Rhopalurus junceus. Red scorpion or blue scorpion; It is an endemic species, very particular to the 36 different types of scorpion that are found on the island of Cuba and in some areas of Central America.
Summary
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- 1 Features
- 1 Feeding in captivity
- 2 Reproduction
- 3 Stadiums
- 2 Chopped
- 3 Medical treatments
- 4 Hatcheries in Cuba
- 5 Related Links
- 6 Sources
features
Captive feeding
The blue scorpion is bred in captivity and is subjected to high levels of stress, it must feed at least once a week and have water constantly. The mortality rate in captivity is correlated with the factors of feeding, water and stress.
It is advisable to use a population of scorpions for 6 months and then release it to the natural environment, since after that time the venom of the blue scorpion has a low quality and concentration.
Reproduction
Reproduction of the blue scorpion in captivity is very difficult to develop. Each female scorpion has about 42 to 47 young per birth, all of which die easily in the laboratory. Cuban laboratories release large quantities of these offspring to nature given the difficulty of their success in adapting to captivity.
- junceus lives from three to five years, although from newborn it goes through many problems to survive, one of them in specific is that the young do not have enough food to survive, that is why only 15% of the young arrive to adulthood.
Stadiums
A scorpion to become an adult goes through different stages, generally 5 or 7 and it is often difficult to differentiate a scorpion in stage 6 from an adult. This is important because the venom of an adult blue scorpion differs from that of a young blue scorpion.
Chopped
It stings hundreds of Cubans every year , however its venom contains an LD50 dose of 8.0 mg / kg, which is too little to be considered a dangerous scorpion. Scorpion venom is a purely protein compound, lacking phospholipases, proteases, and irritation factors.
The scorpion venom toxin is a mixture composed of several low molecular weight peptides that have an effect on ion channels (mainly Ca2 +, Na + and K +) in mammalian and insect cells. These low molecular weight proteins inhibit the production of proteases in the tumor membrane.
Medical treatments
Cytostatic drugs, radiation and surgery are traditionally used in cancer treatment , but a number of alternative treatments have now emerged called cancer biotherapy, including gene therapy and agents that accelerate cancer. apoptosis process. This type of scorpion is very important in Central America and in the world because it was discovered that through its venom drugs could be created for the treatment of cancer.
Hatcheries in Cuba
The scorpion farms have spread throughout the country, each with the necessary conditions to promote reproduction. It is worth mentioning that once the venom is extracted, the scorpion weakens and is returned to the environment, the calving and pregnant females are not part of the process until a moment after their recovery.