title: Tension generation and increase in voltage-activated Na+ current by crotamine.
abstract: We performed the present experiments to study the action of crotamine, a toxin isolated from the venom of the South American rattlesnake, Crotalus durissus terrificus, on macroscopic Na+ currents in frog skeletal muscle by using the loose patch clamp technique. Crotamine at 50 microM increased the peak Na+ current by 50% (P < 0.05). In addition, the voltage dependence of inactivation was shifted by +8 mV. Other parameters of Na+ currents (reversal potential, voltage-dependence of activation and time courses of inactivation, of activation and of removal of inactivation) were not significantly affected. We suggest that crotamine inhibits the direct transition of channels from closed to inactivated states, thereby forcing their transition through the open states.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Bioquímica e Imunologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: A C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Matavel
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Ferreira-Alves
authors.forename: P S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Beirão
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Cruz
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003435:Crotalid Venoms / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000187:drug effects*; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D018408:Patch-Clamp Techniques; D011892:Rana catesbeiana; D015222:Sodium Channels / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D003435:Crotalid Venoms; D015222:Sodium Channels; C010563:crotamine