Santhosh Kambaiah Nagaraj, Pavana Dattatreya, Shruthi Balakrishna Rao, Thippeswamy Nayaka Boramuthi
Department of Postgraduate Studies and Research in Microbiology, Jnana Sahyadri Campus, Kuvempu University, Shivamogga, Karnataka, India.
Toxicon. 2022 Jan 15;205:71-78. doi: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2021.11.121. Epub 2021 Nov 23.
The scorpions of the Buthidae family exhibit diverse toxins with proven pharmacological activities and yet underexplored. The Hottentotta rugiscutis is a commonly found south-Indian buthid scorpion, whose venom proteomic profile is unknown. In this study, the venom was biochemically and immunologically characterized by SDS-PAGE, MALDI-TOF MS, Western blot and ELISA. The regional and seasonal variation in the venom composition from the same species was also assessed at the molecular mass level. The venom was further studied in albino mice to understand its impact on various blood parameters. The venom has varied MW proteins from 6 to 275 kDa, four of them were found to be major immunodominant proteins. The mass spectra have revealed that some proteins are predominantly present in the venom of 3-4.5 kDa or 6.5-8.0 kDa, which could be the K or Na channel blockers respectively whose ratio varied by season. The obtained venom-mass spectra could also be used as H. rugiscutis specific finger-print in identifying the region-specific species. The venom was found to elicit a stress-induced innate immune response in mice, giving rise to a strong Th2 mediated humoral immune response. Overall, this study has provided a glimpse of the venom composition and its immunogenicity.
钳蝎科的蝎子具有多种已证实具有药理活性但尚未充分探索的毒素。南非金蝎是一种常见于印度南部的钳蝎科蝎子，其毒液的蛋白质组概况尚不清楚。在本研究中，通过SDS-PAGE、MALDI-TOF MS、蛋白质免疫印迹和酶联免疫吸附测定对该毒液进行了生物化学和免疫学表征。还在分子量水平上评估了同一物种毒液成分的区域和季节变化。在白化小鼠中对该毒液进行了进一步研究，以了解其对各种血液参数的影响。该毒液含有分子量从6到275 kDa不等的多种蛋白质，其中四种被发现是主要的免疫显性蛋白。质谱分析表明，一些蛋白质主要存在于分子量为3 - 4.5 kDa或6.5 - 8.0 kDa的毒液中，它们可能分别是钾或钠通道阻滞剂，其比例随季节变化。所获得的毒液质谱也可作为南非金蝎的特异性指纹图谱，用于识别特定区域的物种。研究发现，该毒液可在小鼠中引发应激诱导的先天免疫反应，从而产生强烈的Th2介导的体液免疫反应。总的来说，本研究对该毒液的成分及其免疫原性有了一定的了解。
