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Acknowledgements
We thank the following persons and institutions who helped us or contributed tissue samples used in this study: A. Fry, Alice Springs Reptile Centre, Australian Reptile Park, M. A. G. de Bakker, R. L. Bezy, B. Branch, J. Campbell, N. Clemann, C. Clemente, C. Cicero, K. Daoues, A. S. Delmas, B. Demeter, J. Haberfield, A. Hassanin, Healesville Sanctuary, M. Hird, Louisiana State University Museum of Zoology, P. Moler, T. Moncuit, P. Moret, National Museum of Natural History Naturalis Leiden (J. W. Arntzen), T. Pappenfus, J.-C. Rage, C. Skliris, J. Smith, S. Sweet, Ultimate Reptiles (South Australia), University of California Museum of Vertebrate Zoology (Berkeley), J. Walker, R. Waters, J. Weigel and B. Wilson. We also thank A. Webb and T. Purcell for providing HPLC access; N. Williamson for help with preliminary mass spectrometry characterization; E. V. Grishin for help in obtaining the references in Russian; S. Edwards for comments; and T. van Wagner and V. Wexler for artwork. This work was funded by the Service de Systématique moléculaire of the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Institut de Systématique (N.V.) and by grants from the Australian Academy of Science (B.G.F.), Australian Geographic Society (B.G.F.), Australia & Pacific Science Foundation (B.G.F.), Australian Research Council (B.G.F.), CASS Foundation (B.G.F.), Commonwealth of Australia Department of Health and Aging (B.G.F.), Ian Potter Foundation (B.G.F.), International Human Frontiers Science Program Organisation (B.G.F.), Leiden University (F.J.V., M.K.R.), NASA Astrobiology Institute (S.B.H.), National Science Foundation (S.B.H.) and University of Melbourne (B.G.F.). We thank the relevant wildlife departments for granting the scientific permits for field collection of required specimens.
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Authors and Affiliations
Australian Venom Research Unit, Level 8, School of Medicine, University of Melbourne, Victoria, 3010, Parkville, Australia
Bryan G. Fry&S. F. Ryan Ramjan
Population and Evolutionary Genetics Unit, Museum Victoria, GPO Box 666E, Victoria, 3001, Melbourne, Australia
Bryan G. Fry&Janette A. Norman
Department of Biology and Astrobiology Research Center, 208 Mueller Lab, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, 16802-5301, USA
Nicolas Vidal&S. Blair Hedges
UMS 602, Taxonomie et collections, Reptiles-Amphibiens, Département Systématique et Évolution, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, 25 Rue Cuvier, 75005, Paris, France
Nicolas Vidal
Institute of Biology, Leiden University, Kaiserstraat 63, PO Box 9516, 2300 RA, Leiden, The Netherlands
Freek J. Vonk&Michael K. Richardson
Department of Structural Biology and Bioinformatics, University of Geneva and Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Centre Médical Universitaire, 1 Rue Michel-Servet, 1211 4, Geneva, Switzerland
Holger Scheib
SBC Lab AG, Seebüelstrasse 26, 8185, Winkel, Switzerland
Holger Scheib
Monash Venom Group, Department of Pharmacology, Monash University, Clayton, 3800, Victoria, Australia
Sanjaya Kuruppu&Wayne. C. Hodgson
Molecular and Health Technologies, CSIRO, 343 Royal Parade, Victoria, 3010, Parkville, Australia
Kim Fung
Department of Pathology, University of Melbourne, Victoria, 3010, Parkville, Australia
Vera Ignjatovic&Robyn Summerhayes
Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Royal Children's Hospital, Flemington Road, Victoria, 3052, Parkville, Australia
Vera Ignjatovic&Robyn Summerhayes
Department of Zoology, Tel Aviv University, 69978, Tel Aviv, Israel
Elazar Kochva
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The sequences of the cDNA clones have been deposited in GenBank (accession numbers DQ139877–DQ139931 and DQ184481), as have the nuclear gene sequences (DQ119594–DQ119641). Reprints and permissions information is available at npg.nature.com/reprintsandpermissions. The authors declare no competing financial interests.
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Supplementary Figures
This file contains 13 Supplementary Figures, including the molecular phylogenetic analysis of squamate nuclear genes, the phylogenetic analyses and sequence alignments of the toxin types analysed in this study as well as the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis of Varanus varius (Lace monitor) venom. (PDF 1238 kb)
Supplementary Methods
This file contains detailed descriptions of materials and methods not already described in the main article. (DOC 52 kb)
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Fry, B., Vidal, N., Norman, J. et al. Early evolution of the venom system in lizards and snakes. Nature 439, 584–588 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04328
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nature04328