Biochemical analysis of Hemiscorpius lepturus venom

Hemiscorpius lepturus Peters, 1861 (Hemiscorpiidae) is a highly cytotoxic scorpions that has the highest mortality rate among scorpions in Iran. Causing different symptoms than most other scorpions, knowledge about the biochemistry and toxicology of the Hemiscorpius venom is important.

Ramin Seyedian and co-workers have now published an enzymatic analysis of Hemiscorpius lepturus venom that increase the knowledge of the venom composition and how the venom works on the human body. This knowledge is important in the development of better treatment of the sting victims of this dangerous species.

Abstract:
Hemiscorpius lepturus envenomation exhibits various pathological changes in the affected tissues, including skin, blood cells, cardiovascular and central nervous systems. The enzymatic activity and protein component of the venom have not been described previously. In the present study, the electrophoretic profile of H. lepturus venom was determined by SDS-PAGE (12 and 15%), resulting in major protein bands at 3.5–5, 30–35 and 50–60 kDa. The enzymatic activities of the venomwas, for the first time, investigated using various zymography techniques, which showed the gelatinolytic, caseinolytic, and hyaluronidase activities mainly at around 50–60 kDa, 30–40 kDa, and 40–50 kDa, respectively. Among these, the proteolytic activities was almost completely disappeared in the presence of a matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor, 1, 10-phenanthroline. Antigen-antibody interactions between the venom and its Iranian antivenin was observed by Western blotting, and it showed several antigenic proteins in the range of 30–160 kDa. This strong antigen– antibody reaction was also demonstrated through an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The gelatinase activity of the venom was suppressed by Razi institute polyvalent antivenin, suggesting the inhibitory effect of the antivenin against H. lepturus venom protease activities. Prudently, more extensive clinical studies are necessary for validation of its use in envenomed patients.

Reference:
Seyedian R, Pipelzadeh MH, Jalali A, Kim E, Lee H, Kang C, et al. Enzymatic analysis of Hemiscorpius lepturus scorpion venom using zymography and venom-specific antivenin. Toxicon. 2010 Sep 15;56(4):521-5. [Subscription required for fulltext]

Thanks to Ramin Seyedian for sending me this paper!