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Novel Peptides of Therapeutic Promise from Indian Conidae
Author(s) -
GOWD K HANUMAE,
SABAREESH V,
SUDARSLAL S,
IENGAR PRATHIMA,
FRANKLIN BENJAMIN,
FERNANDO ANTONY,
DEWAN KALYAN,
RAMASWAMI MANI,
SARMA SIDDHARTHA P.,
SIKDAR SUJIT,
BALARAM P,
KRISHNAN K S
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
annals of the new york academy of sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.712
H-Index - 248
eISSN - 1749-6632
pISSN - 0077-8923
DOI - 10.1196/annals.1352.022
Subject(s) - venom , snail , conus , conotoxin , receptor , peptide , biology , drug , zoology , computational biology , ecology , pharmacology , biochemistry
Highly structured small peptides are the major toxic constituents of the venom of cone snails, a family of widely distributed predatory marine molluscs. These animals use the venom for rapid prey immobilization. The peptide components in the venom target a wide variety of membrane‐bound ion channels and receptors. Many have been found to be highly selective for a diverse range of mammalian ion channels and receptors associated with pain‐signaling pathways. Their small size, structural stability, and target specificity make them attractive pharmacologic agents. A select number of laboratories mainly from the United States, Europe, Australia, Israel, and China have been engaged in intense drug discovery programs based on peptides from a few snail species. Coastal India has an estimated 20–30% of the known cone species; however, few serious studies have been reported so far. We have begun a comprehensive program for the identification and characterization of peptides from cone snails found in Indian Coastal waters. This presentation reviews our progress over the last 2 years. As expected from the evolutionary history of these venom components, our search has yielded novel peptides of therapeutic promise from the new species that we have studied.