Proteomic characterization and lethality of the venom of the Black Judean scorpion, Hottentotta judaicus (Buthidae): expanded toxin diversity and revisited toxicological significance

 

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Autoři: Borges, Adolfo, Lomonte, Bruno, Rojas de Arias, Antonieta, Fernández Ulate, Julián
Médium: artículo original
Datum vydání:2025
Popis:The scorpion Hottentotta judaicus inhabits the Levant region of the Middle East, including Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine,and Israel. While previous research focused on its insecticidal properties and sodium-channel-targeting toxins, its venomremains largely unexplored using modern proteomic approaches. We analyzed the venom composition of H. judaicus fromLebanese specimens using nESI-MS/MS, MALDI-TOF MS, SDS-PAGE, and RP-HPLC. Venom lethality in mice wasassessed (LD₅₀ = 11.87 [6.59–17.16] mg/kg, i.p.), confirming moderate toxicity to vertebrates. RP-HPLC on C18resolved37 peaks, with 25 eluting between 20–40% acetonitrile. Reducing SDS-PAGE revealed predominant components < 10 kDaand minor bands at 31, 46, and 77 kDa. MaLDI-TOF MS detected 20 components from 1,000–12,000 m/z. A bottom-upshotgun nLC-MS/MS approach, following in-gel tryptic digestion of venom, identified 55 components across 15 proteinfamilies. Ion channel-active toxins [K⁺ (7), Na⁺ (16), Cl⁻ (1), ryanodine receptor (1)] and enzyme components (17) werepredominant. This study provides proteomic evidence of H. judaicus venom components previously only identified at thetranscriptomic level and reveals a richer venom profile than anticipated. Novel identified components include alternativeβ-subunits of lipolysis-activating proteins, as well as homologs of Olivierus martensii antimicrobial peptide inhibitor HAP-1, Leiurus hebraeus Lqhβ1, Parabuthus transvaalicus Birtoxin, and peptide Hj2a from Hottentotta jayakari exhibiting dualα/β-toxin activity on Nav1.1 channels. This expanding repertoire of potential bioactive components prompts a reevaluationof the pathophysiological consequences of H. judaicus envenomation in humans and further exploration of their potentialbiomedical applications.
Země:Kérwá
Instituce:Universidad de Costa Rica
Repositorio:Kérwá
Jazyk:Inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:kerwa.ucr.ac.cr:10669/104522
On-line přístup:https://hdl.handle.net/10669/104522
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00204-025-04186-x
Klíčové slovo:Hottentotta judaicus
Venom
Toxins
Toxicity
Scorpion
Proteomics