selection. Both lectin chains were conspicuously absent in both the proteomics and transcriptomics of the Idyllwild population. Thus, we not only highlight the tremendous biochemical diversity in C. o. helleri's venom-arsenal, but we also show that they experience remarkably variable strengths of evolutionary selection pressures, within each toxin class among populations and among toxin classes within each population. The mapping of geographical venom variation not only provides additional information regarding venom evolution, but also has direct medical implications by allowing prediction of the clinical effects of rattlesnake bites from different regions. Such information, however, also points to these highly variable venoms as being a rich source of novel toxins which may ultimately prove to be useful in drug design and development. BIOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE These results have direct implications for the treatment of envenomed patients. The variable venom profile of Crotalus oreganus helleri underscores the biodiscovery potential of novel snake venoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartik Sunagar
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal; CIIMAR/CIMAR, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Rua dos Bragas 289, P 4050-123 Porto, Portugal
| | - Eivind A B Undheim
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia; Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
| | - Holger Scheib
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
| | - Eric C K Gren
- Department of Earth and Biological Sciences, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA 92350, USA
| | - Chip Cochran
- Department of Earth and Biological Sciences, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA 92350, USA
| | - Carl E Person
- Department of Earth and Biological Sciences, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA 92350, USA
| | - Ivan Koludarov
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia
| | - Wayne Kelln
- Department of Earth and Biological Sciences, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA 92350, USA
| | - William K Hayes
- Department of Earth and Biological Sciences, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA 92350, USA
| | - Glenn F King
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
| | - Agosthino Antunes
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal; CIIMAR/CIMAR, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Rua dos Bragas 289, P 4050-123 Porto, Portugal
| | - Bryan Grieg Fry
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia; Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia.
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Sunagar K, Undheim EAB, Chan AHC, Koludarov I, Muñoz-Gómez SA, Antunes A, Fry BG. Evolution stings: the origin and diversification of scorpion toxin peptide scaffolds. Toxins (Basel) 2013; 5:2456-87. [PMID: 24351712 PMCID: PMC3873696 DOI: 10.3390/toxins5122456] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2013] [Revised: 12/09/2013] [Accepted: 12/09/2013] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The episodic nature of natural selection and the accumulation of extreme sequence divergence in venom-encoding genes over long periods of evolutionary time can obscure the signature of positive Darwinian selection. Recognition of the true biocomplexity is further hampered by the limited taxon selection, with easy to obtain or medically important species typically being the subject of intense venom research, relative to the actual taxonomical diversity in nature. This holds true for scorpions, which are one of the most ancient terrestrial venomous animal lineages. The family Buthidae that includes all the medically significant species has been intensely investigated around the globe, while almost completely ignoring the remaining non-buthid families. Australian scorpion lineages, for instance, have been completely neglected, with only a single scorpion species (Urodacus yaschenkoi) having its venom transcriptome sequenced. Hence, the lack of venom composition and toxin sequence information from an entire continent’s worth of scorpions has impeded our understanding of the molecular evolution of scorpion venom. The molecular origin, phylogenetic relationships and evolutionary histories of most scorpion toxin scaffolds remain enigmatic. In this study, we have sequenced venom gland transcriptomes of a wide taxonomical diversity of scorpions from Australia, including buthid and non-buthid representatives. Using state-of-art molecular evolutionary analyses, we show that a majority of CSα/β toxin scaffolds have experienced episodic influence of positive selection, while most non-CSα/β linear toxins evolve under the extreme influence of negative selection. For the first time, we have unraveled the molecular origin of the major scorpion toxin scaffolds, such as scorpion venom single von Willebrand factor C-domain peptides (SV-SVC), inhibitor cystine knot (ICK), disulphide-directed beta-hairpin (DDH), bradykinin potentiating peptides (BPP), linear non-disulphide bridged peptides and antimicrobial peptides (AMP). We have thus demonstrated that even neglected lineages of scorpions are a rich pool of novel biochemical components, which have evolved over millions of years to target specific ion channels in prey animals, and as a result, possess tremendous implications in therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartik Sunagar
- CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Rua dos Bragas, 177, 4050-123 Porto, Portugal; E-Mails: (K.S.); (A.A.)
