Fig. 4: Ta3a, Pc1a, Mri1a and Rm4a are vertebrate-selective defensive toxins.

a Injection of Ta2a and Ta3a in blowflies caused paralysis with PD₅₀ [1 h] of 7.1 and 77.8 nmol/g, respectively (percentage of flies paralysed at 1 h post-injection; n = 3 independent experiments). b Ta2a (157 nmol/g) was lethal to blowflies (****P = 0.0006; one-way ANOVA with Dunnett’s multiple comparison test; n = 3 independent experiments), while Ta3a (109 nmol/g) was not (percentage lethality recorded 24 h after injection). c Pc1a caused paralysis with PD₅₀ [1 h] of 74.3 nmol/g (n = 3 independent experiments), d and (up to 123 nmol/g) was not lethal (n = 3 independent experiments). e Rm1a caused paralysis with PD₅₀ [1 h] of 0.27 nmol/g, while Rm4a was inactive (up to 200 nmol/g) (n = 3 independent experiments). f Rm1a (162 nmol/g) was lethal (****P < 0.0001; one-way ANOVA with Dunnett’s multiple comparison test; n = 3 independent experiments), while Rm4a (100 nmol/g) was not (n = 3 independent experiments). Data are expressed as mean ± SEM and (in panels a, c, e) fitted with a nonlinear regression with variable slope (four parameters). Source data are provided as a Source Data file.