Characterization of the First Conotoxin from Conus ateralbus , a Vermivorous Cone Snail from the Cabo Verde Archipelago

• Published in: Marine drugs Vol. 17; no. 8; p. 432
• Main Authors: Neves, Jorge L B, Imperial, Julita S, Morgenstern, David, Ueberheide, Beatrix, Gajewiak, Joanna, Antunes, Agostinho, Robinson, Samuel D, Espino, Samuel, Watkins, Maren, Vasconcelos, Vitor, Olivera, Baldomero M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 24.07.2019; MDPI
• Subjects: Amino acid sequence; Amino acids; Amino Acids - genetics; Analogs; Animals; Archipelagoes; Biogeography; Cabo Verde; cone snail; conotoxin; Conotoxins; Conotoxins - chemistry; Conotoxins - pharmacokinetics; Conserved sequence; Conserved Sequence - genetics; Conus; Conus ateralbus; Conus Snail - chemistry; Dorsal root ganglia; Female; Fish; Ganglia; Ganglia, Spinal - drug effects; Homology; Hunting; Kalloconus; Male; Marine molluscs; Mass spectrometry; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Mollusks; Neurons; Neurons - drug effects; Peptides; Peptides - chemistry; Peptides - genetics; Peptides - pharmacokinetics; Phylogenetics; Phylogeny; Scientific imaging; Sequencing; Snails; Toxins; Venom; Vertebrates; Cabo Verde; Cape Verde Islands; cone snail; Conus ateralbus; conotoxin; Conus; Kalloconus
• ISSN: 1660-3397; 1660-3397
• DOI: 10.3390/md17080432

is a cone snail endemic to the west side of the island of Sal, in the Cabo Verde Archipelago off West Africa. We describe the isolation and characterization of the first bioactive peptide from the venom of this species. This 30AA venom peptide is named conotoxin AtVIA (δ-conotoxin-like). An excitatory activity was manifested by the peptide on a majority of mouse lumbar dorsal root ganglion neurons. An analog of AtVIA with conservative changes on three amino acid residues at the C-terminal region was synthesized and this analog produced an identical effect on the mouse neurons. AtVIA has homology with δ-conotoxins from other worm-hunters, which include conserved sequence elements that are shared with δ-conotoxins from fish-hunting . In contrast, there is no comparable sequence similarity with δ-conotoxins from the venoms of molluscivorous species. A rationale for the potential presence of δ-conotoxins, that are potent in vertebrate systems in two different lineages of worm-hunting cone snails, is discussed.