Maternal exposure of wistar rats to the venom of the scorpion Tityus bahiensis during lactation and its effects on the offspring

• Grant number: 11/04498-8
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Effective date (Start): March 01, 2012
• Effective date (End): August 31, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Pharmacology
• Principal Investigator: Valquiria Abrão Coronado Dorce
• Grantee: Adriana Do Nascimento Martins
• Home Institution: Instituto Butantan. Secretaria da Saúde (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The scorpions are among the oldest arthropods that inhabit the earth and almost remained unchanged over the centuries. The venom it is directed preferentially to obtain their food, but there are toxins used against mammals probably acquired in the evolutionary process. The venoms of scorpions are composed of neurotoxins, basic polypeptides of low molecular weight that act on ion channels, mainly sodium, altering the release of chemical mediators such as cytokines present in inflammatory processes and in convulsions. The scorpion is considered a serious public health problem in Brazil, mainly due to accidents occurring with greater frequency and severity in children and the elderly. Symptoms of a scorpion poisoning are well defined and vary according to the amount of venom inoculated into tissue, and the sensitivity of each individual.There are some studies showing that the scorpion toxins are able to modify brain concentrations of neurotransmitters and plasma levels of cytokines. Despite the effects caused in the CNS, there are few available data concerning the effect of venom on the offspring of mothers who come in contact with it in the postnatal period. Therefore, this paper is aimed to study the behavioral and reflexive effects of the offspring of rats treated with the Tityus bahiensis scorpion venom on the 2th, 10th or 16th day of lactation in the childhood and adulthood. The possible involvement of chemical mediators such as cytokines (IL-1alfa, IL-1beta, IL-6, INF-³, TNF-alfa) in the observed effect will be studied too.

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

MARTINS, ADRIANA DO NASCIMENTO; ABRANAO NENCIONI, ANA LEONOR; CORONADO DORCE, ANA LETICIA; PAULO, MARIA ELIZA F. V.; FRARE, EDUARDO OSORIO; CORONADO DORCE, VALQUIRIA ABRAO. Effect of maternal exposure to Tityus bahiensis scorpion venom during lactation on the offspring of rats. REPRODUCTIVE TOXICOLOGY, v. 59, p. 147-158, JAN 2016. Web of Science Citations: 2.