Venomous（有毒的） creatures usually
conjure2 up images of
hissing3 snakes or stinging
scorpions4--but for scientists Bryan Fry, et. al., an overlooked group --centipedes-- are all the rage.
Centipedes（蜈蚣） prey5 on
bugs6 and other pests by stinging them with
venom1 secreted7 from and injected from their first pair of pincer-like legs, called forcipules. In a new paper published in the advanced online edition of
Molecular8 Biology and Evolution, the research team
analyzed9 all venom protein and peptide sequences available for centipedes,
Next, they build these sequences into
genetic10 trees to catalog, categorize and reconstruct their
evolutionary11 histories.
Overall, they identified a high-diversity of 60 unique venom protein and
peptide（缩氨酸） families from just five species investigated. Eleven of these families represented new proteins families, showing novel ways for centipede venom. Others proteins were
convergent12（会聚性的）, or evolved independently, along with
toxins14 used by spiders and scorpions. The results showed a vast
functional15 diversity of centipede toxins that can significantly aid in the understanding of
toxin13 evolution. They are also a treasure
trove16（无主珍宝） with a high potential for use in drug design and development.
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