Molecular Recognition and Immunopharmacological Implications of Serratiopeptidase Targeting Snake Venom Bradykinin-Potentiating Peptides

Posted by
  Molecular Recognition and Immunopharmacological Implications of Serratiopeptidase Targeting Snake Venom Bradykinin-Potentiating Peptides Abstract Purpose Bradykinin-potentiating peptides (BPPs), found in snake venom, are known to modulate cardiovascular functions, but their susceptibility to enzymatic degradation remains poorly understood. Methods Models were generated using AlphaFold-Colab for five small BPPs (< 9 amino acids) that did not have experimentally solved structures, and those BPPs which had reliable predictions of structure (pLDDT > 80) were used for docking studies. Protein-peptide docking experiments were done using HADDOCK for studying the interaction between wild-type (WT) and mutant serratiopeptidase with BPPs. After selecting the best complex, simulation of the complex was done using molecular dynamics (MD) simulations for 100 ns and binding energy determination using MM/PBSA analysis. For checking the mechanical stability of the protein-peptide complexes...

The tangled biogeographic history of tarantulas: An African centre of origin rules out the centrifugal model of speciation

Posted by

 


The tangled biogeographic history of tarantulas: An African centre of origin rules out the centrifugal model of speciation



Abstract

Aim

Many animal groups diversify at the same place where they have originated, whereas others diversify at a place completely different from the centre of origin. Identification of the centre of origin, subsequent colonisation and diversification is crucial for understanding lineages' macroevolutionary dynamics and biogeographical patterns. The historical biogeography of the Mygalomorph spider family Theraphosidae has been confounded by two conflicting hypotheses – a South American origin for the group, which is also the centre of its greatest extant diversity, as against an African origin. We aim to ascertain the centre of origin and directionality of inter-continental dispersal events in tarantulas by reconstructing their biogeographic history.


Biswas, A., Chaitanya, R., & Karanth, K. P. (2023). The tangled biogeographic history of tarantulas: An African centre of origin rules out the centrifugal model of speciation. Journal of Biogeography, 50, 1341–1351. https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14678