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Venom-Derived Neurotoxins Targeting Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors

Acetylcholine was the first neurotransmitter described. The receptors targeted by acetylcholine are found within organisms spanning different phyla and position themselves as very attractive targets for predation, as well as for defense. Venoms of snakes within the Elapidae family, as well as those...

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Autores principales: Bekbossynova, Ayaulym, Zharylgap, Albina, Filchakova, Olena
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8199771/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34204855
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/molecules26113373
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author Bekbossynova, Ayaulym
Zharylgap, Albina
Filchakova, Olena
author_facet Bekbossynova, Ayaulym
Zharylgap, Albina
Filchakova, Olena
author_sort Bekbossynova, Ayaulym
collection PubMed
description Acetylcholine was the first neurotransmitter described. The receptors targeted by acetylcholine are found within organisms spanning different phyla and position themselves as very attractive targets for predation, as well as for defense. Venoms of snakes within the Elapidae family, as well as those of marine snails within the Conus genus, are particularly rich in proteins and peptides that target nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs). Such compounds are invaluable tools for research seeking to understand the structure and function of the cholinergic system. Proteins and peptides of venomous origin targeting nAChR demonstrate high affinity and good selectivity. This review aims at providing an overview of the toxins targeting nAChRs found within venoms of different animals, as well as their activities and the structural determinants important for receptor binding.
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spelling pubmed-81997712021-06-14 Venom-Derived Neurotoxins Targeting Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors Bekbossynova, Ayaulym Zharylgap, Albina Filchakova, Olena Molecules Review Acetylcholine was the first neurotransmitter described. The receptors targeted by acetylcholine are found within organisms spanning different phyla and position themselves as very attractive targets for predation, as well as for defense. Venoms of snakes within the Elapidae family, as well as those of marine snails within the Conus genus, are particularly rich in proteins and peptides that target nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs). Such compounds are invaluable tools for research seeking to understand the structure and function of the cholinergic system. Proteins and peptides of venomous origin targeting nAChR demonstrate high affinity and good selectivity. This review aims at providing an overview of the toxins targeting nAChRs found within venoms of different animals, as well as their activities and the structural determinants important for receptor binding. MDPI 2021-06-03 /pmc/articles/PMC8199771/ /pubmed/34204855 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/molecules26113373 Text en © 2021 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
spellingShingle Review
Bekbossynova, Ayaulym
Zharylgap, Albina
Filchakova, Olena
Venom-Derived Neurotoxins Targeting Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors
title Venom-Derived Neurotoxins Targeting Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors
title_full Venom-Derived Neurotoxins Targeting Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors
title_fullStr Venom-Derived Neurotoxins Targeting Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors
title_full_unstemmed Venom-Derived Neurotoxins Targeting Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors
title_short Venom-Derived Neurotoxins Targeting Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors
title_sort venom-derived neurotoxins targeting nicotinic acetylcholine receptors
topic Review
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8199771/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34204855
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/molecules26113373
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