Snake venom is a complex mixture of biologically active components, comprising hydrolytic enzymes, non-enzymatic proteins and peptides, and organic molecules, all of which contribute to the venom's toxicity. Snake venom serves to immobilize or kill prey for self-defense and food acquisition. One important component of many snake venoms are phosphatases, enzymes that hydrolyze phosphate esters. Alkaline phosphomonoesterase is widely distributed and abundant in snake venoms. Phosphatase will dephosphorylate a wide variety of molecules, many of which are important cell signaling molecules, thus disrupting cell communication. This study investigates the relative phosphomonoesterase enzyme activity among individual coralsnakes. The results of this study correlate the activity of this important enzyme with snake gender and total venom protein concentrations.

Comparison of phosphomonoesterase enzyme activity in individual coral snakes

247th National Meeting (2014)

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