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Background  Venomous organisms serve as wonderful systems to study the evolution and expression of genes that are directly associated with prey capture. To evaluate the relationship between venom gene expression and prey utilization, we examined these features among individuals of different ages of the venomous, worm-eating marine snail  Conus ebraeus . We determined expression levels of six genes that encode venom components, used a DNA-based approach to evaluate the identity of prey items, and compared patterns of venom gene expression and dietary specialization.    Results   C. ebraeus  exhibits two major shifts in diet with age—an initial transition from a relatively broad dietary breadth to a narrower one and then a return to a broader diet. Venom gene expression patterns also change with growth. All six venom genes are up-regulated in small individuals, down-regulated in medium-sized individuals, and then either up-regulated or continued to be down-regulated in members of the largest size class. Venom gene expression is not significantly different among individuals consuming different types of prey, but instead is coupled and slightly delayed with shifts in prey diversity.    Conclusion  These results imply that changes in gene expression contribute to intraspecific variation of venom composition and that gene expression patterns respond to changes in the diversity of food resources during different growth stages.    Electronic supplementary material  The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12862-016-0592-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Age-related association of venom gene expression and diet of predatory gastropods