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Toxins
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Animal Venoms and Pain
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Animal Venoms and Pain

A special issue of Toxins (ISSN 2072-6651). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Venoms".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 October 2017) | Viewed by 89615

Special Issue Editors

Assoc. Prof. Stuart M. Brierley

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Guest Editor
Visceral Pain Research Group, Human Physiology, School of Medicine, Flinders University. Level 7, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI), North Terrace, Adelaide, SA 5000, Australia
Dr. Irina Vetter

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Guest Editor
School of Pharmacy, Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Whether by an ant bite, scorpion sting, envenomation by a spitting cobra, or a brush with a sea anemone—animal venoms are well recognised for their devastating effects on sensory neurons. These effects cause incapacitating pain for the victim and enable a quick retreat for the perpetrator.

However, apart from the apparent survival advantage that inflicting pain on predators conveys, venoms have also evolved many components that, by virtue of their exquisite potency and specificity for key signalling molecules in the mammalian nervous system, exert potent analgesic effects.

This Special Issue of Toxins will cover recent developments relating to animal venoms and pain, including perspectives on the evolution, mechanism of action and structure-function of pro-algesic and analgesic venom components.

The individual articles will review

  • The evolutionary processes shaping development of toxins targeting pain pathways
  • Pharmacology of venom peptides targeting pain pathways, including toxins targeting transient receptor potential channels, G-protein coupled receptors and voltage-gated ion channels involved in pain.
  • Insights into structure-activity of toxins acting at pain targets
  • Snake venom components targeting peripheral sensory neurons
  • Therapeutic applications of venoms for treatment of pain

Assoc. Prof. Stuart M. Brierley
Dr. Irina Vetter
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Toxins is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Pain
  • Transient receptor potential channels
  • G-protein coupled receptors
  • Voltage-gated ion channels
  • Neurons
  • Toxins
  • Venoms

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Published Papers (8 papers)

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Research

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2777 KiB  
Article
Peripheral 5-HT3 Receptors Are Involved in the Antinociceptive Effect of Bunodosine 391
by Wilson Alves Ferreira Junior, Andre Junqueira Zaharenko, Kohei Kazuma, Gisele Picolo, Vanessa Pacciari Gutierrez, Jose Carlos De Freitas, Katsuhiro Konno and Yara Cury
Toxins 2018, 10(1), 12; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins10010012 - 27 Dec 2017
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 4030
Abstract
Bunodosine 391 (BDS 391), a low molecular weight compound isolated from the sea anemone Bunodosoma cangicum, increases the nociceptive threshold and inhibits inflammatory hyperalgesia. Serotonin receptors are involved in those effects. In this study, we have expanded the characterization of the antinociceptive [...] Read more.
Bunodosine 391 (BDS 391), a low molecular weight compound isolated from the sea anemone Bunodosoma cangicum, increases the nociceptive threshold and inhibits inflammatory hyperalgesia. Serotonin receptors are involved in those effects. In this study, we have expanded the characterization of the antinociceptive effect of BDS 391 demonstrating that, in rats: (a) the compound inhibits (1.2–12 ng/paw) overt pain, in the formalin test, and mechanical hyperalgesia (0.6–6.0 ng/paw) detected in a model of neuropathic pain; (b) intraplantar administration of ondansetron, a selective 5-HT3 receptor antagonist, blocks the effect of BDS 391, whereas ketanserin, a 5-HT2 receptor antagonist, partially reversed this effect, indicating the involvement of peripheral 5-HT2 and 5-HT3 receptors in BDS 391 antinociception; and (c) in binding assay studies, BDS 391 was not able to displace the selective 5-HT receptor antagonists, suggesting that this compound does not directly bind to these receptors. The effect of biguanide, a selective 5-HT3 receptor agonist, was also evaluated. The agonist inhibited the formalin’s nociceptive response, supporting an antinociceptive role for 5-HT3 receptors. Our study is the first one to show that a non-peptidic low molecular weight compound obtained from a sea anemone is able to induce antinociception and that activation of peripheral 5-HT3 receptors contributes to this effect. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Venoms and Pain)
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1654 KiB  
Article
Efficacy of Bee Venom Acupuncture for Chronic Low Back Pain: A Randomized, Double-Blinded, Sham-Controlled Trial
by Byung-Kwan Seo, Kyungsun Han, Ojin Kwon, Dae-Jean Jo and Jun-Hwan Lee
Toxins 2017, 9(11), 361; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins9110361 - 7 Nov 2017
Cited by 35 | Viewed by 11522
Abstract
Bee venom acupuncture (BVA) is an effective treatment for chronic low back pain (CLBP) through the pharmacological effects of bee venom and the simultaneous stimulation of acupoints. However, evidence of its efficacy and safety in humans remains unclear. Using a double-blind, randomized study, [...] Read more.
Bee venom acupuncture (BVA) is an effective treatment for chronic low back pain (CLBP) through the pharmacological effects of bee venom and the simultaneous stimulation of acupoints. However, evidence of its efficacy and safety in humans remains unclear. Using a double-blind, randomized study, 54 patients with non-specific CLBP were assigned to the BVA and sham groups. All participants underwent six sessions of real or sham BVA for 3 weeks, in addition to administration of 180 mg of loxonin per day. The primary outcome, that is, “bothersomeness” derived from back pain, was assessed using the visual analog scale. Secondary outcomes included pain intensity, dysfunction related to back pain (Oswestry Disability Index), quality of life (EuroQol 5-Dimension), and depressive mood (Beck’s depression inventory). Outcomes were evaluated every week during the treatment period and followed up at weeks 4, 8, and 12. After 3 weeks of the treatment, significant improvements were observed in the bothersomeness, pain intensity, and functional status in the BVA group compared with the sham group. Although minimal adverse events were observed in both groups, subsequent recovery was achieved without treatment. Consequently, our results suggest that it can be used along with conventional pharmacological therapies for the treatment of CLBP. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Venoms and Pain)
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2073 KiB  
Article
Spider Neurotoxins, Short Linear Cationic Peptides and Venom Protein Classification Improved by an Automated Competition between Exhaustive Profile HMM Classifiers
by Dominique Koua and Lucia Kuhn-Nentwig
Toxins 2017, 9(8), 245; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins9080245 - 8 Aug 2017
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5248
Abstract
Spider venoms are rich cocktails of bioactive peptides, proteins, and enzymes that are being intensively investigated over the years. In order to provide a better comprehension of that richness, we propose a three-level family classification system for spider venom components. This classification is [...] Read more.
Spider venoms are rich cocktails of bioactive peptides, proteins, and enzymes that are being intensively investigated over the years. In order to provide a better comprehension of that richness, we propose a three-level family classification system for spider venom components. This classification is supported by an exhaustive set of 219 new profile hidden Markov models (HMMs) able to attribute a given peptide to its precise peptide type, family, and group. The proposed classification has the advantages of being totally independent from variable spider taxonomic names and can easily evolve. In addition to the new classifiers, we introduce and demonstrate the efficiency of hmmcompete, a new standalone tool that monitors HMM-based family classification and, after post-processing the result, reports the best classifier when multiple models produce significant scores towards given peptide queries. The combined used of hmmcompete and the new spider venom component-specific classifiers demonstrated 96% sensitivity to properly classify all known spider toxins from the UniProtKB database. These tools are timely regarding the important classification needs caused by the increasing number of peptides and proteins generated by transcriptomic projects. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Venoms and Pain)
