Neurotoxin Research Group, School of Medical & Molecular Biosciences, University of Technology, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Toxins (Basel). 2012 Mar;4(3):191-227. doi: 10.3390/toxins4030191. Epub 2012 Mar 22.
Over 10,000 arthropod species are currently considered to be pest organisms. They are estimated to contribute to the destruction of ~14% of the world's annual crop production and transmit many pathogens. Presently, arthropod pests of agricultural and health significance are controlled predominantly through the use of chemical insecticides. Unfortunately, the widespread use of these agrochemicals has resulted in genetic selection pressure that has led to the development of insecticide-resistant arthropods, as well as concerns over human health and the environment. Bioinsecticides represent a new generation of insecticides that utilise organisms or their derivatives (e.g., transgenic plants, recombinant baculoviruses, toxin-fusion proteins and peptidomimetics) and show promise as environmentally-friendly alternatives to conventional agrochemicals. Spider-venom peptides are now being investigated as potential sources of bioinsecticides. With an estimated 100,000 species, spiders are one of the most successful arthropod predators. Their venom has proven to be a rich source of hyperstable insecticidal mini-proteins that cause insect paralysis or lethality through the modulation of ion channels, receptors and enzymes. Many newly characterized insecticidal spider toxins target novel sites in insects. Here we review the structure and pharmacology of these toxins and discuss the potential of this vast peptide library for the discovery of novel bioinsecticides.
目前，约有 10000 多种节肢动物被认为是有害生物。它们估计造成了全球约 14%的年度作物产量损失，并传播了许多病原体。目前，对农业和健康有重要意义的节肢动物害虫主要通过使用化学杀虫剂来控制。不幸的是，这些农用化学品的广泛使用导致了遗传选择压力，从而导致了抗杀虫剂的节肢动物的发展，以及对人类健康和环境的担忧。生物杀虫剂代表了新一代的杀虫剂，利用生物或其衍生物（例如，转基因植物、重组杆状病毒、毒素融合蛋白和肽模拟物），并有望成为传统农用化学品的环保替代品。蜘蛛毒液肽目前正在被研究作为生物杀虫剂的潜在来源。蜘蛛有大约 10 万种，是最成功的节肢动物捕食者之一。它们的毒液是富含超稳定杀虫小蛋白的丰富来源，这些小蛋白通过调节离子通道、受体和酶来导致昆虫瘫痪或致死。许多新鉴定的杀虫蜘蛛毒素针对昆虫的新靶标。在这里，我们综述了这些毒素的结构和药理学，并讨论了这个庞大的肽库在发现新型生物杀虫剂方面的潜力。
