Comparative study of venom composition of Viperidae snakes born and maintained in the Herpetology Laboratory of the Butantan Institute.

• Grant number: 13/00267-7
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctorate
• Effective date (Start): June 01, 2013
• Effective date (End): September 30, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Physiology - Compared Physiology
• Principal Investigator: Anita Mitico Tanaka-Azevedo
• Grantee: Karen de Morais Zani
• Home Institution: Instituto Butantan. Secretaria da Saúde (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Snake venoms are complex protein mixtures with different biological activities. The composition of the venoms is the result of multiple factors and their variability is generally related to environmental and ecological factors. Recent studies have shown that the composition of snakes venom is closely related to its diet. In this context, there is no involvement of phylogenetic relationships and the genes flow. However, gene regulation is considered an important event for explaining the variation in abundance of different proteins in whole venom. Indeed, the diversity of the isoforms within families or protein expression levels of different transcripts may be responsible for modifying the biological venom activities rather than the recruitment of new family of toxins. However, studies relating the composition of venom from snakes kept in captivity to their diet are scarce. Besides contributing to the elucidation of venom evolution, characterization of the protein content of these snake venoms also presents benefits to scientific research, clinical diagnosis and the development of strategies for antivenoms production. Thus, this study aims to evaluate the biological activity and the protein content of Viperidae snakes born and maintained in captivity in order to study the influency of the captivity in the venom composition of these animals, as well as to elucidate the relationship between diet and venom composition of these animals.

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)

HATAKEYAMA, DANIELA M. `; DE MORAIS-ZANI, KAREN; SERINO-SILVA, CAROLINE; GREGO, KATHLEEN F.; SANT'ANNA, SAVIO S.; FERNANDES, WILSON; ANIZ, PATRICIA A. E. A.; TORQUATO, RICARDO J. S.; TANAKA, APARECIDA S.; SANZ, LIBIA; CALVETE, JUAN J.; TANAKA-AZEVEDO, ANITA M. Examination of biochemical and biological activities of Bothrops jararaca (Serpentes: Viperidae; Wied-Neuwied 1824) snake venom after up to 54 years of storage. Toxicon, v. 141, p. 34-42, JAN 2018. Web of Science Citations: 3.