title: Targeting ionotropic receptors with polyamine-containing toxins.
abstract: This review summarises current knowledge of polyamine-containing spider toxins and their interactions with ionotropic receptors of invertebrate and vertebrate excitable cells. Their diverse actions on ionotropic glutamate and acetylcholine receptors, which include potentiation, closed channel block and open channel block, are discussed in the context of toxin and target structures. Factors that complicate attempts to identify and pharmacologically characterise the binding sites for these toxins include their ability to permeate channels of some ionotropic receptors and their apparent accumulation in a cellular compartment, possibly the membrane bilayer.
authors.affiliation: School of Biology, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK.
authors.forename: Ian R
authors.initials: IR
authors.lastname: Mellor
authors.forename: Peter N R
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Usherwood
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004357:Drug Synergism; D018690:Excitatory Amino Acid Agonists / Q000378:metabolism; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000378:metabolism*; D008954:Models, Biological; D011073:Polyamines / Q000378:metabolism*; D011950:Receptors, Cholinergic / Q000378:metabolism; D017470:Receptors, Glutamate / Q000378:metabolism; D013111:Spider Venoms / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000633:toxicity*; D013112:Spiders / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D018690:Excitatory Amino Acid Agonists; D007473:Ion Channels; D011073:Polyamines; D011950:Receptors, Cholinergic; D017470:Receptors, Glutamate; D013111:Spider Venoms