Snake Australian

The similarity of the primary structure of different sea snake venoms has already been discussed. Postsynaptic neurotoxins from Elapidae venom have been extensively studied. Elapidae include well-known snakes such as cobra, krait, mambas, coral snakes, and all Australian snakes. Like sea snake toxins, Elapidae toxins can also be grouped into short-chain (Type I) and long-chain (Type II) toxins. Moreover, two types of neurotoxins are also similar to cardiotoxins, especially in the positions of disulfide bonds. However, amino acid sequences between cardiotoxins and sea snake and Elapidae neurotoxins are quite different. In comparing the sequence of sea snake and Elapidae neurotoxins, there is a considerable conservation in amino acid sequence, but the difference is greater than among the various sea snake toxins. 

Neurotoxin obtained from the venom of the Australian taipan snake. 

Blind snakes find their prey by using the prey s pheromones. The wormlike Texas blind snake, Leptotyphlops dulcis, of the southwestern United States leads a subterranean life and feeds on termites and ant brood. It finds ants by following their pheromone trails (Gehlbach etal, 1968). Other blind snakes such as the American blindsnake, Typhlops pusillus (Gehlbach et al, 1971), and the Australian blindsnake, Ramphotyphlops nigrescens (Webb and Shine, 1992), also follow odor trails of ants, their prey. Texas blind snakes are attracted to the simple alkaloid skatole (methyl indole Fig. 12.4), an amine with an unpleasant odor from the ant Neivamyrmex sp. (Watkins etal, 1969). 

Zagreb antivenin European viper venom antisera Polyvalent Crotalidae antivenin Micrurus fulvius antivenin Australian polyvalent antivenins Adder bites One or more species of viper Any one of four species of pit viper (including Western diamond back and South American rattlesnake Eastern coral snake Micrurus fulvius) Any one or combination of black snake, brown snake, death adder, taipan and tiger snake... 

Hodgson WC, Wickramaratna JC (2006) Snake venoms and their toxins an australian perspective. Toxicon 48 931 10... 

Pearson JA, Tyler MI, Retson KV, Howden ME (1993) Studies on the subunit structure of tex-tilotoxin, a potent presynaptic neurotoxin from the venom of the australian common brown snake (pseudonaja textilis). 3. the complete amino-acid sequences of all the subunits. Biochem Biophys Acta 1161 223-9... 

Sea Snakes in Australian Waters. CRC Reef Research Centre. Available online. URL http //www.reef.crc.org.au/discover/plantsanimals/seasnakes. Accessed November 18, 2004. An overview of sea snake classification, breeding, and venom. 

Notechis Ater Occidentalis Common Name(s) Western Australian Tiger Snake... 

Polypeptide neurotoxin from the Australian tiger snake (Notechis scutatus scutatus). Prevents release of ACh from nerve endings paralyses muscles. 

It may be tempting to equate the concept of venom with poison, but to do so would be inaccurate. Many plants, for example, are poisonous but present no harm to humans because they have learned not to eat them. By contrast, one can be quite careful on a walk through the southwestern United States or Australian outback and still have an unfortunate accident involving the venom of a snake. In any given year, around 40,000 people die as a result of snakebites. To be more accurate with the definition of venom, therefore, it must be noted that venom is not just a poison, but one that is injected under the skin of the victim. 

Lind, P., and Eaker, D. (1982). Amino-acid sequence of the a-subunit of Taipoxin, an Extremely Potent Presyn-aptic Neuiotoxin from the Australian Snake Taipan, Ear J. Biochem. 124 441-447. 

Johnson, C. R., 1975, Defensive display behavior in some Australian and Papuan-New Guinean pygopodid lizards, boid, cohrbrid, and elapid snakes, Zool. J. linn. Soc-Lond.. 56 265-282. 

Shine, R., 1979, Activity patterns in Australian elapid snakes (Squamata Serpentes Elapidae), Herpetologica, 35 1. 

McCosker, J.E. 1975. Feeding behavior of Indo-Australian Hydrophyiidae. In The biology of sea snakes, ed. W.A. Dunson, pp. 217-232, University Park Press, Baltimore. 

The use of natural medicines by Australia s indigenous people has been well documented. Endemic plants species were used to treat many illnesses and ailments, from toothache to snake bite and from rheumatism to headache. Although there have been efforts to document the traditional use of native plants by Australian Aboriginal people, there has been a substantial loss of knowledge regarding specific plants and their medicinal use since European settlement. ... 

The third type of presynaptic toxin is a tertiary complex of three polypeptide chains. Taipoxin from the venom of the Australian snake, taipan, has three subunits, a, p, and y, with an Mr of46,000. The number of amino acid residues present in the subunits is 120, 120, and 135, respectively. The a-chain is basic and has phospholipase A activity. 

Aird, S. D., Middaugh, C. R., and Kaiser, I. I. (1989b). Spectroscopic characterization of textilotoxin, a presynaptic neurotoxin from the venom of the Australian eastern brown snake (Pseudonaja t. textilis). Biochim. Biophys. Acta 997 219-223. 

Sheumack, D. D., Spence, I., Tyler, M. I., and Howden, M. E. H. (1990). The complete amino acid sequence of a postsynaptic neurotoxin isolated from the venom of the Australian death adder snake Acanthophis antarcticus. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 95B 45-50. 

Notexin is a major toxic component of the venom of the Australian tiger snake, Notechis scutatus scutatus. It is a peptide of 119 residues with 7 disulphide bridges and a relative molecular mass of 13.6 KDa. Notexin is one of a group of neurotoxic myotoxins that exhibit phospholipase A2 activity and are homologous with mammalian pancreatic phospholipases (Harris, 1991). 

Halpert, J. and Eaker, D. Amino acid sequence of a presynaptic neurotoxin from the venom of Notechis scutatus scutatus (Australian tiger snake). 250 6990-6997, 1975. 

Marshall, L.R., Herrmann, R.P., 1983, Coagulant and anticoagulant actions of australian snake venoms. Thromb Haemostas, 50 707. 

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