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Highlights in arthropod venoms: Potential applications in medicine and biotechnology

Edited by Maria Elena de Lima, Yong-Hua Ji and Maria Stankiewics

With over 800,000 species, many of them venomous, the phylum Arthropod is still underexplored from a toxinological perspective. Taken together, the venoms of these animals may contain millions of potentially active molecules and some of them have already been key in the investigation of receptors, ion channels and other cellular structures and functions, offering new perspectives for the development of drugs, treatments and biotechnologies.

This collection of articles has not been sponsored and articles have undergone the journal’s standard peer-review process. The Guest Editors declare no competing interests.

View all collections published in Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases.

  1. Hyaluronidases are enzymes that mainly degrade hyaluronan, the major glycosaminoglycan of the interstitial matrix. They are involved in several pathological and physiological activities including fertilization...

    Authors: Karla C F Bordon, Gisele A. Wiezel, Fernanda G. Amorim and Eliane C. Arantes
    Citation: Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases 2015 21:43
    Content type: Review Published on:

  2. BmK I, a site-3-specific modulator of voltage-gated sodium channels (VGSCs), causes pain and hyperalgesia in rats, while BmK IT2, a site-4-specific modulator of VGSCs, suppresses pain-related responses. A stro...

    Authors: Yi-Jun Feng, Qi Feng, Jie Tao, Rong Zhao and Yong-Hua Ji
    Citation: Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases 2015 21:42
    Content type: Research Published on:

  3. Extremely low-frequency (50 Hz) electromagnetic field (ELF-EMF) is produced by electric power transmission lines and electronic devices of everyday use. Some phenomena are proposed as “first effects” of ELF-EM...

    Authors: Milena Jankowska, Agnieszka Pawlowska-Mainville, Maria Stankiewicz, Justyna Rogalska and Joanna Wyszkowska
    Citation: Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases 2015 21:38
    Content type: Research Published on:

  4. The impact of neurological disorders in society is growing with alarming estimations for an incidence increase in the next decades. These disorders are generally chronic and can affect individuals early during...

    Authors: Victoria Monge-Fuentes, Flávia Maria Medeiros Gomes, Gabriel Avohay Alves Campos, Juliana de Castro Silva, Andréia Mayer Biolchi, Lilian Carneiro dos Anjos, Jacqueline Coimbra Gonçalves, Kamila Soares Lopes and Márcia Renata Mortari
    Citation: Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases 2015 21:31
    Content type: Review Published on:

  5. Ecuador harbors one of the most diverse Neotropical scorpion faunas, hereby updated to 47 species contained within eight genera and five families, which inhabits the “Costa” (n = 17), “Sierra” (n = 34), “Oriente”...

    Authors: Gabriel Brito and Adolfo Borges
    Citation: Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases 2015 21:23
    Content type: Review Published on:

  6. The article provides a historical report on venomous spider identification, venom obtainment methods and serum production at the Butantan Institute, São Paulo, Brazil. It is based on literature and personnal e...

    Authors: Sylvia M Lucas
    Citation: Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases 2015 21:21
    Content type: Review Published on:

  7. The choice between heterologous expression versus chemical synthesis for synthesizing short cysteine-rich insecticidal peptides from arthropods may impact the obtainment of yields and well-folded bioactive mol...

    Authors: Herlinda Clement, Vianey Flores, Elia Diego-Garcia, Ligia Corrales-Garcia, Elba Villegas and Gerardo Corzo
    Citation: Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases 2015 21:19
    Content type: Research Published on:

  8. Since the description and biochemical characterization of the first insect-specific neurotoxins from scorpion venoms, almost all contributions have highlighted their potential application as leads for the deve...

    Authors: Ernesto Ortiz and Lourival D Possani
    Citation: Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases 2015 21:16
    Content type: Review Published on:

  9. Tarantulas (Theraphosidae) represent an important source of novel biologically active compounds that target a variety of ion channels and cell receptors in both insects and mammals. In this study, we evaluate ...

    Authors: Alejandro García-Arredondo, Luis Rodríguez-Rios, Luis Fernando Díaz-Peña and Ricardo Vega-Ángeles
    Citation: Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases 2015 21:15
    Content type: Research Published on:

  10. In the present study, comments are proposed on historical aspects of the most conspicuous scorpion species of the genus Tityus found in Brazil. Both Tityus bahiensis (Perty) and Tityus serrulatus Lutz & Mello are...

    Authors: Wilson R. Lourenço
    Citation: Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases 2015 21:20
    Content type: Review Published on: