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Crotoxin: Novel activities for a classic β-neurotoxin
- Source :
- Toxicon. 55:1045-1060
- Publication Year :
- 2010
- Publisher :
- Elsevier BV, 2010.
-
Abstract
- Crotoxin, the main toxin of South American rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus terrificus) venom, was the first snake venom protein to be purified and crystallized. Crotoxin is a heterodimeric beta-neurotoxin that consists of a weakly toxic basic phospholipase A(2) and a non-enzymatic, non-toxic acidic component (crotapotin). The classic biological activities normally attributed to crotoxin include neurotoxicity, myotoxicity, nephrotoxicity and cardiotoxicity. However, numerous studies in recent years have shown that crotoxin also has immunomodulatory, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, anti-tumor and analgesic actions. In this review, we describe the historical background to the discovery of crotoxin and its main toxic activities and then discuss recent structure-function studies and investigations that have led to the identification of novel pharmacological activities for the toxin.
- Subjects :
- Myotoxin
Neurotoxins
Antineoplastic Agents
Venom
Pharmacology
Biology
Toxicology
medicine.disease_cause
Immunomodulation
Structure-Activity Relationship
Anti-Infective Agents
medicine
Animals
Humans
Structure–activity relationship
Neurotoxin
Protein Structure, Quaternary
Analgesics
Phospholipase A
Toxin
Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal
Crotalus
Neurotoxicity
Crotoxin
medicine.disease
Disease Models, Animal
Phospholipases A2
Snake venom
Dimerization
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 00410101
- Volume :
- 55
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Toxicon
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....e75ea3e3d04b361ddcf28e0724af17a3