Independent Recruitment of Different Types of Phospholipases A2 to the Venoms of Caenophidian Snakes: The Rise of PLA(2)-IIE within Pseudoboini (Dipsadidae)

Author(s)

Bayona-Serrano, Juan David ; Grazziotin, Felipe Gobi ; Salazar-Valenzuela, David ; Valente, Richard H. ; Nachtigall, Pedro Gabriel ; Colombini, Monica ; Moura-da-Silva, Ana ; Junqueira-de-Azevedo, Inacio Loiola Meirelles

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Molecular Biology and Evolution; v. 40, n. 7, p. 15-pg., 2023-07-05.

Abstract

Snake venoms harbor a wide and diverse array of enzymatic and nonenzymatic toxic components, allowing them to exert myriad effects on their prey. However, they appear to trend toward a few optimal compositional scaffolds, dominated by four major toxin classes: SVMPs, SVSPs, 3FTxs, and PLA(2)s. Nevertheless, the latter appears to be restricted to vipers and elapids, as it has never been reported as a major venom component in rear-fanged species. Here, by investigating the original transcriptomes from 19 species distributed in eight genera from the Pseudoboini tribe (Dipsadidae: Xenodontinae) and screening among seven additional tribes of Dipsadidae and three additional families of advanced snakes, we discovered that a novel type of venom PLA(2), resembling a PLA(2)-IIE, has been recruited to the venom of some species of the Pseudoboini tribe, where it is a major component. Proteomic and functional analyses of these venoms further indicate that these PLA(2)s play a relevant role in the venoms from this tribe. Moreover, we reconstructed the phylogeny of PLA(2)s across different snake groups and show that different types of these toxins have been recruited in at least five independent events in caenophidian snakes. Additionally, we present the first compositional profiling of Pseudoboini venoms. Our results demonstrate how relevant phenotypic traits are convergently recruited by different means and from homologous and nonhomologous genes in phylogenetically and ecologically divergent snake groups, possibly optimizing venom composition to overcome diverse adaptative landscapes. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 13/07467-1 - CeTICS - Center of Toxins, Immune-Response and Cell Signaling
• Grantee: Hugo Aguirre Armelin
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Research, Innovation and Dissemination Centers - RIDC
• FAPESP's process: 17/24498-9 - Venomics analyses of Dipsadinae snakes focusing on adaptations to ophiophagy
• Grantee: Juan David Bayona Serrano
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• FAPESP's process: 16/50127-5 - Dimensions US-BIOTA São Paulo: scales of biodiversity: integrated studies of snake venom evolution and function across multiple levels of diversity
• Grantee: Inácio de Loiola Meirelles Junqueira de Azevedo
• Support Opportunities: BIOTA-FAPESP Program - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 17/24546-3 - Scales of biodiversity: integrated studies of snake evolution and venom function
• Grantee: Luciana Aparecida Freitas de Sousa
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral