Transcriptomes and Proteomes of Marine Venomous Animals as Source for Drug Discovery

Dear Colleagues,

Venomics integrates high-throughput proteomics, transcriptomics, and genomics to accelerate the large-scale study of venoms of peptidic nature and the discovery of novel therapeutic drugs. Every venomous marine species produces a unique cocktail, whose protein components can be characterized in detail using high-throughput techniques. By comparing gene family contents, expressed transcripts, and functional (post-translationally modified) protein products, it is possible to elucidate the different molecular mechanisms responsible for producing the great diversity of venoms. By comparing venom mixtures within a phylogenetic framework, it is also possible to distinguish those components that are shared between species (and determine whether they are derived from a common ancestor or convergent) from those that are evolutionary innovations of a particular taxon.

This Special Issue of Marine Drugs aims at gathering original research articles that contribute to catalogue the existing great diversity of marine venoms, and to understand how this diversity is generated and evolves. Attention is focused on the use of combined transcriptomic and proteomic tools to reach this ultimate goal.

Prof. Dr. Rafael Zardoya
Prof. Dr. Manuel Jiménez-Tenorio
Guest Editors

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