Structural and functional characterisation of isolated puff adder (Bitis arietans) venom serine proteases

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  Structural and functional characterisation of isolated puff adder (Bitis arietans) venom serine proteases Abstract Serine proteases (SVSPs) are known to play a major role in the haemotoxic actions of viper venom, but compared with those from other medically important vipers, the serine proteases of puff adder venoms have not been extensively characterised. To address this, we isolated, identified and characterised the bioactivity of the serine proteases within the venom of the Nigerian puff adder, which we had previously shown to be especially rich in this class of toxin. Two distinct groups were identified, each with different protein substrate specificities. Both had similar molecular weights of 52-62 kDa, with 4-6 N-glycans, but one group consisted of trypsin-like acidic SVSPs and the other of non-trypsin-like basic SVSPs with a specificity for aliphatic amino acids at the P 1 position. Each acted differently on fibrinogen: the acidic SVSPs showed thrombin-like alpha/beta-fib...

Description of two new spider species from Ecuadorian caves, along with a note on the distribution of Plato troglodita Coddington, 1986 (Araneae, Theridiosomatidae)

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Description of two new spider species from Ecuadorian caves, along with a note on the distribution of Plato troglodita Coddington, 1986 (Araneae, Theridiosomatidae)

Abstract

Two new cave spider species belonging to the family Theridiosomatidae are described from the Ecuadorian Amazonian ecoregion: Plato leodani sp. nov. (male, female), and Plato shaime sp. nov. (male, female). Images of the type specimens of Plato troglodita Coddington, 1986 are included and its distribution is updated, being restricted to the type locality in Morona Santiago Province, Ecuador. Finally, the specimens identified as Plato troglodita by Prete & Brescovit (2024) are considered a misidentification.

Dupérré, N. & Tapia, E. (2025) Description of two new spider species from Ecuadorian caves, along with a note on the distribution of Plato troglodita Coddington, 1986 (Araneae, Theridiosomatidae). Zootaxa, 5719 (3), 373–386. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5719.3.5