Pioneering Study on Rhopalurus crassicauda Scorpion Venom: Isolation and Characterization of the Major Toxin and Hyaluronidase.

Scorpionism is responsible for most accidents involving venomous animals in Brazil, which leads to severe symptoms that can evolve to death. Scorpion venoms consist of complexes cocktails, including peptides, proteins, and non-protein compounds, making separation and purification procedures extremely difficult and time-consuming. Scorpion toxins target different biological systems and can be used in basic science, for clinical, and biotechnological applications. This study is the first to explore the venom content of the unexplored scorpion speciesRhopalurus crassicauda, which inhabits exclusively the northernmost state of Brazil, named Roraima, and southern region of Guyana. Here, we pioneer the fractionation of theR. crassicaudavenom and isolated and characterized a novel scorpion beta-neurotoxin, designated Rc1, and a monomeric hyaluronidase.R. crassicaudavenom and Rc1 (6,882 Da) demonstrated pro-inflammatory activitiesin vitroand a nociceptive responsein vivo. Moreover, Rc1 toxin showed specificity for activating Na(v)1.4, Na(v)1.6, and BgNa(v)1 voltage-gated ion channels. This study also represents a new perspective for the treatment of envenomings in Roraima, since the Brazilian scorpion and arachnid antivenoms were not able to recognizeR. crassicaudavenom and its fractions (with exception of hyaluronidase). Our work provides useful insights for the first understanding of the painful sting and pro-inflammatory effects associated withR. crassicaudaenvenomings.