昆士兰大学Samuel D. Robinson团队宣布他们开发出缓激素模拟物作为防御性毒素的反复趋同进化。这一研究成果发表在2026年3月5日出版的国际学术期刊《科学》上。

在这项研究中，该研究团队证明了膜翅目昆虫毒液和无尾猿皮肤分泌物中编码BK样肽的基因与脊椎动物激素的基因没有共同的祖先，而是从肽毒素基因中独立进化了多次。这些肽具有防御脊椎动物捕食者的功能，它们与BK的相似性是由对捕食者受体的有效性选择驱动的。他们的发现强调了自然选择如何推动远亲谱系中相似分子的重复趋同进化。

据了解，自然选择可以通过趋同进化推动相似性状的进化。据报道，在某些种类的黄蜂（膜翅目）和青蛙（无尾目）的毒液和皮肤分泌物中分别发现了与脊椎动物激素缓激素（BK）相同的短肽。

附：英文原文

Title: Repeated convergent evolution of bradykinin mimics as defensive toxins

Author: Naiqi Shi, Axel Touchard, Vanessa Schendel, Thomas Lund Koch, Hana Starobova, Pancong Niu, Hue Tran, Lotten Ragnarsson, Helena Safavi-Hemami, Irina Vetter, Samuel D. Robinson

Issue&Volume: 2026-03-05

Abstract: Natural selection can drive the evolution of similar traits through convergent evolution. Short peptides identical to the vertebrate hormone bradykinin (BK) have been reported from the venoms and skin secretions of certain species of wasps (order Hymenoptera) and frogs (order Anura), respectively. In this study, we demonstrate that the genes encoding the BK-like peptides of hymenopteran venoms and anuran skin secretions do not share common ancestry with that of the vertebrate hormone but instead independently evolved multiple times from peptide toxin genes. These peptides serve a defensive function against vertebrate predators and their resemblance to BK was driven by selection for efficacy at the predators’ receptors. Our findings highlight how natural selection can drive repeated convergent evolution of similar molecules across distantly related lineages.

DOI: adx0452

Source: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adx0452