Amphibians represent one of the main natural sources of bioactive molecules of interest to biotechnological research. The Phyllomedusidae family has several species occurring in Brazil and some studies demonstrate the biological potential of poisons of these species, however many still need to be characterized. Phyllomedusa iheringii is endemic in Brazilian and Uruguayan Pampa Biome and has little data in the literature regarding the action of its poison on experimental organisms.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe biological activity of parotoid secretion (RIPS) and some of its chromatographic fractions (RI18, RI19, RI23, and RI24) was evaluated in the current study. Mass spectrometry of these fractions indicated the presence of sarmentogenin, argentinogenin, (5,12)-12,14-dihydroxy-11-oxobufa-3,20,22-trienolide, marinobufagin, bufogenin B, 11α,19-dihydroxy-telocinobufagin, bufotalin, monohydroxylbufotalin, 19-oxo-cinobufagin, 3α,12,25,26-tetrahydroxy-7-oxo-5-cholestane-26--sulfate, and cinobufagin-3-hemisuberate that were identified as alkaloid and steroid compounds, in addition to marinoic acid and -methyl-5-hydroxy-tryptamine. In chick brain slices, all fractions caused a slight decrease in cell viability, as also seen with the highest concentration of RIPS tested.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEcotoxicol Environ Saf
November 2019
Ecotoxicol Environ Saf
April 2019
The detection of cyanotoxins, such as the anatoxin-a(s), is essential to ensure the biological safety of water environments. Here, we propose the use of Nauphoeta cinerea cockroaches as an alternative biological model for the biomonitoring of the activity of anatoxin-a(s) in aquatic systems. In order to validate our proposed model, we compared the effects of a cyanobacterial extract containing anatoxin-a(s) (CECA) with those of the organophosphate trichlorfon (Tn) on biochemical and physiological parameters of the nervous system of Nauphoeta cinerea cockroaches.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRhinella icterica is a poisonous toad whose toxic secretion has never been studied against entomotoxic potential. Sublethal doses of Rhinella icterica toxic secretion (RITS) were assayed in Nauphoeta cinerea cockroaches, in order to understand the physiological and behavioral parameters, over the insect central and peripheral nervous system. RITS (10 μg/g) injections, induced behavioral impairment as evidenced by a significant decrease (38 ± 14%) in the distance traveled (p < .
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe biological activity of Rhinella icterica toxic secretion (RITS) was evaluated on chick neuromuscular junctions, rat heart́s tissue and mice hippocampal slices. At chick biventer cervicis preparation, RITS (5, 10 and 20μg/mL) produced a concentration-independent irreversible neuromuscular blockade, which was preceded by a transitory increase of muscle twitch tension with the lowest concentration, in 120min recordings. In this set of experiments, RITS incubation partially prevented the curare neuromuscular blockade.
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