Toxicity of scorpion venom in chick embryo and mealworm assay depending on the use of the soluble fraction versus the whole venom

The LD50 is an important metric for venom studies and antivenom development. It has been shown that several variables in the protocol influence the LD50 value obtained, such as venom source, extraction and treatment and administration route. These inconsistencies reduce the utility of the results of these test for comparative studies. In scorpion venom LD50 assays, often only the soluble fraction of the venom is used, whereas other studies use the whole venom. We here tested the toxicity of the soluble fraction in isolation, and of the whole venom in two different systems: chick embryos and mealworms Tenebrio molitor. Ten microliters of venom solutions from Hadrurus arizonensis, Leiurus quinquestriatus, Androctonus australis, Grosphus grandidieri and Heterometrus laoticus were applied to five day old chicken embryos at stage 25-27. Our results showed no significant differences between the LD50 based on the whole venom versus that of only the soluble fraction and in the chicken embryo assay in four of the five scorpion species tested. H. laoticus however, showed a significantly lower LD50 value for the whole venom than the soluble fraction. In assays on mealworms however, this pattern was not seen. Nonetheless, caution may be warranted when using LD50 values obtained from only the soluble fraction. The LD50 values of the five species in this study, based on the chicken embryo assay, showed good correlation with values from the literature based on mouse studies. This suggests that the chick embryo assay may be an economic alternative to rodent assays for scorpion LD50 studies.