1. Characterization and cloning of long neurotoxin homolog from Naja naja atra.
- Author
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Lin SR, Huang HB, Wu BN, and Chang LS
- Subjects
- Acetylcholine pharmacology, Amino Acid Sequence, Animals, Base Sequence, Cloning, Molecular, Cobra Neurotoxin Proteins chemistry, Cobra Neurotoxin Proteins toxicity, Elapid Venoms toxicity, Elapidae, In Vitro Techniques, Muscle Contraction drug effects, Muscle, Skeletal drug effects, Neurotoxins toxicity, Polymerase Chain Reaction, Ranidae, Sequence Alignment, Sequence Homology, Amino Acid, Cobra Neurotoxin Proteins genetics, Elapid Venoms chemistry, Muscle, Skeletal physiology, Neurotoxins chemistry
- Abstract
The cDNA encoding a long neurotoxin homolog was constructed from the cellular RNA isolated fom the venom glands of Naja naja atra (Taiwan cobra) by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. BLAST searches for sequence similarity in the GenBank databases reveal that the cDNA sequence of the long neurotoxin homolog is not highly homologous with long and short neurotoxins. Although the long neurotoxin homolog exhibited an activity to inhibit acetylcholine-induced muscle contractions as Naja naja atra cobrotoxin, the degree of inhibition caused by the addition of long neurotoxin homolog was only approximately 35% of that observed with the addition of cobrotoxin. Moreover, the primary structure of the long neurotoxin homolog did not fulfill the characteristic features of long or short neurotoxins. Together with long neurotoxin homologs from other snake species, they probably represent an evolutionary divergence between long and short neurotoxins.
- Published
- 1998
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