Novel peptides of therapeutic promise from Indian Conidae

Gowd, KH and Sabareesh, V and Sudarslal, S and Iengar, P and Franklin, B and Fernando, A and Dewand, K and Ramaswami, M and Sarma, SP and Sikdar, S and Balaram, P and Krishnan, KS (2005) Novel peptides of therapeutic promise from Indian Conidae. In: 1st International Conference on Natural Products and Molecular Medicine, JAN 13-15, 2005, Univ Cape Town.

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Abstract

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.

Item Type:	Conference Paper
Publisher:	John Wiley and Sons
Additional Information:	Copy right of this article belongs to John Wiley and Sons.
Keywords:	novel peptides; Conidae; molluscs; contryphans.
Department/Centre:	Division of Biological Sciences > Molecular Biophysics Unit
Date Deposited:	29 Apr 2010 11:06
Last Modified:	19 Sep 2010 06:01
URI:	http://eprints.iisc.ac.in/id/eprint/27391

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