Ruparčič Matija, Šolinc Gašper, Caserman Simon, Galindo Juan Carlos Garcia, Tenorio Manuel Jimenez, Anderluh Gregor
Department of Molecular Biology and Nanobiotechnology, National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Doctoral Program Biosciences, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva ulica 101, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Toxins (Basel). 2025 Jun 7;17(6):291. doi: 10.3390/toxins17060291.
Cone snails are a large group of marine gastropods that produce a complex mixture of toxic compounds to hunt prey and defend against predators. The majority of the venom comprises small toxic peptides named conotoxins, which target membrane receptors. In contrast, a smaller part of the venom contains larger proteins and conoproteins, which are thought to be involved in conotoxin maturation and the envenomation process, respectively. Interestingly, many species of cone snails contain conoporins, which are similar to actinoporins-pore-forming toxins found in sea anemones. These actinoporin-like proteins (ALPs) have recently been detected in many molluscan species, and only a few have been experimentally characterized. Due to being highly expressed in the venom gland of many cone snail species, conoporins are thought to play an important part in the envenomation process. Despite this, the exact function of conoporins is currently unknown. We propose several hypotheses aiming to elucidate their biological role.
芋螺是一大类海洋腹足纲动物，它们会产生复杂的有毒化合物混合物来捕食猎物并抵御捕食者。大部分毒液由名为芋螺毒素的小毒性肽组成，这些肽靶向膜受体。相比之下，毒液中较小一部分含有较大的蛋白质和芋螺蛋白，它们分别被认为与芋螺毒素的成熟和注毒过程有关。有趣的是，许多芋螺种类都含有芋螺孔蛋白，它们类似于海葵中发现的形成孔道的刺胞毒素。最近在许多软体动物物种中都检测到了这些类刺胞毒素蛋白（ALP），但只有少数经过了实验表征。由于在许多芋螺种类的毒腺中高度表达，芋螺孔蛋白被认为在注毒过程中起重要作用。尽管如此，芋螺孔蛋白的确切功能目前尚不清楚。我们提出了几个假说来阐明它们的生物学作用。
