Comparative venom-gland transcriptomics and venom proteomics of four Sidewinder Rattlesnake (Crotalus cerastes) lineages reveal little differential expression despite individual variation

Authors

Erich P. Hofmann, Clemson UniversityFollow
Rhett M. Rautsaw, Clemson UniversityFollow
Jason L. Strickland, Clemson University
Matthew L. Holding, Clemson University
Michael P. Hogan, Florida State University
Andrew J. Mason, Clemson University
Darin R. Rokyta, Florida State University
Christopher L. Parkinson, Clemson University

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

10-2018

Publication Title

Scientific Reports

Volume

8

Publisher

Springer Nature

Abstract

Changes in gene expression can rapidly influence adaptive traits in the early stages of lineage diversification. Venom is an adaptive trait comprised of numerous toxins used for prey capture and defense. Snake venoms can vary widely between conspecific populations, but the influence of lineage diversification on such compositional differences are unknown. To explore venom differentiation in the early stages of lineage diversification, we used RNA-seq and mass spectrometry to characterize Sidewinder Rattlesnake (Crotalus cerastes) venom. We generated the first venom-gland transcriptomes and complementary venom proteomes for eight individuals collected across the United States and tested for expression differences across life history traits and between subspecific, mitochondrial, and phylotranscriptomic hypotheses. Sidewinder venom was comprised primarily of hemorrhagic toxins, with few cases of differential expression attributable to life history or lineage hypotheses. However, phylotranscriptomic lineage comparisons more than doubled instances of significant expression differences compared to all other factors. Nevertheless, only 6.4% of toxins were differentially expressed overall, suggesting that shallow divergence has not led to major changes in Sidewinder venom composition. Our results demonstrate the need for consensus venom-gland transcriptomes based on multiple individuals and highlight the potential for discrepancies in differential expression between different phylogenetic hypotheses.

Comments

Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-33943-5

Recommended Citation

Please use the publisher's recommended citation. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-33943-5