JMSSJ On-line

JMSSJ On-line, Vol. 51 (2003) No. 1, pp. 96-100

Genes Encoding Snake Neurotoxins and Their Expression Products		>> Full Text PDF >> References
Toru TAMIYA^* ^Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, Sophia University (7-1 Kioi-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-8554, Japan)*

The venom of the sea snake Laticauda semifasciata contains α-neurotoxins (erabutoxins) and phospolipases A₂. α-Neurotoxins bind specifically to the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor and block the binding of acetylcholine to the receptor at neuromuscular junctions. Phospholipases A₂ inhibit to release neurotransmitter, acetylcholine, at neuromuscular junctions. The genes encoding these neurotoxins evolve via accelerated evolution including gene duplication and form multi-gene family. Thus there are many kinds of genes encoding these neurotoxins. However, some of the gene expression products could not be identified by the traditional methods. According to the development of analytical methods like on-line LC-ES-MS, we can detect the minor protein components in the venom of L. semifasciata.

Key words: Snake neurotoxin, Snake toxin gene, α-Neurotoxin, Phospholipase A₂