1. The smooth muscle pharmacology of maximakinin, a receptor-selective, bradykinin-related nonadecapeptide from the venom of the Chinese toad, Bombina maxima
- Author
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O'Rourke, Martin, Chen, Tianbao, Hirst, David G., Rao, Pingfan, and Shaw, Chris
- Subjects
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PEPTIDES , *PROTEINS , *HEREDITY , *PHYSIOLOGICAL effects of chemicals - Abstract
Structural homologues of vertebrate regulatory peptides found in defensive skin secretions of anuran amphibians often display enhanced bioactivity and receptor binding when compared with endogenous mammalian peptide ligands. Maximakinin, a novel N-terminally extended bradykinin (DLPKINRKGPRPPGFSPFR) from the skin venom of a Chinese toad (Bombina maxima), displays such activity enhancement when compared with bradykinin but is additionally highly selective for mammalian arterial smooth muscle bradykinin receptors displaying a 50-fold increase in molar potency in this smooth muscle type. In contrast, a 100-fold decrease in molar potency was observed at bradykinin receptors in intestinal and uterine smooth muscle preparations. Maximakinin has thus evolved as a “smart” defensive weapon in the toad with receptor/tissue selective targeting. Natural selection of amphibian skin venom peptides for antipredator defence, through inter-species delivery by an exogenous secretory mode, produces subtle structural stabilisation modifications that can potentially provide new insights for the design of selectively targeted peptide therapeutics. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]
- Published
- 2004
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