Marine molluscs known as cone snails produce beautiful shells and a complex array of over 50,000 venom peptides evolved for prey capture and defence. Many of these peptides selectively modulate ion channels and transporters, making them a valuable source of new ligands for studying the role these targets play in normal and disease physiology. A number of conopeptides reduce pain in animal models, and several are now in pre-clinical and clinical development for the treatment of severe pain often associated with diseases such as cancer. Less than 1% of cone snail venom peptides are pharmacologically characterised.
CITATION STYLE
Lewis, R. J. (2009). Conotoxins: molecular and therapeutic targets. Progress in Molecular and Subcellular Biology. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-87895-7_2
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