Two new arthropod toxins purified from the venom of the Mexican scorpion Centruroides nigrescens

  Two new arthropod toxins purified from the venom of the Mexican scorpion Centruroides nigrescens Abstract The venom of the slender black scorpion Centruroides nigrescens , from the State of Guerrero México, was fractionated by Sephadex G–50 gel filtration, followed by carboxymethyl cellulose ion separation and high–performance liquid chromatography, permitting to obtain two new peptides toxic to arthropods. The estimate LD 50 of the soluble venom for the insect Acheta domesticus was 11.1 μg/g body weight, and for the arthropod Armadillidium vulgare was 61.1 μg body weight . The amino acid sequence of toxin Cnige1 (toxic to A. domesticus and A. vulgare ) contains 65 amino acids, with a molecular mass of 7273.37 mass units, whereas toxin Cnige2, toxic to A. domesticus , contains 68 amino acids, with a molecular mass of 7548.81 units. Both peptides are well packed, containing 8 cysteines, which in the native venoms are forming 4 disulfide bridges each. The amino acid sequences f...

Review of the Spider Genus Linothele (Mygalomorphae, Dipluridae) from Ecuador—An Exceptional Case of Speciation in the Andes

 


Review of the Spider Genus Linothele (Mygalomorphae, Dipluridae) from Ecuador—An Exceptional Case of Speciation in the Andes


Abstract

The genus Linothele (Araneae: Dipluridae) from Ecuador is reviewed. A total of 38 new species are described; from the Andes: L. alausi n. sp. (♀), L. anabellecitae n. sp. (♀♂), L. angamarca n. sp. (♀♂), L. banos n. sp. (♀♂), L. canirasi n. sp. (♀), L. carchi n. sp. (♀), L. cayambe n. sp. (♀♂), L. cuencana n. sp. (♀♂), L. guacamayos n. sp. (♀), L. gualaquiza n. sp. (♀), L. guallupe n. sp. (♀), L. ilinizas n. sp. (♀♂), L. ireneae n. sp. (♀), L. jarrini n. sp. (♀), L. javieri n. sp. (♀), L. kaysi n. sp. (♀), L. lacocha n. sp. (♀), L. lloa n. sp. (♀♂), L. milleri n. sp. (♀♂), L. molleturo n. sp. (♀), L. otokiki n. sp. (♀), L. peguche n. sp. (♀♂), L. podocarpus n. sp. (♀), L. pomona n. sp. (♀), L. pristirana n. sp. (♀♂), L. pseudoquori n. sp. (♀♂), L. rionegro n. sp. (♀♂), L. sigchila n. sp. (♀♂), L. uvalino n. sp. (♀), L. victoria n. sp. (♀), L. yunguilla n. sp. (♀♂); from the Pacific region: L. costenita n. sp. (♀♂), L. troncal n. sp. (♀); and, from the Amazonian region: L. amazonica n. sp. (♀), L. archidona n. sp. (♀), L. condor n. sp. (♀♂), L. jatunsacha n. sp. (♀), L. otoyacu n. sp. (♀♂). All previously known Ecuadorian species are re-illustrated, and the males of L. cavicola, L. pukachumpi, and L. tsachilas are described for the first time. The geographical distribution of the genus Linothele through mainland Ecuador is discussed, and short-range endemic species are proposed. Distribution maps are provided for all species found in Ecuador. Finally, the synonymy of L. megatheloides under L. sericata is rejected.


Dupérré, Nadine, Elicio Tapia, and Jason E. Bond. 2023. "Review of the Spider Genus Linothele (Mygalomorphae, Dipluridae) from Ecuador—An Exceptional Case of Speciation in the Andes" Arthropoda 1, no. 3: 68-341. https://doi.org/10.3390/arthropoda1030010