Mipartoxin-I, a novel three-finger toxin, is the major neurotoxic component in the venom of the redtail coral snake Micrurus mipartitus (Elapidae)
artículo original
Fecha
2012Autor
Rey Suárez, Paola
Floriano, Rafael Stuani
Rostelato Ferreira, Sandro
Saldarriaga Córdoba, Mónica María
Núñez Rangel, Vitelbina
Rodrigues Simioni, Lea
Lomonte, Bruno
Metadatos
Mostrar el registro completo del ítemResumen
The major venom component of Micrurus mipartitus, a coral snake distributed from
Nicaragua to northern South America, was characterized biochemically and functionally.
This protein, named mipartoxin-I, is a novel member of the three-finger toxin superfamily,
presenting the characteristic cysteine signature and amino acid sequence length of the
short-chain, type-I, a-neurotoxins. Nevertheless, it varies considerably from related toxins,
with a sequence identity not higher than 70% in a multiple alignment of 67 proteins within
this family. Its observed molecular mass (7030.0) matches the value predicted by its amino
acid sequence, indicating lack of post-translational modifications. Mipartoxin-I showed
a potent lethal effect in mice (intraperitoneal median lethal dose: 0.06 mg/g body weight),
and caused a clear neuromuscular blockade on both avian and mouse nerve-muscle
preparations, presenting a post-synaptic action through the cholinergic nicotinic receptor.
Since mipartoxin-I is the most abundant (28%) protein in M. mipartitus venom, it should
play a major role in its toxicity, and therefore represents an important target for developing
a therapeutic antivenom, which is very scarce or even unavailable in the regions where this
snake inhabits. The structural information here provided might help in the preparation of
a synthetic or recombinant immunogen to overcome the limited venom availability.
External link to the item
10.1016/j.toxicon.2012.05.023Colecciones
- Microbiología [1171]