Scorpion biology and folklore in Durango City, Mexico

 

Mexico is a hot spot for scorpion diversity and also hosts many of the worlds most venomous species in the genus Centruroides Marx, 1890 (Buthidae).  One of the most famous scorpion places in Mexico is "The City of Scorpions" Durango, where the infamous and very venomous species Centruroides suffusus Pocock, 1902 is very common.

 Eduardo Gonzalez-Ponce and several co-workers have recently published an interesting article about different aspects of the biology of the Durango scorpion including the scorpions' response to light, medical importance and the use of its venom for research and medicine. Of special interest is the description of how the peoples of Durango utilize the scorpions as souvenirs for tourists and as an exotic food source.

Abstract:
Scorpions are incredible venomous animals found on almost every continent. According to fossil data, these animals have been able to adapt to the different environments from the Cambrian period until today with minimal anatomical changes. Scorpions are mostly nocturnal animals, and their ability to detect and tolerate light stimuli seems to be an essential tool for their subsistence, homing and mating. Centruroides suffuses is the most predominant specie of scorpions in Durango City, Mexico. Interestingly, and despite their life-threatening venom, these predatory arthropod animals have been adopted by locals as part of the landscape and daily life, by including them as part of their folklore and their economic resources, and learning how to take advantage of their abundance. In addition, the venom of scorpions possesses potential for therapeutic uses, while the scorpions themselves represent a nutritional food resource rich in protein, which has been poorly explored so far. Therefore, they are an excellent model for exploring the interplay between light sensibilities, survival and therapeutic–medicinal uses. Here, we review some of the potential benefits of scorpions and share the ways people in Durango City, Mexico, use UV light devices to detect and avoid or catch them for business and research purposes.

Reference:
Gonzalez-Ponce E, Rodríguez-Rangel S, Martinez R, Alvarado A, Ruiz-Baca E, Miranda P, et al. Scorpions, Science and Folklore in Durango City. Diversity. 2023;15(6):743. [Open Access]

New method for scorpion venom research spares the scorpion's life

 

Scorpion venom is highly investigated, both because of the medical important of this animal group, but also because the different scorpion venom types are candidates of pharmaceutically active molecules with potential drug applications.

The most popular method today to study scorpion venoms is transcriptome studies. The current method for obtaining a scorpion venom gland transcriptome is based on sacrificing the animal to extract the venom gland from the telson (they cut of the telson). This means a lot of dead scorpions each year in the name of science.

Freek J. Vonk and several co-workers have now published an article describing a new method of generating a scorpion venom gland transcriptome without sacrificing the animal. This is good news as it will spare many scorpion lives, but also opens up new possibilities for testing the venom from the same scorpion several times (e.g. by allowing the study of the transcriptome at various time points within a single individual).

Abstract:
Scorpion venoms are mixtures of proteins, peptides and small molecular compounds with high specificity for ion channels and are therefore considered to be promising candidates in the venoms-to-drugs pipeline. Transcriptomes are important tools for studying the composition and expression of scorpion venom. Unfortunately, studying the venom gland transcriptome traditionally requires sacrificing the animal and therefore is always a single snapshot in time. This paper describes a new way of generating a scorpion venom gland transcriptome without sacrificing the animal, thereby allowing the study of the transcriptome at various time points within a single individual. By comparing these venom-derived transcriptomes to the traditional whole-telson transcriptomes we show that the relative expression levels of the major toxin classes are similar. We further performed a multi-day extraction using our proposed method to show the possibility of doing a multiple time point transcriptome analysis. This allows for the study of patterns of toxin gene activation over time a single individual, and allows assessment of the effects of diet, season and other factors that are known or likely to influence intraindividual venom composition. We discuss the gland characteristics that may allow this method to be successful in scorpions and provide a review of other venomous taxa to which this method may potentially be successfully applied.

References:
Vonk FJ, Bittenbinder MA, Kerkkamp HMI, Grashof DGB, Archer JP, Afonso S, et al. A non-lethal method for studying scorpion venom gland transcriptomes, with a review of potentially suitable taxa to which it can be applied. PLoS One. 2021;16(11):e0258712. [Open Access]

Thanks to Arie van der Meijden for sending me their interesting article!

The hunt for easy money from venom extraction may cause the extinction of some scorpion species

 

I guess many of you have seen reports in the media about the value of scorpion venom for research and that it is possible to earn millions of US$ on venom extraction. I get email inquires regularly from hopeful amateurs in Asia that want information about how to get scorpions and how to milk them.

This hunt for easy money may have an impact on the scorpion populations in many areas and may drive species to extinctions. A recent article by Alireza Zamani addresses this challenge and is well worth a read.

And for any money hungry scorpion hunters out there: There are serious doubts about the quality of the venom being extracted at amateur scorpion farms and most serious venom suppliers are probably not interested in purchasing amateur products. So leave the scorpions in nature and get rich in another way!

Abstract:
The pharmacological utility of various biochemical compounds in scorpion venom offers promise in several research fields but its potential economic value has placed pressure on scorpion populations already threatened by habitat destruction and overharvesting for the international trade in exotic pets. Since at least 2016, several countries in Africa and Asia reported an increase in the number of people investing in farms for maintaining scorpions and extracting (‘milking’) their venom for commercial use. In addition to serious doubts about the quality of the venom extracted at these farms, repeated collecting of wild specimens may denude an area of scorpions. Given estimates of a million species threatened with extinction over the next decade, unsustainable overexploitation remains a major driver of biodiversity loss. The amateur venom-extraction business has the potential to adversely affect scorpion biodiversity in several biologically rich but poorly documented countries, which calls for urgent action from governments, universities and scientific societies to enhance the conservation of local scorpions. The following activities should thus be initiated or expanded: faunistic surveys and developing national lists of endemic species, red-listing threatened and endangered species using the IUCN Red List categories and criteria, educating local communities, and ceasing to issue permits for the collection of scorpions for commercial exploitation of any kind.

Reference:
Zamani A, Sääksjärvi IE, Prendini L. Amateur venom-extraction business may hasten extinction of scorpions. Arachnologische Mitteilungen. 2021;61:20-3.[Open Access]

Thanks to Jeroen Kooijman for sending me this article!