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007, Porto, Portugal
| | - Eivind A. B. Undheim
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (A.H.C.C.); (I.K.)
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
| | - Angelo H. C. Chan
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (A.H.C.C.); (I.K.)
| | - Ivan Koludarov
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (A.H.C.C.); (I.K.)
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
| | - Sergio A. Muñoz-Gómez
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Centre for Comparative Genomics and Evolutionary Bioinformatics, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada; E-Mail:
| | - Agostinho Antunes
- CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Rua dos Bragas, 177, 4050-123 Porto, Portugal; E-Mails: (K.S.); (A.A.)
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007, Porto, Portugal
| | - Bryan G. Fry
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (A.H.C.C.); (I.K.)
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
- Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: ; Tel.: +61-400-193-182
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Undheim EA, Sunagar K, Herzig V, Kely L, Low DH, Jackson TN, Jones A, Kurniawan N, King GF, Ali SA, Antunes A, Ruder T, Fry BG. A proteomics and transcriptomics investigation of the venom from the barychelid spider Trittame loki (brush-foot trapdoor). Toxins (Basel) 2013; 5:2488-503. [PMID: 24351713 PMCID: PMC3873697 DOI: 10.3390/toxins5122488] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2013] [Revised: 11/29/2013] [Accepted: 12/09/2013] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Although known for their potent venom and ability to prey upon both invertebrate and vertebrate species, the Barychelidae spider family has been entirely neglected by toxinologists. In striking contrast, the sister family Theraphosidae (commonly known as tarantulas), which last shared a most recent common ancestor with Barychelidae over 200 million years ago, has received much attention, accounting for 25% of all the described spider toxins while representing only 2% of all spider species. In this study, we evaluated for the first time the venom arsenal of a barychelid spider, Trittame loki, using transcriptomic, proteomic, and bioinformatic methods. The venom was revealed to be dominated by extremely diverse inhibitor cystine knot (ICK)/knottin peptides, accounting for 42 of the 46 full-length toxin precursors recovered in the transcriptomic sequencing. In addition to documenting differential rates of evolution adopted by different ICK/knottin toxin lineages, we discovered homologues with completely novel cysteine skeletal architecture. Moreover, acetylcholinesterase and neprilysin were revealed for the first time as part of the spider-venom arsenal and CAP (CRiSP/Allergen/PR-1) were identified for the first time in mygalomorph spider venoms. These results not only highlight the extent of venom diversification in this neglected ancient spider lineage, but also reinforce the idea that unique venomous lineages are rich pools of novel biomolecules that may have significant applied uses as therapeutics and/or insecticides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eivind A.B. Undheim
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (L.K.), (D.H.W.L.); (T.N.W.J.); (S.A.A.); (T.R.)
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (V.H.); (A.J.); (G.F.K.)
| | - Kartik Sunagar
- CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Rua dos Bragas 177, Porto 4050-123, Portugal; E-Mails: (K.S.); (A.A.)
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, Porto 4169-007, Portugal
| | - Volker Herzig
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (V.H.); (A.J.); (G.F.K.)
| | - Laurence Kely
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (L.K.), (D.H.W.L.); (T.N.W.J.); (S.A.A.); (T.R.)
| | - Dolyce H.W. Low
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (L.K.), (D.H.W.L.); (T.N.W.J.); (S.A.A.); (T.R.)
| | - Timothy N.W. Jackson
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (L.K.), (D.H.W.L.); (T.N.W.J.); (S.A.A.); (T.R.)
