Variability of sodium channel toxins in Mesobuthus thersites Advised toolkit for comprehensive venomics

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Variability of sodium channel toxins in Mesobuthus thersites Advised toolkit for comprehensive venomics Abstract Natural venoms constitute vast combinatorial libraries of ion channel ligands with unprecedented properties including high affinity and selectivity. Scorpion venoms in particular are abundant in sodium and potassium channel ligands representing small proteins or peptides, which are traditionally studied by transcriptomics and proteomics approaches. However, a universal algorithm to pursue the examination of multicomponent peptide-rich mixtures such as venoms is lacking. Here we present a general scheme to the analysis of scorpion toxin arsenal with focus on sodium channel ligands. We explored the venom of the Central Asian scorpion Mesobuthus thersites using venom gland transcriptomics and three proteomic methods. We compared traditional automated annotation by Blast2GO with our custom approach based on regular expressions. We found that the traditional annotation is compro...

First report of a Tailless Whip Scorpion in Cyprus: the case of Sarax ioanniticus (Kritscher, 1959) (Amblypygi, Charontidae)

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First report of a Tailless Whip Scorpion in Cyprus: the case of Sarax ioanniticus (Kritscher, 1959) (Amblypygi, Charontidae)


Background

Amblypygi, commonly known as tailless whip scorpions or whip spiders, is an order of Arachnida noted for its cryptic habits and predominantly tropical and subtropical distribution. Although the group was first mentioned on the island of Cyprus in 1990, no specific taxonomic information was provided at the time.

New information

Through a combination of literature review, targeted field surveys and citizen-science contributions, we confirm the presence of Sarax ioanniticus (Kritscher, 1959) in Cyprus, representing the first documented record of this species on the island. Following seven years of dedicated searches, a live specimen was collected in 2023 and identified, thereby establishing S. ioanniticus as part of the island’s rich fauna. This finding extends the known range of S. ioanniticus within the eastern Mediterranean and underscores the importance of integrating biodiversity research with public engagement to detect elusive or under-reported taxa. Future studies should investigate the species’ local distribution, ecological requirements and potential conservation concerns on Cyprus.


Hadjiconstantis M, Smith M, Zoumides C (2025) First report of a Tailless Whip Scorpion in Cyprus: the case of Sarax ioanniticus (Kritscher, 1959) (Amblypygi, Charontidae). Biodiversity Data Journal 13: e157478. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.13.e157478