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13619 KiB  
Article
How the Cobra Got Its Flesh-Eating Venom: Cytotoxicity as a Defensive Innovation and Its Co-Evolution with Hooding, Aposematic Marking, and Spitting
by Nadya Panagides, Timothy N.W. Jackson, Maria P. Ikonomopoulou, Kevin Arbuckle, Rudolf Pretzler, Daryl C. Yang, Syed A. Ali, Ivan Koludarov, James Dobson, Brittany Sanker, Angelique Asselin, Renan C. Santana, Iwan Hendrikx, Harold Van der Ploeg, Jeremie Tai-A-Pin, Romilly Van den Bergh, Harald M.I. Kerkkamp, Freek J. Vonk, Arno Naude, Morné A. Strydom, Louis Jacobsz, Nathan Dunstan, Marc Jaeger, Wayne C. Hodgson, John Miles and Bryan G. Fryadd Show full author list remove Hide full author list
Toxins 2017, 9(3), 103; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins9030103 - 13 Mar 2017
Cited by 72 | Viewed by 35929
Abstract
The cytotoxicity of the venom of 25 species of Old World elapid snake was tested and compared with the morphological and behavioural adaptations of hooding and spitting. We determined that, contrary to previous assumptions, the venoms of spitting species are not consistently more [...] Read more.
The cytotoxicity of the venom of 25 species of Old World elapid snake was tested and compared with the morphological and behavioural adaptations of hooding and spitting. We determined that, contrary to previous assumptions, the venoms of spitting species are not consistently more cytotoxic than those of closely related non-spitting species. While this correlation between spitting and non-spitting was found among African cobras, it was not present among Asian cobras. On the other hand, a consistent positive correlation was observed between cytotoxicity and utilisation of the defensive hooding display that cobras are famous for. Hooding and spitting are widely regarded as defensive adaptations, but it has hitherto been uncertain whether cytotoxicity serves a defensive purpose or is somehow useful in prey subjugation. The results of this study suggest that cytotoxicity evolved primarily as a defensive innovation and that it has co-evolved twice alongside hooding behavior: once in the Hemachatus + Naja and again independently in the king cobras (Ophiophagus). There was a significant increase of cytotoxicity in the Asian Naja linked to the evolution of bold aposematic hood markings, reinforcing the link between hooding and the evolution of defensive cytotoxic venoms. In parallel, lineages with increased cytotoxicity but lacking bold hood patterns evolved aposematic markers in the form of high contrast body banding. The results also indicate that, secondary to the evolution of venom rich in cytotoxins, spitting has evolved three times independently: once within the African Naja, once within the Asian Naja, and once in the Hemachatus genus. The evolution of cytotoxic venom thus appears to facilitate the evolution of defensive spitting behaviour. In contrast, a secondary loss of cytotoxicity and reduction of the hood occurred in the water cobra Naja annulata, which possesses streamlined neurotoxic venom similar to that of other aquatic elapid snakes (e.g., hydrophiine sea snakes). The results of this study make an important contribution to our growing understanding of the selection pressures shaping the evolution of snake venom and its constituent toxins. The data also aid in elucidating the relationship between these selection pressures and the medical impact of human snakebite in the developing world, as cytotoxic cobras cause considerable morbidity including loss-of-function injuries that result in economic and social burdens in the tropics of Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Venoms and Pain)
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2546 KiB  
Article
Bee Venom Phospholipase A2 Ameliorates House Dust Mite Extract Induced Atopic Dermatitis Like Skin Lesions in Mice
by Kyung-Hwa Jung, Hyunjung Baek, Manho Kang, Namsik Kim, Seung Young Lee and Hyunsu Bae
Toxins 2017, 9(2), 68; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins9020068 - 18 Feb 2017
Cited by 22 | Viewed by 7490
Abstract
Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a biphasic inflammatory skin disease that is provoked by epidermal barrier defects, immune dysregulation, and increased skin infections. Previously, we have demonstrated that bvPLA2 evoked immune tolerance by inducing regulatory T cells (Treg), and thus alleviated Th2 dominant allergic [...] Read more.
Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a biphasic inflammatory skin disease that is provoked by epidermal barrier defects, immune dysregulation, and increased skin infections. Previously, we have demonstrated that bvPLA2 evoked immune tolerance by inducing regulatory T cells (Treg), and thus alleviated Th2 dominant allergic asthma in mice. Here, we would like to determine whether treatment with bvPLA2 exacerbates the AD-like allergic inflammations induced by house dust mite extract (DFE) in a murine model. Epidermal thickness, immune cell infiltration, serum immunoglobulin, and cytokines were measured. Ear swelling, skin lesions, and the levels of total serum IgE and Th1/Th2 cytokines were elevated in DFE/DNCB-induced AD mice. Topical application of bvPLA2 elicited significant suppression of the increased AD symptoms, including ear thickness, serum IgE concentration, inflammatory cytokines, and histological changes. Furthermore, bvPLA2 treatment inhibited mast cell infiltration into the ear. On the other hand, Treg cell depletion abolished the anti-atopic effects of bvPLA2, suggesting that the effects of bvPLA2 depend on the existence of Tregs. Taken together, the results revealed that topical exposure to bvPLA2 aggravated atopic skin inflammation, suggesting that bvPLA2 might be a candidate for the treatment of AD. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Venoms and Pain)
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Review

