Spit and venom from scytodes spiders: a diverse and distinct cocktail.

ABSTRACT: Spiders from the family Scytodidae have a unique prey capturing technique: they spit a zig-zagged silken glue to tether prey to a surface. Effectiveness of this sticky mixture is based on a combination of contraction and adhesion, trapping prey until the spider immobilizes it by envenomation and then feeds. We identify components expressed in Scytodes thoracica venom glands using combined transcriptomic and proteomic analyses. These include homologues of toxic proteins astacin metalloproteases and potentially toxic proteins including venom allergen, longistatin, and translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP). We classify 19 distinct groups of candidate peptide toxins; 13 of these were detected in the venom, making up 35% of the proteome. Six have significant similarity to toxins from

SUBMITTER: Zobel-Thropp PA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6692171 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature