Inter-individual variability in equine antibody responses to African snake venoms follows heavy-tailed distributions with implications for antivenom production

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  Inter-individual variability in equine antibody responses to African snake venoms follows heavy-tailed distributions with implications for antivenom production Abstract Variability in the antibody response of horses used for snake antivenom manufacture is well recognized, yet its statistical structure and implications for industrial productivity remain poorly characterized. In this study, we quantified antivenom antibody titers by ELISA in a cohort of 14 horses immunized with venoms from the clinically most important snakes in sub-Saharan Africa. To integrate antibody levels with plasma availability, we calculated the Cumulative Plasma Productivity (CPP) by converting individual plasma volumes into titer-corrected equivalents and sequentially pooling these volumes according to their corrected contribution. Distributional analysis revealed right-skewed, heavy-tailed patterns better approximated by a log-normal model than by a strict Pareto (power-law) form, with approximately 20–3...

Additions to the spider fauna (Araneae) of Algeria: first records of five species from the northern Sahara

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Additions to the spider fauna (Araneae) of Algeria: first records of five species from thenorthern Sahara

ABSTRACT

The spider fauna of the Algerian Sahara remains poorly studied despite its vast aridlandscapes and  unique ecological  conditions. In  this study,  we  report  five  spider  species  newlyrecorded from Algeria, based on material collected in the region of El Meghaier, n orthern Sahara. These are Rhysodromus  lepidus  (Blackwall,  1870)  (Philodromidae),Pellenes  hedjazensis  Prószyński,1993 (Salticidae), Theridion  jordanenseLevy  & Amitai, 1982 (Theridiidae), Ozyptila furcula  (Koch,1882), andThomisus zyuzini Marusik & Logunov, 1990 (both Thomisidae). Additionally, O. furcula,P. hedjazensis andT. zyuzini are recorded from Africa for the first time, and the genusRhysodromusSchick,  1965, is newly  reported  from  Algeria.  Photographs  of  the  habitus and  copulatory  organsare provided, along  with  a distribution  map  illustrating  both  known and  newly  recordedoccurrences, and notes   on the ecological conditions of the collection sites.

Dekkoumi, B., Alioua, Y. & Meddour, S. (2026) Additions to  the spider fauna (Araneae) of Algeria:first records of five species from the northern Sahara. Journal of Insect Biodiversity and Systematics,  12 ( 01),  109–121.