title: Structural and functional comparison of toxins from the venom of the scorpions Centruroides infamatus infamatus, Centruroides limpidus limpidus and Centruroides noxius.
abstract: Two novel toxins containing 66 amino acid residues each were isolated from the venom of the scorpions Centruroides infamatus infamatus and Centruroides limpidus limpidus, respectively. Their full amino acid sequences were determined. Comparison of primary structures showed that they share 97% similarity among themselves and 83% to that of toxin 2 from Centruroides noxius. The three toxins studied compete with each other for the same binding sites on membranes prepared from rat brain synaptosomes, suggesting that they are all beta-scorpion toxins. Toxin action was assayed into the microI-2 rat skeletal muscle Na+ channel heterologously expressed into Xenopus oocytes. All three toxins block this Na+ channel in a similar fashion, without affecting inactivation, and showed IC50 values in the micromolar concentration range.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Biotechnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dehesa-Dávila
authors.forename: A N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Ramírez
authors.forename: F Z
authors.initials: FZ
authors.lastname: Zamudio
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gurrola-Briones
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Liévano
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Darszon
authors.forename: L D
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Possani
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001665:Binding Sites; D001667:Binding, Competitive; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism*; D002850:Chromatography, Gel; D005260:Female; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000502:physiology; D009865:Oocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D051381:Rats; D012604:Scorpion Venoms / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology*; D012605:Scorpions; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D015222:Sodium Channels / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D013045:Species Specificity; D013570:Synaptic Membranes / Q000378:metabolism; D013574:Synaptosomes / Q000378:metabolism*; D014982:Xenopus laevis
chemical_list: D012604:Scorpion Venoms; D015222:Sodium Channels