Project description:Latest advancement of omics technologies allows in-depth characterization of venom compositions. In the present work we present a proteomic study of two snake venoms of the genus Naja i.e. Naja naja (black cobra) and Naja oxiana (brown cobra), of Pakistani origin. The present study has shown that these snake venoms consist of a highly diversified proteome. Furthermore, the data also revealed variation among closely related species. High throughput mass spectrometric analysis of the venom proteome allowed to identify for the N. naja venom 34 protein families and for the N. oxiana 24 protein families. The comparative evaluation of the two venoms showed that N. naja consists of a more complex venom proteome than N. oxiana venom.
Project description:Bites by the Indian spectacled cobra (Naja naja) are widely reported across the Indian subcontinent, with an associated high rate of mortality and morbidity. In western India (WI), the numbers of reported incidents of cobra envenomation are significantly higher than the other snake bites. In this study the venom proteome of WINn was deciphered for the first time using tandem mass spectroscopy analysis.
Project description:In contrast to comprehensively investigated antibacterial activity of snake venoms, namely crude venoms and their selected components, little is known about antifungal properties of elapid snake venoms. In the present study, the proteome of two venoms of red spitting cobra Naja pallida (NPV) and Mozambique spitting cobra Naja mossambica (NMV) was characterized using LC-MS/MS approach and the biological activity of crude venoms against three Candida species was established.
Project description:True cobras of the genus Naja are venomous snakes with particular medical importance in Africa and Asia. The Cape cobra Naja nivea is one of the most toxic of the African true cobras, but the composition of its venom has rarely been investigated using proteomics methods.
Project description:Mucuna pruriens extract MPE pretreatment may have a direct protective effect on heart (other than immunological neutralization of the venom neurotoxin and phospholipase A2 by the anti-MPE antibodies) that renders the heart more resistant to the toxic action of the venom The direct protective effect probably involves functional changes to the cardiac tissue that enable the heart to resist the reduction of contractility and rate induced by the cobra venom.To explore the possibility of the direct action of MPE pretreatment on heart and to understand the molecular events involved in the protection of MPE pretreatment against the lethal action of Naja sputatrix venom, gene expression studies were carried out using microarray analysis.
Project description:This project mainly aims to characterize the complex toxic components present in the venom of Indian cobra (Naja naja) from the Western Ghats of India. Naja naja (NN) is native to the Indian subcontinent and is also found in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Southern Nepal. It is a highly venomous snake species of genus Naja of the Elapidae family. They are seen in wide habitats like plains, dense or open forests, rocky terrains, wetlands, agricultural lands, and outskirts of villages and even in highly populated urban areas. This species has been included in the ‘Big 4’ category of venomous snake species that accounts for majority of morbidity and mortality cases in India. Therefore, exploring the venom proteome of Naja naja is decisive to develop and design new antivenom and therapeutics against its envenomation. The venom proteome of Naja naja was characterized through various orthogonal separation strategies and identification strategies. In order to achieve this the crude venom components were resolved on a 12% SDS page. Also, the venom was decomplexed through reversed-phase HPLC followed by SDS analysis. Further each of the bands were subjected to in-gel digestion using trypsin, chymotrypsin and V8 proteases. All the digested peptides were then subjected to Q-TOF LC-MS/MS analysis.
Project description:Three main top-down mass spectrometry methodologies were employed in a proof-of-concept study to characterise selected three finger toxins and phospholipase A2 toxins from the forest cobra (Naja melanoleuca) venom. The novel utility of data-independent acquisition, alternative hybrid ECD-CID fragmentation and the incorporation of cyclic ion mobility separation in a top-down proteomic workflow were explored for snake venom proteins.