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (V.H.); (A.J.); (G.F.K.)
| | - Alun Jones
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (V.H.); (A.J.); (G.F.K.)
| | - Nyoman Kurniawan
- Centre for Advanced Imaging, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mail:
| | - Glenn F. King
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (V.H.); (A.J.); (G.F.K.)
| | - Syed A. Ali
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (L.K.), (D.H.W.L.); (T.N.W.J.); (S.A.A.); (T.R.)
- HEJ Research Institute of Chemistry, International Centre for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS), University of Karachi, Karachi-75270, Pakistan
| | - Agostino Antunes
- CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Rua dos Bragas 177, Porto 4050-123, Portugal; E-Mails: (K.S.); (A.A.)
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, Porto 4169-007, Portugal
| | - Tim Ruder
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (L.K.), (D.H.W.L.); (T.N.W.J.); (S.A.A.); (T.R.)
| | - Bryan G. Fry
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (E.A.B.U.); (L.K.), (D.H.W.L.); (T.N.W.J.); (S.A.A.); (T.R.)
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia; E-Mails: (V.H.); (A.J.); (G.F.K.)
- Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: ; Tel.: +61-400-193-182
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Sunagar K, Fry BG, Jackson TNW, Casewell NR, Undheim EAB, Vidal N, Ali SA, King GF, Vasudevan K, Vasconcelos V, Antunes A. Molecular evolution of vertebrate neurotrophins: co-option of the highly conserved nerve growth factor gene into the advanced snake venom arsenalf. PLoS One 2013; 8:e81827. [PMID: 24312363 PMCID: PMC3843689 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0081827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2013] [Accepted: 10/17/2013] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Neurotrophins are a diverse class of structurally related proteins, essential for neuronal development, survival, plasticity and regeneration. They are characterized by major family members, such as the nerve growth factors (NGF), brain-derived neurotrophic factors (BDNF) and neurotrophin-3 (NT-3), which have been demonstrated here to lack coding sequence variations and follow the regime of negative selection, highlighting their extremely important conserved role in vertebrate homeostasis. However, in stark contrast, venom NGF secreted as part of the chemical arsenal of the venomous advanced snake family Elapidae (and to a lesser extent Viperidae) have characteristics consistent with the typical accelerated molecular evolution of venom components. This includes a rapid rate of diversification under the significant influence of positive-selection, with the majority of positively-selected sites found in the secreted β-polypeptide chain (74%) and on the molecular surface of the protein (92%), while the core structural and functional residues remain highly constrained. Such focal mutagenesis generates active residues on the toxin molecular surface, which are capable of interacting with novel biological targets in prey to induce a myriad of pharmacological effects. We propose that caenophidian NGFs could participate in prey-envenoming by causing a massive release of chemical mediators from mast cells to mount inflammatory reactions and increase vascular permeability, thereby aiding the spread of other toxins and/or by acting as proapoptotic factors. Despite their presence in reptilian venom having been known for over 60 years, this is the first evidence that venom-secreted NGF follows the molecular evolutionary pattern of other venom components, and thus likely participates in prey-envenomation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartik Sunagar
- CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Bryan Grieg Fry
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queenland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia
| | - Timothy N. W. Jackson
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queenland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia
| | - Nicholas R. Casewell
- Molecular Ecology and Evolution Group, School of Biological Sciences, Bangor University, Bangor, United Kingdom
- Alistair Reid Venom Research Unit, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Eivind A. B. Undheim
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queenland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia
| | - Nicolas Vidal
- Département Systématique et Evolution, Service de Systématique Moléculaire, UMR 7138, Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France
| | - Syed A. Ali
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia
- HEJ Research Institute of Chemistry, International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS), University of Karachi, Karachi, Pakistan
