FRACTIONATION OF CERASTES-CERASTES AND CERASTES-VIPERA SNAKE-VENOMS BY GEL-FILTRATION AND IDENTIFICATION OF SOME ENZYMATIC AND BIOLOGICAL-ACTIVITIES

R. S. Labib, H. Y. Halim and N. W. Farag. Fractionation of Cerastes cerastes and Cerastes vipera snake venoms by gel filtration and identification of some enzymatic and biological activities. Toxicon 17, 337-345, 1979.-Cerastes cerastes and Cerastes vipera venoms were fractionated by gel filtration on Sephadex G-100. The gel filtration patterns were similar, each showing eight fractions. The molecular weights and Stokes radii (in Å) of l-amino acid oxidase, phosphodiesterase, hyaluronidase (main peak) and phospholipase A were 150,000, 51·7 Å, 105,000, 44·2 Å, 75,000, 37·5 Å, and 22,000, 22·7 Å for C. cerastes, and 150,000 51·7 Å, 95,000, 41·8 Å, 72,000, 36·3 Å and 17,000, 20·2 Å for C. vipera, respectively. Most of the fractions were lethal, but the first fraction (pool A, molecular weight above 75,000) in both species, was the most lethal (MLD = 3 mg per kg) and accounted for two thirds or more of the recovered lethality. Hemorrhage in the abdominal wall and mesenteries was characteristic for this fraction. Another fraction (pool C, molecular weight 40,000-60,000, C. cerastes venom) was characterized by rapid death, and its MLD was 7 mg per kg. At a dose of 15-20 mg per kg, this fraction killed mice in 1-5 min when injected i.p. while the first fraction (pool A) killed in 1-3 hr. © 1979.