Venom composition of the Iberian adder (Vipera seoanei) from northern Portugal reveals limited sex and size variation

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  Venom composition of the Iberian adder (Vipera seoanei) from northern Portugal reveals limited sex and size variation Abstract Snake venom is a complex and dynamic ecological trait, with high potential for intraspecific variation. In this study, the venom composition of the Iberian adder ( Vipera seoanei ) from the Peneda Mountains of northern Portugal was investigated to explore whether venom varies with body size and sex. Venom proteomes from six individuals representing juvenile, subadult, and adult males and females were characterised using LC–MS/MS, while individual variation was assessed from SDS–PAGE profiles of 18 snakes. LC–MS/MS identified 144 proteins, dominated by phospholipases A 2 (PLA 2 ), snake venom serine proteases (svSP), and C-type lectin-related proteins (CTL). Descriptive comparisons revealed contrasting individual profiles, particularly between the juvenile male, characterised by high svSP and svMP abundance, and the juvenile female, characterised by high ...

On the liphistiomorph trichobothria and the significance of their structure for tracking the bothria evolution in the order Araneae

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On the liphistiomorph trichobothria and the significance of their structure for tracking the bothria evolution in the order Araneae

Abstract

Femoral trichobothria in liphistiomorph spiders are re-discovered and described for the first time. Present in both Liphistiidae and Heptathelidae, they turned out to be another synapomorphy of this suborder. The trichobothria of Liphistiomorphae, situated dorsally on the distal leg/palp joints (as usual in spiders), and ventrally on femora, possess sharply dissimilar bothria; two types of trichobothrial bases in the same species are a unique case among Arachnida. The morphology of the bothria in the liphistiomorphs has been compared with those in the mygalomorphs and araneomorphs, as well as those in the tetrapulmonate and non-tetrapulmonate arachnid orders. The evolution of the bothrial types in all three main lineages of the Araneae seems to have been parallel.

Marusik, Yuri. (2024). On the liphistiomorph trichobothria and the significance of their structure for tracking the bothria evolution in the order Araneae. Israel Journal of Entomology. 53. 93-112. 10.5281/zenodo.12790018. https://zenodo.org/records/12790018