| | - Glenn F. King
- Institute for Molecular Bioscience, University of Queenland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia
| | | | - Vitor Vasconcelos
- CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
| | - Agostinho Antunes
- CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
- * E-mail:
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Fry BG, Undheim EAB, Ali SA, Jackson TNW, Debono J, Scheib H, Ruder T, Morgenstern D, Cadwallader L, Whitehead D, Nabuurs R, van der Weerd L, Vidal N, Roelants K, Hendrikx I, Gonzalez SP, Koludarov I, Jones A, King GF, Antunes A, Sunagar K. Squeezers and leaf-cutters: differential diversification and degeneration of the venom system in toxicoferan reptiles. Mol Cell Proteomics 2013; 12:1881-99. [PMID: 23547263 PMCID: PMC3708173 DOI: 10.1074/mcp.m112.023143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2012] [Revised: 04/01/2013] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Although it has been established that all toxicoferan squamates share a common venomous ancestor, it has remained unclear whether the maxillary and mandibular venom glands are evolving on separate gene expression trajectories or if they remain under shared genetic control. We show that identical transcripts are simultaneously expressed not only in the mandibular and maxillary glands, but also in the enigmatic snake rictal gland. Toxin molecular frameworks recovered in this study were three-finger toxin (3FTx), CRiSP, crotamine (beta-defensin), cobra venom factor, cystatin, epididymal secretory protein, kunitz, L-amino acid oxidase, lectin, renin aspartate protease, veficolin, and vespryn. We also discovered a novel low-molecular weight disulfide bridged peptide class in pythonid snake glands. In the iguanian lizards, the most highly expressed are potentially antimicrobial in nature (crotamine (beta-defensin) and cystatin), with crotamine (beta-defensin) also the most diverse. However, a number of proteins characterized from anguimorph lizards and caenophidian snakes with hemotoxic or neurotoxic activities were recruited in the common toxicoferan ancestor and remain expressed, albeit in low levels, even in the iguanian lizards. In contrast, the henophidian snakes express 3FTx and lectin toxins as the dominant transcripts. Even in the constricting pythonid and boid snakes, where the glands are predominantly mucous-secreting, low-levels of toxin transcripts can be detected. Venom thus appears to play little role in feeding behavior of most iguanian lizards or the powerful constricting snakes, and the low levels of expression argue against a defensive role. However, clearly the incipient or secondarily atrophied venom systems of these taxa may be a source of novel compounds useful in drug design and discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bryan G Fry
- Venom Evolution Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia.
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Low DHW, Sunagar K, Undheim EAB, Ali SA, Alagon AC, Ruder T, Jackson TNW, Pineda Gonzalez S, King GF, Jones A, Antunes A, Fry BG. Dracula's children: molecular evolution of vampire bat venom. J Proteomics 2013; 89:95-111. [PMID: 23748026 DOI: 10.1016/j.jprot.2013.05.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2013] [Revised: 05/16/2013] [Accepted: 05/28/2013] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
UNLABELLED While vampire bat oral secretions have been the subject of intense research, efforts have concentrated only on two components: DSPA (Desmodus rotundus salivary plasminogen activator) and Draculin. The molecular evolutionary history of DSPA has been elucidated, while conversely draculin has long been known from only a very small fragment and thus even the basic protein class was not even established. Despite the fact that vampire bat venom has a multitude of effects unaccounted by the documented bioactivities of DSPA and draculin, efforts have not been made to establish what other bioactive proteins are secreted by their submaxillary gland. In addition, it has remained unclear whether the anatomically distinct anterior and posterior lobes of the submaxillary gland are evolving on separate gene expression trajectories or if they remain under the shared genetic control. Using a combined proteomic and transcriptomic approach, we show that identical proteins are simultaneously expressed in both lobes. In addition to recovering the known structural classes of DSPA, we recovered a novel DSPA isoform as well as obtained a very large sequence stretch of draculin and thus established that it is a mutated version of the lactotransferrin scaffold. This study reveals a much more complex secretion profile than previously recognised. In addition to obtaining novel versions of scaffolds convergently recruited into other venoms (allergen-like, CRiSP, kallikrein, Kunitz, lysozyme), we also documented novel expression of small peptides related to calcitonin, PACAP, and statherin. Other overexpressed protein types included BPI-fold, lacritin, and secretoglobin. Further, we investigate the molecular evolution of various vampire bat venom-components and highlight the dominant role of positive selection in the evolution of these proteins. Conspicuously many of the proteins identified in the proteome were found to be homologous to proteins with known activities affecting vasodilation and platelet aggregation. We show that vampire bat venom proteins possibly evade host immune response by the mutation of the surface chemistry through focal mutagenesis under the guidance of positive Darwinian selection. These results not only contribute to the body of knowledge regarding haematophagous venoms but also provide a rich resource for novel lead compounds for use in drug design and development. BIOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE These results have direct implications in understanding the molecular evolutionary history of vampire bat venom. The unusual peptides discovered reinforce the value of studying such neglected taxon for biodiscovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dolyce H W Low
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4072, Australia
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Brust A, Sunagar K, Undheim EA, Vetter I, Yang DC, Casewell NR, Jackson TN, Koludarov I, Alewood PF, Hodgson WC, Lewis RJ, King GF, Antunes A, Hendrikx I, Fry BG. Differential Evolution and Neofunctionalization of Snake Venom Metalloprotease Domains. Mol Cell Proteomics 2013. [DOI: 10.1074/mcp.a112.023135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
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Ruder T, Sunagar K, Undheim EAB, Ali SA, Wai TC, Low DHW, Jackson TNW, King GF, Antunes A, Fry BG. Molecular phylogeny and evolution of the proteins encoded by coleoid (cuttlefish, octopus, and squid) posterior venom glands. J Mol Evol 2013; 76:192-204. [PMID: 23456102 DOI: 10.1007/s00239-013-9552-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2012] [Accepted: 02/12/2013] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
In this study, we report for the first time a detailed evaluation of the phylogenetic history and molecular evolution of the major coleoid toxins: CAP, carboxypeptidase, chitinase, metalloprotease GON-domain, hyaluronidase, pacifastin, PLA2, SE-cephalotoxin and serine proteases, with the carboxypeptidase and GON-domain documented for the first time in the coleoid venom arsenal. We show that although a majority of sites in these coleoid venom-encoding genes have evolved under the regime of negative selection, a very small proportion of sites are influenced by the transient selection pressures. Moreover, nearly 70 % of these episodically adapted sites are confined to the molecular surface, highlighting the importance of variation of the toxin surface chemistry. Coleoid venoms were revealed to be as complex as other venoms that have traditionally been the recipient of the bulk of research efforts. The presence of multiple peptide/protein types in coleoids similar to those present in other animal venoms identifies a convergent strategy, revealing new information as to what characteristics make a peptide/protein type amenable for recruitment into chemical arsenals. Coleoid venoms have significant potential not only for understanding fundamental aspects of venom evolution but also as an untapped source of novel toxins for use in drug design and discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tim Ruder
- Venom Evolution Lab, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, QLD, 4072, Australia
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46
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Brust A, Sunagar K, Undheim EAB, Vetter I, Yang DC, Yang DC, Casewell NR, Jackson TNW, Koludarov I, Alewood PF, Hodgson WC, Lewis RJ, King GF, Antunes A, Hendrikx I, Fry BG. Differential evolution and neofunctionalization of snake venom metalloprotease domains. Mol Cell Proteomics 2012; 12:651-63. [PMID: 23242553 DOI: 10.1074/mcp.m112.023135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Snake venom metalloproteases (SVMP) are composed of five domains: signal peptide, propeptide, metalloprotease, disintegrin, and cysteine-rich. Secreted toxins are typically combinatorial variations of the latter three domains. The SVMP-encoding genes of Psammophis mossambicus venom are unique in containing only the signal and propeptide domains. We show that the Psammophis SVMP propeptide evolves rapidly and is subject to a high degree of positive selection. Unlike Psammophis, some species of Echis express both the typical multidomain and the unusual monodomain (propeptide only) SVMP, with the result that a lower level of variation is exerted upon the latter. We showed that most mutations in the multidomain Echis SVMP occurred in the protease domain responsible for proteolytic and hemorrhagic activities. The cysteine-rich and disintegrin-like domains, which are putatively responsible for making the P-III SVMPs more potent than the P-I and P-II forms, accumulate the remaining variation. Thus, the binding sites on the molecule's surface are evolving rapidly whereas the core remains relatively conserved. Bioassays conducted on two post-translationally cleaved novel proline-rich peptides from the P. mossambicus propeptide domain showed them to have been neofunctionalized for specific inhibition of mammalian a7 neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. We show that the proline rich postsynaptic specific neurotoxic peptides from Azemiops feae are the result of convergent evolution within the precursor region of the C-type natriuretic peptide instead of the SVMP. The results of this study reinforce the value of studying obscure venoms for biodiscovery of novel investigational ligands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Brust
- ‡Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD 4072 Australia
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Koludarov I, Sunagar K, Undheim EAB, Jackson TNW, Ruder T, Whitehead D, Saucedo AC, Mora GR, Alagon AC, King G, Antunes A, Fry BG. Structural and Molecular Diversification of the Anguimorpha Lizard Mandibular Venom Gland System in the Arboreal Species Abronia graminea. J Mol Evol 2012; 75:168-83. [DOI: 10.1007/s00239-012-9529-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2012] [Accepted: 10/29/2012] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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Sunagar K, Johnson WE, O'Brien SJ, Vasconcelos V, Antunes A. Evolution of CRISPs associated with toxicoferan-reptilian venom and mammalian reproduction. Mol Biol Evol 2012; 29:1807-22. [PMID: 22319140 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/mss058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Cysteine-rich secretory proteins (CRISPs) are glycoproteins found exclusively in vertebrates and have broad diversified functions. They are hypothesized to play important roles in mammalian reproduction and in reptilian venom, where they disrupt homeostasis of the prey through several mechanisms, including among others, blockage of cyclic nucleotide-gated and voltage-gated ion channels and inhibition of smooth muscle contraction. We evaluated the molecular evolution of CRISPs in toxicoferan reptiles at both nucleotide and protein levels relative to their nonvenomous mammalian homologs. We show that the evolution of CRISP gene in these reptiles is significantly influenced by positive selection and in snakes (ω = 3.84) more than in lizards (ω = 2.33), whereas mammalian CRISPs were under strong negative selection (CRISP1 = 0.55, CRISP2 = 0.40, and CRISP3 = 0.68). The use of ancestral sequence reconstruction, mapping of mutations on the three-dimensional structure, and detailed evaluation of selection pressures suggests that the toxicoferan CRISPs underwent accelerated evolution aided by strong positive selection and directional mutagenesis, whereas their mammalian homologs are constrained by negative selection. Gene and protein-level selection analyses identified 41 positively selected sites in snakes and 14 sites in lizards. Most of these sites are located on the molecular surface (nearly 76% in snakes and 79% in lizards), whereas the backbone of the protein retains a highly conserved structural scaffold. Nearly 46% of the positively selected sites occur in the cysteine-rich domain of the protein. This directional mutagenesis, where the hotspots of mutations are found on the molecular surface and functional domains of the protein, acts as a diversifying mechanism for the exquisite biological targeting of CRISPs in toxicoferan reptiles. Finally, our analyses suggest that the evolution of toxicoferan-CRISP venoms might have been influenced by the specific predatory mechanism employed by the organism. CRISPs in Elapidae, which mostly employ neurotoxins, have experienced less positive selection pressure (ω = 2.86) compared with the "nonvenomous" colubrids (ω = 4.10) that rely on grip and constriction to capture the prey, and the Viperidae, a lineage that mostly employs haemotoxins (ω = 4.19). Relatively lower omega estimates in Anguimorph lizards (ω = 2.33) than snakes (ω = 3.84) suggests that lizards probably depend more on pace and powerful jaws for predation than venom.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartik Sunagar
- CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Porto, Portugal
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