Venom in Biological News

A combined tooth-venom arsenal revealed as key to Komodo dragon's hunting strategy

... Dragon (Varanus komodoensis) has the most complex venom glands yet described for any reptile, and that ... combined arsenal of the Komodo Dragon's tooth and venom that account for their hunting prowess," said Dr ... "The combination of this specialized bite and venom seem to minimise the Dragon's contact with its ...

Komodo even more deadly than thought: Research

... that the combination of the reptiles' teeth and venom likely accounts for their hunting prowess. ... imaging revealed the dragons have complex venom glands as well. After surgically excising the ... to that of the Gila monster and many snakes. The venom causes a severe loss in blood pressure by ...

Tentacles of venom: New study reveals all octopuses are venomous

... the other species have been quietly using their venom for predation, such as paralysing a clam into ... understanding the structure and mode of action of venom proteins we can benefit drug design for a range ... and squid) remain an untapped resource and their venom may represent a unique class of compounds. Dr ...

Here's venom in your eye: Spitting cobras hit their mark

... cobras have an exceptional ability to spray venom into eyes of potential attackers. A new study ... Lowell. Muscle contractions squeeze the cobra's venom gland, forcing venom to stream out of the snake's fangs. The muscles ...

American Chemical Society's Weekly PressPac -- July 9, 2008

... ARTICLE #4 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Snake venom tells tales about geography Journal of Proteome ... or New England twang, poisonous snakes produce venom that differs distinctly from one geographic area ... out that researchers have known for decades that venom collected from snakes of the same species from ...

Duck-billed platypus genome sequence published

... also possess hind leg spurs that can deliver venom powerful enough to wound territorial competitors ... Scientists were also eager to find out how venom production became a part of the platypus genome. ... analyzing the genetic sequences responsible for venom production in the male platypus, they made a ...

Does the victim affect snake venom composition?

... BMC Evolutionary Biology shows. In snakes, venom composition varies both between species and ... constructed complementary DNA libraries from the venom glands of the reptiles, representing only the stretches of DNA that code for venom gland proteins, and studied two types of protein ...

Rattlesnake-type poisons used by superbug bacteria to beat our defenses

... hospital superbugs can make poisons similar to those found in rattlesnake venom to attack our bodies' natural defences, scientists heard today (Monday 8 ... of the active ingredients in rattlesnake venom. In the case of rattlesnake venom the protein causes the host cells to commit suicide and die, which is one ...

Venomous sea snakes play heads or tails with their predators

... in the sea, inhabiting shallow water and are active predators, feeding on small fish found around coral reefs. All sea snakes have extremely potent venom which is among the most toxic known in all snake species. When hunting for food sea snakes probe crevices and coral formations, temporarily ...

New species of spiders discovered by UBC scientist in Papua New Guinea

... Maddison says the smaller animals like insects and spiders and plants may hold the secret to many of the world's unknown chemicals. "Spider venom has evolved for millions of years to affect the neurological systems of the spider's insect prey, and each species of spider gives us another ...

The bombardier beetle, power venom and spray technologies

... in that it can fire a powerful jet of hot, toxic fluid to fight off predators such as birds and frogs. While the chemical reaction that makes the venom has been understood for some time, the actual power behind the venomous squirt, which can travel as far as 20cm, has been cause for speculation. ...

UC San Diego researchers eliminate drug discovery bottleneck

... stage using mass spectrometry. This work is an extension of an award-winning automated approach Bandeira and colleagues used to reconstruct snake venom peptides. Our Recomb 2008 paper represents the first demonstration of de novo sequencing of nonribosomal peptides. Without knowing the structure ...

How cancer spreads by aggregating platelets

... top one percent of papers reviewed in significance and overall importance. Suzuki-Inoue and colleagues had previously discovered that the snake venom rhodocytin stimulates platelet aggregation by binding to a protein called C-type lectin-like receptor 2 (CLEC-2) located on the surface of the ...

Scientists use nanoparticle to discover disease-causing proteins

... A complex molecule and snake venom may provide researchers with a more reliable ... that was delivered to specific proteins in living venom cells from a rattlesnake. The scientists want to ... as a disease indicator, or biomarker. Snake venom cells were used because they have a very high ...

