Scorpion Venom Peptides: Novel Therapeutic Approaches for Inflammatory and Hepatic Disorders

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  Scorpion Venom Peptides: Novel Therapeutic Approaches for Inflammatory and Hepatic Disorders Abstract Chronic hepatic disorders, such as metabolic dysfunction associated steatohepatitis (MASH), alcohol associated liver disease (ALD), and viral hepatitis (Hepatitis B Virus [HBV]/Hepatitis C Virus [HCV]), are primarily driven by persistent immune-mediated inflammation and hepatic stellate cell activation leading to fibrosis, yet conventional therapies lack tissue and molecular specificity. Scorpion venom peptides, refined through evolutionary selection, provide highly potent, target specific scaffolds capable of modulating intrahepatic inflammatory networks. Recent in vivo preclinical studies indicate that voltage gated potassium (Kv1.3) channel blocking peptides, such as BmKK2, significantly reduce macrophage activation and inhibit downstream cytokine production, effectively ameliorating diet-induced steatohepatitis and tissue scarring in murine models. Engineered hepatotropic ca...

A revision of Afrotropical Asceua (Araneae, Zodariidae), ant-eating spiders with puzzling distributions

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A revision of Afrotropical Asceua (Araneae, Zodariidae), ant-eating spiders with puzzling distributions

Abstract

The Afrotropical representatives of the zodariid spider genus Asceua Thorell, 1889 are revised. Apart from the known species A. radiosa Jocqué, 1986 (Comoros, Mayotte) and A. lejeunei Jocqué, 1991 (DR Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Nigeria), six new species are recognized and described: A. arborivaga sp. nov. (♀, Guinea), A. foordi sp. nov., (♂♀, DR Congo, Guinea, South Africa), A. incensa sp. nov. (♂♀, DR Congo), A. luki sp. nov. (♂♀, DR Congo), A. palustris sp. nov. (♀, DR Congo) and A. ventrofigurata sp. nov. (♂♀, Tanzania). A key to the species is provided. Some of the species have a very large distribution, which is unusual in the Zodariidae. The phenomenon is probably linked to the canopy dwelling behaviour, which appears common in the genus but unique for this spider family.

Jocqué R, Henrard A (2024) A revision of Afrotropical Asceua (Araneae, Zodariidae), ant-eating spiders with puzzling distributions. African Invertebrates 65(2): 161-198. https://doi.org/10.3897/afrinvertebr.65.138029