Laboratorio de Inmunología, Facultad de Ciencias Químicas, Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila, Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico.
Toxicon. 2013 Sep;71:84-95. doi: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2013.05.006. Epub 2013 May 31.
The rock rattlesnakes Crotalus lepidus comprise a group (lepidus, klauberi, morulus and maculosus) of poorly known mountain cold-tolerant snakes in Mexico. In particular, Crotalus lepidus morulus is a snake endemic of the northeast of Mexico, whereas Crotalus lepidus klauberi and C. l. lepidus are distributed in some regions of the north and central Mexico and southern U. S. Until now very little data are available from C. lepidus subspecies from Mexico, as the terrain inhabited by these snakes is generally steep and rugged. In this work, we have determined some biochemical and biological properties of C. l. morulus, C. l. klauberi and C. l. lepidus crude venoms. Some minor differences in venoms were noted in SDS-PAGE, HPLC profile and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry analysis. Partial sequences of metalloproteinases, phospholipases A₂ (PLA₂) and galactose-specific lectins were identified in the venoms. Venoms of C. l. klauberi and C. l. lepidus had significantly higher hemorrhagic and lethal activities than C. l. morulus venom. Proteolytic activity in azocasein was higher in C. l. morulus venom, whereas gelatin hydrolysis was higher in C. l. klauberi. Fibrinogenolytic and PLA₂ activities were very similar in all venoms tested. The histological observations in the gastrocnemius muscle damaged by venoms from all the subspecies confirmed myonecrotic and hemorrhagic activities (at 3 and 24 h), which resulted in a poor regenerative response after 14 days. However, C. l. lepidus and C. l. klauberi venom induced a higher increase in the plasma activity of creatine kinase (CK), evidencing higher myotoxicity, whereas paw edema-inducing activity was higher in C. l. lepidus venom. The results indicate that the venoms from the three subspecies have similar protein profiles in electrophoresis, HPLC and molecular weight determinations. However, differences were found in the biological activities in mice. Notably, the venoms of C. l. lepidus and C. l. klauberi present higher toxicity (lower LD₅₀) and hemorrhagic activity than C. l. morulus venom.
响尾蛇属的响尾蛇 Crotalus lepidus 是一组（lepidus、klauberi、morulus 和 maculosus）墨西哥山区耐寒蛇类，它们知之甚少。特别是 Crotalus lepidus morulus 是墨西哥东北部特有的一种蛇，而 Crotalus lepidus klauberi 和 C. l. lepidus 分布在墨西哥北部和中部以及美国南部的一些地区。到目前为止，来自墨西哥的 C. lepidus 亚种的数据非常有限，因为这些蛇栖息的地形通常陡峭崎岖。在这项工作中，我们确定了 C. l. morulus、C. l. klauberi 和 C. l. lepidus 粗毒液的一些生化和生物学特性。在 SDS-PAGE、HPLC 图谱和 MALDI-TOF 质谱分析中观察到毒液的一些细微差异。在毒液中鉴定出金属蛋白酶、磷脂酶 A₂ (PLA₂) 和半乳糖特异性凝集素的部分序列。C. l. klauberi 和 C. l. lepidus 的毒液比 C. l. morulus 毒液具有更高的出血和致死活性。C. l. morulus 毒液在偶氮酪蛋白中的蛋白水解活性较高，而 C. l. klauberi 中的明胶水解活性较高。所有测试毒液的纤维蛋白溶解和 PLA₂ 活性非常相似。所有亚种毒液损伤的腓肠肌的组织学观察证实了肌肉坏死和出血活性（在 3 和 24 小时），这导致 14 天后再生反应不佳。然而，C. l. lepidus 和 C. l. klauberi 毒液诱导的血浆肌酸激酶 (CK) 活性升高更高，表明肌肉毒性更高，而 C. l. lepidus 毒液引起的爪肿胀诱导活性更高。结果表明，三种亚种的毒液在电泳、HPLC 和分子量测定中的蛋白质图谱相似。然而，在生物活性方面存在差异。值得注意的是，C. l. lepidus 和 C. l. klauberi 的毒液比 C. l. morulus 毒液具有更高的毒性（更低的 LD₅₀）和出血活性。