One-of-a-kind imaging probe reveals secrets useful for drug discovery

... have unlocked secrets hidden in tiny amounts of venom taken from spindly insects called common ... hundreds of milkings to get enough walking stick venom for analysis. We were able to get great data from ... brain tissue." Scientists used walking stick venom to demonstrate the technique partly because it ...

Tarantula venom and chili peppers target same pain sensor

... venom from a West Indian tarantula has been shown to ... chair of physiology at UCSF. The tarantula venom targets the heat sensor on nerve cells known as ... species whose bites are known to cause pain. venom from the tarantula Psalmopoeus cambridgei ...

Radioactive scorpion venom for fighting cancer

... a promising new therapy for brain cancer. The venom of the yellow Israeli scorpion preferentially ... TM-601, it contains an artificial version of the venom protein, attached to a radioactive substance ... The first, early human trials of the venom therapy showed promising signs for treating the ...

Stanford snake venom study shows that certain cells may eliminate poison

... side with the victim, at least in four kinds of venom that were used in their experiments. Their ... be published in the July 28 issue of Science. venom from three species of poisonous snakes and one ... allergens, it seemed plausible that introducing venom into the body would trigger a similar response. ...

Taipan venom no snake oil

... Australian snakes' venom could provide the next generation of human therapeutic drugs. A blood-clotting protein in taipan venom has been identified by Queensland University of ... QUT's School of Life Sciences who studied the venom of eight of Australia's deadliest land snakes for ...

Evolution mystery: Spider venom and bacteria share same toxin

... of Arizona. The toxin is uniquely found in the venom cocktail of brown or violin spiders, including ... some Corynebacteria. The toxin from the spider's venom can kill flesh at the bite site; the bacterium ... still left with the question of whether this venom enzyme hopped species from the spider to the ...

Molecular miners find pain relief drugs from the sea

... in 2003 while studying the toxins produced in the venom of Conus victoriae, a marine cone snail found in ... coast of Australia. All cone snails produce venom which they use to paralyse prey before killing and eating them. The venom of some cone snails is toxic to humans ?as many ...

Venom doc tracks down snake bioweapons

... protein repertoire. To date, 24 different snake venom toxins have been characterized by scientists, but ... Fry, the Deputy Director of the Australian venom Research Unit, identified the origin of the 24 ... protein. "The wide-ranging origins of snake venom toxin - body counterparts explain the amazing ...

Spider Venom Could Yield Eco-Friendly Insecticides

... to humans and insects -- is an ideal source of venom for King's research. The spider "cooperates" by ... it relatively easy for researchers to aspirate venom directly from its fangs. Since Australian ... King's chemical analysis. Funnel-web spider venom is a complex brew of more than 100 chemical ...

Researchers find first evidence of venom system in extinct mammal

... that they now believe is the first evidence of an extinct mammal with a venom delivery apparatus. The research will be published June 23, 2005 in ... shows that mammals have been much more flexible in the evolution of venom delivery systems than previously believed," said Fox, who works out of the ...

Researchers reveal secrets of flying snakes

... and officially are classified as harmless. Flying snakes secrete mild venom that is only dangerous to their small prey. They are diurnal and ... each has a small groove that runs along the fang's outer edge, where the venom drips down and into the prey. Whether or not the snake's choice of prey is ...

New biochip helps study living cells, may speed drug development

... lidocaine and Novocain target sodium-channels. In nature, some of the most potent venoms and toxins work by blocking these channels, including the venom of certain snakes and strychnine. Porterfield's chip is technically classified as a "cell electrophysiology lab-on-a-chip." The device is ...

Looking to a new era in bee research

... diet. Several papers address ways that honey bee studies can provide insights into human health. These papers cover the genetic bases of honey bee venom allergens, along with mechanistic insights into the remarkable longevity of queen honey bees and sperm stored in the spermatheca. The HBGSP has ...

Gatekeeping: Penn researchers find new way to open ion channels in cell membranes

... Using an enzyme found in the venom of the brown recluse spider, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have discovered a new way to open molecular pores, ...