Tetrodotoxin (TTX) is one of the most lethal non-protein neurotoxins. This neurotoxin is produced by many organisms, including the eastern newt (<i>Notophthalmus viridescens</i>). This ubiquitous eastern North America species secretes TTX from glands located throughout its skin. The TTX is lethal, or at least highly toxic, to many of the eastern newt’s predators, so it acts as an anti-predatory mechanism. To date, there is no reliable technique for quantifying this toxin, and little is known about its chemical levels in different stages of the eastern newt’s complex life cycle. A protocol for a competitive indirect ELISA was developed to quantify the amount of TTX secreted by eastern newts in the adult/reproductive stage of their lives. Once the TTX-specific ELISA was optimized, it was used on a population of eastern newts at Letterkenny Army Depot, in South Central Pennsylvania, to determine ontogenetic (egg, aquatic larvae, eft, adult), size (small, medium, large), and sexual (male, female) variation in toxicity levels. Ultimately, this research can unveil ontogenetic, morphometric, and sexual chemical distinctions that might explain the ecological and evolutionary significance of this interesting chemical adaptation of the eastern newt.

Modified ELISA to determine levels of TTX and its links to the life history of the eastern newt, <i>Notophthlmus viridescens</i>

249th National Meeting (2015)

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Modified ELISA to determine levels of TTX and its links to the life history of the eastern newt, Notophthlmus viridescens