The rise of genomics in snake venom research: recent advances and future perspectives.

ABSTRACT: Snake venoms represent a danger to human health, but also a gold mine of bioactive proteins that can be harnessed for drug discovery purposes. The evolution of snakes and their venom has been studied for decades, particularly via traditional morphological and basic genetic methods alongside venom proteomics. However, while the field of genomics has matured rapidly over the past 2 decades, owing to the development of next-generation sequencing technologies, snake genomics remains in its infancy. Here, we provide an overview of the state of the art in snake genomics and discuss its potential implications for studying venom evolution and toxinology. On the basis of current knowledge, gene duplication and positive selection are key mechanisms in the neofunctionalization of snake venom proteins

SUBMITTER: Rao WQ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8975721 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature