Biochemical characterisation and substrate-specific proteolytic diversity of venom metalloproteinases in African puff adders

Posted by
  By 4028mdk09 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=11200575 Biochemical characterisation and substrate-specific proteolytic diversity of venom metalloproteinases in African puff adders Abstract The puff adder ( Bitis arietans ) is a highly venomous viper responsible for many snakebite fatalities in Africa, yet there have been few geographically comprehensive analyses of its venom proteins, particularly of the proteases that play a key role in pathology of envenoming. To address this, we have isolated, identified and characterised the bioactivity of the venom metalloproteases of puff adders obtained from a range of localities. Prominent in all venoms was a PI snake venom metalloproteinase (SVMP), derived from a larger PII precursor. This protein existed as either non-glycosylated (21 kDa) or glycosylated, the latter containing either one (26 kDa) or two N-glycans (30 kDa). All the venoms we tested contained either one or the other form: none had...

A new species and new records of the spider genus Dubiaranea (Araneae, Linyphiidae) from southern Brazil and Uruguay, with an analysis of the potential distribution of the species

Posted by

 


A new species and new records of the spider genus Dubiaranea (Araneae, Linyphiidae) from southern Brazil and Uruguay, with an analysis of the potential distribution of the species

Abstract

Dubiaranea magatama Cajade, Hagopián & Rodrigues n. sp. is described from Uruguay, and southern Brazil based on males and females from several types of native forests, and a potential distribution for this species is modeled. The predicted model for this species indicates a Pampean province and southern Atlantic Forest biome distribution. Three variables contributed significantly to the model with positive influence: the spatial component, the proximity to large rivers, and the tree cover. Also, we provide new records of Dubiaranea difficilis (Mello-Leitão 1944) for Uruguay and a model of its potential distribution was performed. It showed that tree cover, the proximity to large rivers, the spatial component and precipitation/evapotranspiration constraints were recovered for the model with positive influence, expanding the potential distribution area previously proposed.

Cajade, M., Hagopián, D., Rodrigues, E. N. L., Guerrero, J. C., Laborda, Á. & Simó, M. (2024). A new species and new records of the spider genus Dubiaranea (Araneae, Linyphiidae) from southern Brazil and Uruguay, with an analysis of the potential distribution of the species. Zootaxa 5437(2): 223-224. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5437.2.3