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Hexapod Assassins' Potion: Venom Composition and Bioactivity from the Eurasian Assassin Bug Rhynocoris iracundus.

ABSTRACT: Assassin bug venoms are potent and exert diverse biological functions, making them potential biomedical goldmines. Besides feeding functions on arthropods, assassin bugs also use their venom for defense purposes causing localized and systemic reactions in vertebrates. However, assassin bug venoms remain poorly characterized. We collected the venom from the assassin bug Rhynocoris iracundus and investigated its composition and bioactivity in vitro and in vivo. It caused lysis of murine neuroblastoma, hepatoma cells, and healthy murine myoblasts. We demonstrated, for the first time, that assassin bug venom induces neurolysis and suggest that it counteracts paralysis locally via the destruction of neural networks, contributing to tissue digestion. Furthermore, the venom caused paralysis and melanization of Galleria mellonella larvae and pupae, whilst also possessing specific antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, but not Listeria grayi and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. A combinatorial proteo-transcriptomic approach was performed to identify potential toxins responsible for the observed effects. We identified neurotoxic Ptu1, an inhibitory cystin knot (ICK) toxin homologous to ω-conotoxins from cone snails, cytolytic redulysins homologous to trialysins from hematophagous kissing bugs, and pore-forming hemolysins. Additionally, chitinases and kininogens were found and may be responsible for insecticidal and cytolytic activities. We demonstrate the multifunctionality and complexity of assassin bug venom, which renders its molecular components interesting for potential biomedical applications.

SUBMITTER: Rugen N

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8301361 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:Assassin bugs (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Reduviidae) are venomous insects that prey on invertebrates. Assassin bug venom has features in common with venoms from other animals, such as paralysing and lethal activity when injected, and a molecular composition that includes disulfide-rich peptide neurotoxins. Uniquely, this venom also has strong liquefying activity that has been hypothesised to facilitate feeding through the narrow channel of the proboscis—a structure inherited from sap- and phloem-feeding phytophagous hemipterans and adapted during the evolution of Heteroptera into a fang and feeding structure. However, further understanding of the function of assassin bug venom is impeded by the lack of proteomic studies detailing its molecular composition. In addition, the lack of knowledge regarding venoms of predaceous reduviids limits our understanding of how the venoms of the blood-feeding kissing bugs (Reduviidae: Triatominae) evolved to facilitate hematophagy. By using a combined transcriptomic/proteomic approach we show that the venom proteome of the harpactorine assassin bug Pristhesancus plagipennis includes a complex suite of >100 proteins comprising disulfide-rich peptides, CUB-domain proteins, cystatins, putative cytolytic toxins, triabin-like protein, odorant binding protein, serine proteases, catabolic enzymes, putative nutrient-binding proteins, plus eight families of proteins without homology to characterised proteins. Serine proteases, CUB domain proteins and other novel proteins in the 10–16 kDa mass range, as well as putative cytolytic toxins, were the most abundant venom components. Thus, in addition to putative neurotoxins, assassin bug venom includes a high proportion of enzymatic and cytolytic venom components well suited to tissue liquefaction. While some protein families such as lipocalin/triabins occur in the venoms of both predaceous and blood-feeding reduviids, the composition of venoms in these two groups differs markedly. These results provide insights into the venom evolution in the insect suborder Heteroptera.

Project description:Assassin bugs (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Reduviidae) are venomous insects, most of which prey on invertebrates. Assassin bug venom has features in common with venoms from other animals, such as paralyzing and lethal activity when injected, and a molecular composition that includes disulfide-rich peptide neurotoxins. Uniquely, this venom also has strong liquefying activity that has been hypothesized to facilitate feeding through the narrow channel of the proboscis-a structure inherited from sap- and phloem-feeding phytophagous hemipterans and adapted during the evolution of Heteroptera into a fang and feeding structure. However, further understanding of the function of assassin bug venom is impeded by the lack of proteomic studies detailing its molecular composition.By using a combined transcriptomic/proteomic approach, we show that the venom proteome of the harpactorine assassin bug Pristhesancus plagipennis includes a complex suite of >100 proteins comprising disulfide-rich peptides, CUB domain proteins, cystatins, putative cytolytic toxins, triabin-like protein, odorant-binding protein, S1 proteases, catabolic enzymes, putative nutrient-binding proteins, plus eight families of proteins without homology to characterized proteins. S1 proteases, CUB domain proteins, putative cytolytic toxins, and other novel proteins in the 10-16-kDa mass range, were the most abundant venom components. Thus, in addition to putative neurotoxins, assassin bug venom includes a high proportion of enzymatic and cytolytic venom components likely to be well suited to tissue liquefaction. Our results also provide insight into the trophic switch to blood-feeding by the kissing bugs (Reduviidae: Triatominae). Although some protein families such as triabins occur in the venoms of both predaceous and blood-feeding reduviids, the composition of venoms produced by these two groups is revealed to differ markedly. These results provide insights into the venom evolution in the insect suborder Heteroptera.

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Hexapod Assassins' Potion: Venom Composition and Bioactivity from the Eurasian Assassin Bug Rhynocoris iracundus.

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