Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Baltzerstrasse 6, Bern, Switzerland.
Cell Mol Life Sci. 2010 Aug;67(15):2643-51. doi: 10.1007/s00018-010-0354-2. Epub 2010 Apr 1.
Defensins are a major family of antimicrobial peptides found throughout the phylogenetic tree. From the spider species: Cupiennius salei, Phoneutria reidyi, Polybetes pythagoricus, Tegenaria atrica, and Meta menardi, defensins belonging to the 'ancestral' class of invertebrate defensins were cloned and sequenced. The deduced amino acid sequences contain the characteristic six cysteines of this class of defensins and reveal precursors of 60 or 61 amino acid residues. The mature peptides consist of 37 amino acid residues, showing up to 70% identities with tick and scorpion defensins. In C. salei, defensin mRNA was found to be constitutively expressed in hemocytes, ovaries, subesophageal nerve mass, hepatopancreas, and muscle tissue. This is the first report presenting and comparing antimicrobial peptides belonging to the family of defensins from spiders.
防御素是在整个系统发育树中发现的一大类抗菌肽。从蜘蛛物种：智利红玫瑰、巴西游走蛛、多毛长足蛛、黑寡妇蜘蛛和智利红玫瑰，属于“原始”无脊椎动物防御素的防御素被克隆和测序。推导的氨基酸序列包含该防御素类的特征的六个半胱氨酸，揭示了 60 或 61 个氨基酸残基的前体。成熟肽由 37 个氨基酸残基组成，与蜱和蝎子防御素有高达 70%的同一性。在 C. salei 中，防御素 mRNA 被发现在血细胞、卵巢、食管下神经丛、肝胰腺和肌肉组织中组成型表达。这是第一个报道来自蜘蛛的防御素家族的抗菌肽的报告。
