Structural and Functional Characterization of a Novel Homodimeric Three-finger Neurotoxin from the Venom of Ophiophagus hannah (King Cobra)

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Roy, Amrita
Zhou, Xingding
Chong, Ming Zhi
D'hoedt, Dieter
Foo, Chun Shin
Rajagopalan, Nandhakishore
Nirthanan, Selvanayagam
Bertrand, Daniel
Sivaraman, J
Kini, R Manjunatha
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2010
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Abstract

Snake venoms are a mixture of pharmacologically active proteins and polypeptides that have led to the development of and therapeutic agents. Here, we describe the structural and functional characterization of a novel neurotoxin, haditoxin, from the venom of Ophiophagus hannah (King cobra). Haditoxin exhibited novel pharmacology with antagonism toward muscle (a߿d) and neuronal (a7, a3߲, and a4߲) nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) with highest affinity for a7-nAChRs. The high resolution (1.5 ũ crystal structure revealed haditoxin to be a homodimer, like ?-neurotoxins, which target neuronal a3߲- and a4߲-nAChRs. Interestingly however, the monomeric subunits of haditoxin were composed of a three-finger protein fold typical of curaremimetic short-chain a-neurotoxins. Biochemical studies confirmed that it existed as a non-covalent dimer species in solution. Its structural similarity to short-chain a-neurotoxins and ?-neurotoxins notwithstanding, haditoxin exhibited unique blockade of a7-nAChRs (IC50 180 nm), which is recognized by neither short-chain a-neurotoxins nor ?-neurotoxins. This is the first report of a dimeric short-chain a-neurotoxin interacting with neuronal a7-nAChRs as well as the first homodimeric three-finger toxin to interact with muscle nAChRs.

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Journal of Biological Chemistry

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285

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11

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This research was originally published in Journal of Biological Chemistry (JBC). Authors, Structural and Functional Characterization of a Novel Homodimeric Three-finger Neurotoxin from the Venom of Ophiophagus hannah (King Cobra), Journal of Biological Chemistry (JBC) 2010; Vol 285: 8302-8315. Copyright the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. This is the author-manuscript version of this paper. Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher. Please refer to the journal's website for access to the definitve version.

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Chemical sciences

Biological sciences

Biomedical and clinical sciences

Pharmacology and pharmaceutical sciences not elsewhere classified

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