No Sex Please, We’re Copperheads!
Mass spec “venomics” analyzes the deadliness of asexually produced snakes
Who?
A team from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine,UK, and the Evolutionary and Translational Venomics Laboratory, Spain, have analyzed the venom of snake offspring in a recent study (1).
What?
The researchers were looking specifically at copperhead snakes conceived via facultative parthogenesis (FP) – where the mother reproduces without fertilization – to ascertain whether sexless reproduction might negatively impact the potency of venom (negative if you’re not their prey, that is).
Why?
Previous studies have shown that FP in jawed vertebrates can result in a lack of genetic diversity, which typically leads to lower evolutionary fitness. What’s more, as it was only observed in captivity, it has been considered a “reproductive error” (1) rather than a viable mode of procreation. So you might expect FP to have a negative impact on a genetically complex survival trait like venom composition.
How?
They collected the venom of four snakes born in captivity to wild-collected females. They then used 2D gel electrophoresis to gain a proteomic profile and LC-MS/MS to compare and analyze the samples, looking specifically at toxicity and coagulopathic effect.
Findings?
FP was found to have little impact on the chemical complexity of the copperheads’ venom – in fact, there was a high degree of similarity with the venom sampled from each snake’s mother. The researchers believe this finding reinforces the viability of FP “as a potentially important mode of reproduction.”
- JJ Calvete et al., “Venom complexity in a pitviper produced by facultative parthogenesis”, Sci Rep, 8, 11539 (2018). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-29791-y
A former library manager and storyteller, I have wanted to write for magazines since I was six years old, when I used to make my own out of foolscap paper and sellotape and distribute them to my family. Since getting my MSc in Publishing, I’ve worked as a freelance writer and content creator for both digital and print, writing on subjects such as fashion, food, tourism, photography – and the history of Roman toilets.
