PHAGE DISPLAY IN VENOM GLAND IN Dinoponera australis (HYMENOPTERA: FORMICIDAE)

SIQUIEROLI A. C. S. (1), SANTANA F. A. (2), RODRIGUES R. S. (1), VIEIRA C. U. (1), CARDOSO R. (1), GOULART L. R. (1), BONETTI A. M. (1)

(1) Laboratório de Genética, Instituto de Genética e Bioquímica, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia/UFU, Uberlândia, Brazil; (2) Unidade Quirinópolis, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Quirinópolis, Brazil.

The Dinoponera genus presents six species, all with distribution  along South America, being that the Dinoponera australis is found since Mato Grosso  until the Rio Grande do Sul and neighboring countries. These ants are characterized by the presence of a venom gland that is responsible for the production of the toxin, which is composed in its bigger part by proteins. The technology of Phage Display has been used to produce clinical diagnostics, new drugs against several diseases and for interaction protein-protein mapping.  This work had as objective to identify specific binding peptides in venom gland of D. australis for Phage Display. Two types of libraries  presented in the phages´surface had been used. One of linear heptapeptides and other of conformational heptapeptides. After four rounds of election, twelve clones had been chosen for sequencing and the bioinformatic analysis disclosed that they are similar to the sequences expressed in other insects. The analisys of the expression of venom gland  binding peptides´protein, showed that some clones are similar to member 9 of the family of the kinesina of Apis mellifera, synaptic ras gtpase activating protein, syngap of Aedes aegypti, ceramida kinase of Aedes aegypti, bacterial periplasmic transport systems, periplasmic binding proteins (PBPs) you transport wide variety of substrates, such, amino acids, peptides, sugars, vitamins and inorganic ions; to vacuolar protein sorting-associated protein. The phage display technique was efficient for the characterization of binding peptides in venom gland of D. australis.

KEY WORDS: Phage Display, venom gland, Dinoponera australis.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT: CNPq, FAPEMIG, UFU.

CORRESPONDENCE TO: Ana Carolina Silva Siquieroli, Instituto de Genética e Bioquímica, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia. Phone: + 55 3218 2203/25. Fax: + 55 3218 2203. Email: carolsiquieroli@yahoo.com.br