Spider venoms have been recognized as a useful source of bioactive compounds. Many of these components act by inhibiting or stimulating receptors, transporters and ion channels, which are associated with their potential analgesic, antidepressant and anticonvulsant activity in mammals or insecticidal action in invertebrates. Moreover, some compounds also present antibacterial, antifungal and anti-tumor activities, reinforcing their biotechnological potential. Despite extensive evolutionary, ecological, and industrial interest in these compounds, only a fraction of the peptides have been characterized at the molecular level. Thus, we intend to perform gene prospecting for biotechnological compounds in Parawixia bistriata. A cDNA library was constructed using total RNA extract with Trizol from female venom glands. The cDNA was cloning using the SuperScript Plasmid System with Gateway Technology for cDNA Synthesis and Cloning (Invitrogen). The amplified whole cDNA was ligated with a pSPORT6 vector (Invitrogen, San Diego, CA, USA) and transfected into DH10B competent cells followed by overnight culturing on 50-mg/ml ampicillin-containing LB plates at 37º C. Several plasmidial clones were selected for sequencing and the clones have a fragment size ranging from 100 to 600 bp. The nucleotide sequences are being analyzed by comparison with existing EST sequences present in the GenBank database using the BLAST program. Therefore, the cDNA library from P.bistriata represents the important molecular tool for gene prospecting for future biotechnological application.
Keywords: Biotechnology; cDNA library; Parawixia bistriata; Spider venom.