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...

The spider wasp family Pompilidae (Hymenoptera: Aculeata: Pompiloidea) in Uzbekistan: annotated checklist with first faunal records

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By Christina Butler from Georgia, United States - Ceropales maculata, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=95892530

The spider wasp family Pompilidae (Hymenoptera: Aculeata: Pompiloidea) in Uzbekistan: annotated checklist with first faunal records

This paper presents, for the first time, a review of the fauna of spider wasps (Pompilidae) of Uzbekistan. The review includes 132 species and 1 subspecies, 4 species undetermined to species level (sp.), belonging to 28 genera, 8 tribes, and 3 subfamilies recorded within the territory of Uzbekistan. The data are based on published literature and materials collected during 1909-1978, which are preserved in the Entomological Collection of the State Museum of Nature of Uzbekistan. Among these, 9 species are recorded for the first time for the fauna of Uzbekistan, namely: Cryptocheilus (Cryptocheilus) alternatus caspius Gussakovskij, 1952; Priocnemis (Priocnemis) minuta (Vander Linden, 1827); Priocnemis (Umbripennis) gypsochtona Gussakovskij, 1930; Tachyagetes (Tachyagetes) excellens (Haupt,1930); Arachnospila (Ammosphex) trivialis (Dahlbom, 1843); Arachnospila (Arachnospila) binaeva Haupt, 1930; Arachnospila (Arachnospila) rufa (Haupt, 1927); Paracyphononyx pavlovskyi Gussakovskij, 1952; Arachnotheutes rufithorax (Costa, 1882). 

Lebedeva, N. I., Akhmedov, A. G., Mirzaeva, G. S., Musaev, D. M., Nazarov, S. N., Azamov, M. S., Abdullaeva, M. I., Kholmirzayeva, A. A., & Hudoyberdieva, M. O. (2026). The spider wasp family Pompilidae (Hymenoptera: Aculeata: Pompiloidea) in Uzbekistan: annotated checklist with first faunal records. Acta Biologica Sibirica, 12, 59–84. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18310226