Preprint
Convergent evolutionary adaption of spider venom from predation to defense
bioRxiv, Vol.7 March 2025
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press
2025
Abstract
Most spiders deploy paralytic venom for prey capture, but adults of the yellow-sac spider (Cheiracanthium punctorium) instead produce a predominantly defensive venom to safeguard their offspring. Here, we characterized the molecular repertoire of C. punctorium venom to shed light on its evolutionary history. Unlike venom in other spiders, C. punctorium venom mostly comprises neurotoxic double-domain neurotoxin 19 family (CSTX) peptides and enzymes, such as phospholipase A2 (PLA2). Comparative venomics in four spiders representing two infraorders showed that CSTXs arose following the mygalomorph– araneomorph split ∼300 mya by means of ancestral gene duplication and functional specialization. A gene fusion event then merged CSTXs from two distinct clades to form the double-domain toxin. PLA2 proteins were convergently recruited to C. punctorium to fulfil a defensive function and are strikingly similar to proalgesic PLA2 proteins in bee venom. These complex, multimodal molecular innovations in venom systems highlight nature’s tendency to use the same molecular solutions for similar ecological challenges across diverse animal lineages.
Details
- Title
- Convergent evolutionary adaption of spider venom from predation to defense
- Authors
- Tim Luddecke (Corresponding Author) - Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied EcologySabine Hurka - LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity GenomicsJosephine Dresler - Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied EcologyThomas Lübcke - Senckenberg Museum für Naturkunde GörlitzVolker von Wirth - Theraphosid Research Team (Germany)Günter Lochnit - Justus-Liebig-Universität GießenThomas Timm - Theraphosid Research Team (Germany)Volker Herzig - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for BioinnovationAndreas Vilcinskas - Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology
- Publication details
- bioRxiv, Vol.7 March 2025
- Publisher
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press
- Date published
- 2025
- DOI
- 10.1101/2025.03.05.641688
- ISSN
- 2692-8205
- Data Availability
- Raw proteomic data have been uploaded to PRIDE (X ID pending X). Raw transcriptomic data have been uploaded to the European Nucleotide Archive (ENA) (Study PRJEB86488). The following data are available as supplements: Information on sampled spiders and their sequencing (Supplementary S1), proteotranscriptomic analysis of C. punctorium (Supplementary S2), Transcriptomic analysis of M. menardi (Supplementary S3), P. reduncus (Supplementary S4), L. sclopetarius (Supplementary S5), T. vulgaris (Supplementary S6), as well as models generated in Alphafold 3 (Supplementary S7), and the retrieved optimal phylogenetic tree (Supplementary S8).
- Grant note
- Hessian Ministry of Science and Art (HMWK) via the LOEWE Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics granted to AV
- Organisation Unit
- School of Science, Technology and Engineering
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 991171942902621
- Output Type
- Preprint
Metrics
9 Record Views