Referenced in: none

Automatically associated channels: Kv10.1

Title: alpha-Conotoxins, small peptide probes of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors.

Authors: R A Myers, G C Zafaralla, W R Gray, J Abbott, L J Cruz, B M Olivera

Journal, date & volume: Biochemistry, 1991 Sep 24 , 30, 9370-7

PubMed link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1892838

Abstract
alpha-Conotoxins, a family of small peptides from the venoms of the Conus marine moluscs, are selective, snake alpha-neurotoxin-competitive antagonists of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor. A new alpha-conotoxin, SIA, has been purified, sequenced, and synthesized. Cross-linking with bivalent reagents and photoaffinity labeling of the acetylcholine receptor with alpha-conotoxin yield covalent adducts. Surprisingly, cross-linking to other subunits is considerably more efficient than to the alpha subunit. The relative efficiency of photoactivatable cross-linking to different subunits of the receptor is a function of placement of the photoactivatable group on the toxin. Since the structures of alpha-conotoxins can be solved by 2D NMR [see Pardi et al. (1989) Biochemistry 28, 5494-5508; Kobayashi et al. (1989) Biochemistry 28, 4853-4860], this family of toxins should provide a set of new ligands for probing the acetylcholine receptor with considerable precision.