Search

[EN] Cone snails belong to the family Conidae and constitute a highly diversified monophyletic group (>900 species), which is generally found inhabiting the intertidal of tropical and subtropical areas worldwide. In addition to their high species diversity, cones are characterized by having a highly specialized venom apparatus for producing and injecting toxins (conotoxins) with a neurotoxic effect. These are used to hunt prey and to defend against predators or competitors. Conotoxins are usually short peptides, rich in cysteines and are often modified post-translationally in their native state. It is considered that cone snails are capable of producing highly variable venom cocktails at different hierarchical levels (individual, population, interspecific) and that venom composition could be linked to different diets, generally grouped into three large groups: worms (vermivores), fish (piscivores) and snails (molluscivores). Cone snail venom has a huge interest in evolutionary studies as well as for its potential as novel drug source. In order to study cone snail venom, the first step is to determine its exact composition by cataloguing the different conotoxins, hormones, and other functional peptides. Currently, it is possible to use high-throughput sequencing techniques to obtain the venom duct transcriptome i.e., all the transcripts expressed in this tissue and their level of expression. On the other hand, proteomics is able to precisely determine the peptide components of the venom that will target receptors in the prey or predator. The current availability of second generation high-throughput sequencing techniques is allowing the cataloguing and analysis of venoms of an increasing number of cone snails. The advent of third-generation long-read sequencing along with techniques that make use of chromatin conformation structure are allowing the generation of chromosome-level assemblies from non-model organisms. The availability of such high-quality genomes for ven

Conotoxins form a diverse group of peptide toxins found in the venom of predatory marine cone snails. Decades of conotoxin research have provided numerous measurable scientific and societal benefits. These include their use as a drug, diagnostic agent, drug leads, and research tools in neuroscience, pharmacology, biochemistry, structural biology, and molecular evolution. Human envenomations by cone snails are rare but can be fatal. Death by envenomation is likely caused by a small set of toxins that induce muscle paralysis of the diaphragm, resulting in respiratory arrest. The potency of these toxins led to concerns regarding the potential development and use of conotoxins as biological weapons. To address this, various regulatory measures have been introduced that limit the use and access of conotoxins within the research community. Some of these regulations apply to all of the ≈200,000 conotoxins predicted to exist in nature of which less than 0.05% are estimated to have any significant toxicity in humans. In this review we provide an overview of the many benefits of conotoxin research, and contrast these to the perceived biosecurity concerns of conotoxins and research thereof.

Conotoxins form a diverse group of peptide toxins found in the venom of predatory marine cone snails. Decades of conotoxin research have provided numerous measurable scientific and societal benefits. These include their use as a drug, diagnostic agent, drug leads, and research tools in neuroscience, pharmacology, biochemistry, structural biology, and molecular evolution. Human envenomations by cone snails are rare but can be fatal. Death by envenomation is likely caused by a small set of toxins that induce muscle paralysis of the diaphragm, resulting in respiratory arrest. The potency of these toxins led to concerns regarding the potential development and use of conotoxins as biological weapons. To address this, various regulatory measures have been introduced that limit the use and access of conotoxins within the research community. Some of these regulations apply to all of the ≈200,000 conotoxins predicted to exist in nature of which less than 0.05% are estimated to have any significant toxicity in humans. In this review we provide an overview of the many benefits of conotoxin research, and contrast these to the perceived biosecurity concerns of conotoxins and research thereof.