Article
Diversification of a single ancestral gene into a successful toxin superfamily in highly venomous Australian funnel-web spiders.
BMC genomics - 5 Mar 2014
Pineda Sandy S, Sollod Brianna L, Wilson David, Darling Aaron, Sunagar Kartik, Undheim Eivind A B, Kely Laurence, Antunes Agostinho, Fry Bryan G, King Glenn F
Abstract excerpt
BACKGROUND: Spiders have evolved pharmacologically complex venoms that serve to rapidly subdue prey and deter predators. The major toxic factors in most spider venoms are small, disulfide-rich peptides. While there is abundant evidence that snake venoms evolved by recruitment of genes encoding normal body proteins followed by extensive gene duplication accompanied by explosive structural and functional...
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