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758 KiB  
Review
Pain-Causing Venom Peptides: Insights into Sensory Neuron Pharmacology
by Sina Jami, Andelain Erickson, Stuart M. Brierley and Irina Vetter
Toxins 2018, 10(1), 15; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins10010015 - 27 Dec 2017
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 8840
Abstract
Venoms are produced by a wide variety of species including spiders, scorpions, reptiles, cnidarians, and fish for the purpose of harming or incapacitating predators or prey. While some venoms are of relatively simple composition, many contain hundreds to thousands of individual components with [...] Read more.
Venoms are produced by a wide variety of species including spiders, scorpions, reptiles, cnidarians, and fish for the purpose of harming or incapacitating predators or prey. While some venoms are of relatively simple composition, many contain hundreds to thousands of individual components with distinct pharmacological activity. Pain-inducing or “algesic” venom compounds have proven invaluable to our understanding of how physiological nociceptive neural networks operate. In this review, we present an overview of some of the diverse nociceptive pathways that can be modulated by specific venom components to evoke pain. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Venoms and Pain)
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1525 KiB  
Review
Secreted Phospholipases A2 from Animal Venoms in Pain and Analgesia
by Vanessa O. Zambelli, Gisele Picolo, Carlos A. H. Fernandes, Marcos R. M. Fontes and Yara Cury
Toxins 2017, 9(12), 406; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins9120406 - 19 Dec 2017
Cited by 60 | Viewed by 7217
Abstract
Animal venoms comprise a complex mixture of components that affect several biological systems. Based on the high selectivity for their molecular targets, these components are also a rich source of potential therapeutic agents. Among the main components of animal venoms are the secreted [...] Read more.
Animal venoms comprise a complex mixture of components that affect several biological systems. Based on the high selectivity for their molecular targets, these components are also a rich source of potential therapeutic agents. Among the main components of animal venoms are the secreted phospholipases A2 (sPLA2s). These PLA2 belong to distinct PLA2s groups. For example, snake venom sPLA2s from Elapidae and Viperidae families, the most important families when considering envenomation, belong, respectively, to the IA and IIA/IIB groups, whereas bee venom PLA2 belongs to group III of sPLA2s. It is well known that PLA2, due to its hydrolytic activity on phospholipids, takes part in many pathophysiological processes, including inflammation and pain. Therefore, secreted PLA2s obtained from animal venoms have been widely used as tools to (a) modulate inflammation and pain, uncovering molecular targets that are implicated in the control of inflammatory (including painful) and neurodegenerative diseases; (b) shed light on the pathophysiology of inflammation and pain observed in human envenomation by poisonous animals; and, (c) characterize molecular mechanisms involved in inflammatory diseases. The present review summarizes the knowledge on the nociceptive and antinociceptive actions of sPLA2s from animal venoms, particularly snake venoms. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Venoms and Pain)
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893 KiB  
Review
G-Protein Coupled Receptors Targeted by Analgesic Venom Peptides
by James T. Daniel and Richard J. Clark
Toxins 2017, 9(11), 372; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxins9110372 - 16 Nov 2017
Cited by 15 | Viewed by 7834
Abstract
Chronic pain is a complex and debilitating condition associated with a large personal and socioeconomic burden. Current pharmacological approaches to treating chronic pain such as opioids, antidepressants and anticonvulsants exhibit limited efficacy in many patients and are associated with dose-limiting side effects that [...] Read more.
Chronic pain is a complex and debilitating condition associated with a large personal and socioeconomic burden. Current pharmacological approaches to treating chronic pain such as opioids, antidepressants and anticonvulsants exhibit limited efficacy in many patients and are associated with dose-limiting side effects that hinder their clinical use. Therefore, improved strategies for the pharmacological treatment of pathological pain are urgently needed. G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) are ubiquitously expressed on the surface of cells and act to transduce extracellular signals and regulate physiological processes. In the context of pain, numerous and diverse families of GPCRs expressed in pain pathways regulate most aspects of physiological and pathological pain and are thus implicated as potential targets for therapy of chronic pain. In the search for novel compounds that produce analgesia via GPCR modulation, animal venoms offer an enormous and virtually untapped source of potent and selective peptide molecules. While many venom peptides target voltage-gated and ligand-gated ion channels to inhibit neuronal excitability and blunt synaptic transmission of pain signals, only a small proportion are known to interact with GPCRs. Of these, only a few have shown analgesic potential in vivo. Here we review the current state of knowledge regarding venom peptides that target GPCRs to produce analgesia, and their development as therapeutic compounds. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Animal Venoms and Pain)
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