Effect of Bothrops leucurus venom in chick biventer cervicis preparations

Bothrops leucurus is a poorly studied pitviper found in northeastern Brazil. We examined the action of B. leucurus venom (5–100 μg/ml) on contractile responses in chick biventer cervicis preparations. Muscle damage was assessed by quantifying the release of creatine kinase (CK) and by histological analysis. B. leucurus venom dose-dependently inhibited the contractile responses of indirectly stimulated preparations, the maximum inhibition with 100 μg of venom/ml being 74.0±6.6% (mean±SEM) after 120 min. The venom also reduced contractures to exogenous acetylcholine (55 and 110 μM) and K + (13.4 mM) (85–100% reduction with 100 μg of venom/ml) and increased the release of CK (348±139 U/ml in controls vs 1260±263 U/ml with 20 μg of venom/ml after 120 min, p