Convergent_nAChR venom resistance Mammals 2022

Convergent evolution is central to the study of adaptation and has been used to understand both the limits of evolution and the diverse patterns and processes which result in adaptive change. Resistance to snake venom α-neurotoxins (αNTXs) is a case of widespread convergence having evolved several times in snakes, lizards, and mammals. Despite extreme toxicity of αNTXs, substitutions in its target, the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR), prevent αNTX binding and render species resistant. Recently, the published meerkat (Herpestidae) genome revealed that meerkats have the same substitutions in nAChR as the venom-resistant Egyptian mongoose (Herpestidae), suggesting that venom-resistant nAChRs may be ancestral to herpestids. Like the mongoose, many other species of feliform carnivores prey on venomous snakes, though their venom resistance has never been explored. To evaluate the prevalence and ancestry of αNTX resistance in mammals, we generate a dataset of mammalian nAChR utilizing..., , , # Convergent_nAChR Venom Resistance Mammals 2022

Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.jh9w0vtf8](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.jh9w0vtf8)

Author: Dr. Danielle H. Drabeck

Affiliation: University of Minnesota

Date of data collection: 2022

Date of publication: 2025

## 1. OVERVIEW

This dataset accompanies the manuscript “Convergent evolution of α-neurotoxin resistance in mammalian nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR).” It contains sequence alignments, phylogenetic trees, and codeml control files used to test for positive selection on the nAChR α-subunit across mammals. The dataset enables replication of analyses showing repeated, independent amino acid substitutions conferring snake venom α-neurotoxin resistance in multiple mammalian lineages.

## 2. PURPOSE OF THE DATASET

The purpose of this dataset is to:

\- Document convergence in the nAChR α-subunit gene among mammals.

\- Evaluate molecular evidence for α-neurotoxin resistance via convergent amino acid substitutions.

\- Provide d...,