Evolution of separate predation- and defence-evoked venoms in carnivorous cone snails

Sébastien Dutertre, Ai-Hua Jin, Irina Vetter, Brett Hamilton, Kartik Sunagar, Vincent Lavergne, Valentin Dutertre, Bryan G. Fry, Agostinho Antunes, Deon J. Venter, Paul F. Alewood and Richard J. Lewis ()
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Sébastien Dutertre: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland
Ai-Hua Jin: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland
Irina Vetter: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland
Brett Hamilton: and Mater Research Institute, Mater Health Services, South Brisbane
Kartik Sunagar: CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto
Vincent Lavergne: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland
Valentin Dutertre: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland
Bryan G. Fry: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland
Agostinho Antunes: CIMAR/CIIMAR, Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto
Deon J. Venter: and Mater Research Institute, Mater Health Services, South Brisbane
Paul F. Alewood: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland
Richard J. Lewis: Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland

Nature Communications, 2014, vol. 5, issue 1, 1-9

Abstract: Abstract Venomous animals are thought to inject the same combination of toxins for both predation and defence, presumably exploiting conserved target pharmacology across prey and predators. Remarkably, cone snails can rapidly switch between distinct venoms in response to predatory or defensive stimuli. Here, we show that the defence-evoked venom of Conus geographus contains high levels of paralytic toxins that potently block neuromuscular receptors, consistent with its lethal effects on humans. In contrast, C. geographus predation-evoked venom contains prey-specific toxins mostly inactive at human targets. Predation- and defence-evoked venoms originate from the distal and proximal regions of the venom duct, respectively, explaining how different stimuli can generate two distinct venoms. A specialized defensive envenomation strategy is widely evolved across worm, mollusk and fish-hunting cone snails. We propose that defensive toxins, originally evolved in ancestral worm-hunting cone snails to protect against cephalopod and fish predation, have been repurposed in predatory venoms to facilitate diversification to fish and mollusk diets.

Date: 2014
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms4521

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