Schulte, Lennart and Uhrig, Lilien and Eichberg, Johanna and Schwartze, Michael and Auth, Ingve and Schulz, Miriam and Lindner, Thomas and Hien, Paul and Hardes, Kornelia and Vilcinskas, Andreas and Lueddecke, Tim (2024) Comparative venom analysis between melanistic and normally coloured phenotypes of the common adder (Vipera berus). ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE, 11 (9): 241268. ISSN 2054-5703
Full text not available from this repository. (Request a copy)Abstract
Snake venom is an ecologically relevant functional trait directly linked with a snake's fitness and survival, facilitating predation and defence. Snake venom variation occurs at all taxonomic levels, but the study at the intraspecific level is still in its early stages. The common adder (Vipera berus) exhibits considerable variation in colour phenotypes across its distribution range. Melanistic (fully black) individuals are the subject of myths and fairytales, and in German folklore such 'hell adders' are considered more toxic than their normally coloured conspecifics despite any formal investigation. Here, we provide the first comparative analysis of venoms from melanistic and normally coloured common adders. Specifically, we compared the venom profiles by sodium dodecylsulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography and tested the venoms' protease, phospholipase A2 and cytotoxic activities. Phospholipase A2 activity was similar in both phenotypes, whereas general protease activity was higher in the melanistic venom, which was also more cytotoxic at two concentrations (6.25 and 12.5 mu g ml(-1)). These minor differences between the venoms of melanistic and normally coloured adders are unlikely to be of clinical relevance in the context of human envenomation. In light of our results, the claim that melanistic adders produce more toxic venom than their normally coloured conspecifics appears rooted entirely in folklore.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | APOSEMATISM; DIET; Vipera berus; snake venom; venom variation; melanism; colour phenotypes; folklore |
| Subjects: | 500 Science > 590 Zoological sciences |
| Divisions: | Biology, Preclinical Medicine > Institut für Zoologie > Zoologie/Evolutionsbiologie (Prof. Dr. Jürgen Heinze) |
| Depositing User: | Dr. Gernot Deinzer |
| Date Deposited: | 15 Jan 2026 06:27 |
| Last Modified: | 15 Jan 2026 06:27 |
| URI: | https://pred.uni-regensburg.de/id/eprint/65243 |
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