Nucleosides & nucleotides

Sulfate and non-sulfated nucleosides like adenosine, guanosine, cytidine and inosine have been found in several spider venoms. The NMR screening of spider venoms by Schroeder and co-workers (2008) showed that nucleosides are wide-spread in different families. Yet, the specific structures were not determined. The nucleotides ATP, ADP and AMP have been detected in other spider venoms. Especially ATP could enhances the toxicity of peptide toxins (Chan et al., 1975).

For a more detailed discussion of nucleosides and nucleotides in spider venoms we recommend having a look at the outstanding article “Venom composition and strategies in spiders: Is everything possible?” (Kuhn-Nentwig, 2011).