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...

Transcriptomic and proteomic analyses reveal the diverse components in the venom of a recently described spider species Macrothele washanensis

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Transcriptomic and proteomic analyses reveal the diverse components in the venom of a recently described spider species Macrothele washanensis

Abstract

Spider venom has been shown to possess a variety of pharmacological activities with promising applications in biomedical and agricultural sciences. However, the molecular structure and functions of these toxins have only been revealed for a few species. In this study, we unveiled the venom composition of Macrothele washanensis venom for the first time using transcriptomics, proteomics, and bioinformatic analyses. A total of 147,492,716 Illumina valid reads were obtained from the transcriptome of the venom glands, and 3,010,024 unigenes were assembled to predict 69 putative toxin sequences, which were classified into 25 toxin superfamilies based on cysteine motifs. Crude venom proteomics analysis identified 43 toxin proteins, including 15 peptide toxins and 28 proteases, including the CAP (CRISP/Allergen/PR) protein family, acetylcholinesterase, metalloproteinases, hyaluronidase, and dermonecrotic toxin. In conclusion, the results of the present study revealed the composition of the venom of M. washanensis, and several peptide toxins with potential medical, such work provides the foundation for further research on the molecular functions of these venom components as well as applied studies for the use of such compounds.
Zhang, M., Cai, W., Yang, M., Zhang, M., Tembrock, L. R., Yang, Z., Liu, H., & Yang, Z. (2025). Transcriptomic and proteomic analyses reveal the diverse components in the venom of a recently described spider species Macrothele washanensis. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part D: Genomics and Proteomics, 55, 101491. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbd.2025.101491