A groundbreaking study published in the journal Toxins found a surprising reality: the biological world is scattered with venom delivery systems, far beyond the familiar snake and scorpion stingers.
The study, led by William K. Hayes of Loma Linda University, shows that plants, fungi, bacteria, organisms, organisms, and even viruses develop very similarly to the mechanisms of toxic animals—providing toxic compounds through specialized structures that cause wounds in targets.
“Our understanding of venom, venom delivery systems and venom has been entirely based on animals so far, which represents only a small part of what we can look for meaningful tools and treatments from it,” Hayes said.
For centuries, scientists have mainly linked venom to animals. However, new research challenges this limited view by identifying parallel systems in biological lineages that are consistent with the definition of venom technology: by creating toxic secretions conveyed to internal tissues by creating wounds.
What is even more surprising is that some plants adopt toxic defenses through multiple mechanisms. For example, sting nettles use hollow needle-like hairy trichomes that shed in the skin of animals to provide pain-induced chemicals. Other plants harbor colonies that sting ants, providing them with houses and food in exchange for protection from herbivores.
Even parasitic plants like mistletoe can be considered toxic because they penetrate the host plant using a specialized root structure called Haustoria, which secretes enzymes degrade cell walls while delivering toxic compounds.
The study outlines how certain fungi use specialized cells called Appressoria to penetrate plant tissue and deliver toxins, while predatory fungi use a series of capture devices to extend to Ensnare nematodes.
Perhaps the most fascinating thing is the inclusion of phages – viruses that attack bacteria – are perhaps the most abundant toxic entities on Earth. The study says the viruses attach to bacterial cells and inject DNA through needle-like instruments, resulting in cell destruction, “matching many conventional venoms.”
The study began a decade ago when Hayes, who had extensive research on rattlesnake venom, began to question the traditional definition while teaching a course on venom biology.
“We only catch the surface when we understand the evolutionary pathways of venom differences,” Hayes noted.
This ever-expanding view of toxic organisms can have a significant impact on medical research. Animal venom has produced many therapeutic compounds, including drugs used to treat hypertension, diabetes and chronic pain. Turning on the search to include non-animal venom may increase the source of new drugs found.
The researchers hope that their work will encourage interdisciplinary collaboration, bringing together experts from previous independent fields to gain a more comprehensive understanding of how diverse organisms develop independently of the venom delivery system.
As the whimsical title of this article suggests – borrowed from Disney’s “It’s a Small World” – this discovery has a unified element. In the words of the researchers, “We share so much that it’s time for us, after all, it’s a small world.”
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