Divergent Specialization of Simple Venom Gene Profiles among Rear-Fanged Snake Genera (Helicops and Leptodeira, Dipsadinae, Colubridae)

Abstract

Many venomous animals express toxins that show extraordinary levels of variation both within and among species. In snakes, most studies of venom variation focus on front-fanged species in the families Viperidae and Elapidae, even though rear-fanged snakes in other families vary along the same ecological axes important to venom evolution. Here we characterized venom gland transcriptomes from 19 snakes across two dipsadine rear-fanged genera (Leptodeira and Helicops, Colubridae) and two front-fanged genera (Bothrops, Viperidae; Micrurus, Elapidae). We compared patterns of composition, variation, and diversity in venom transcripts within and among all four genera. Venom gland transcriptomes of rear-fanged Helicops and Leptodeira and front-fanged Micrurus are each dominated by expression of single toxin families (C-type lectins, snake venom metalloproteinase, and phospholipase A2, respectively), unlike highly diverse front-fanged Bothrops venoms. In addition, expression patterns of congeners are much more similar to each other than they are to species from other genera. These results illustrate the repeatability of simple venom profiles in rear-fanged snakes and the potential for relatively constrained venom composition within genera.