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Differential Effects of Tityus bahiensis Scorpion Venom on Tetrodotoxin-Sensitive and Tetrodotoxin-Resistant Sodium Currents

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Abstract

We examined modification of sodium channel gating by Tityus bahiensis scorpion venom (TbScV), and compared effects on native tetrodotoxin-sensitive and tetrodotoxin-resistant sodium currents from rat dorsal root ganglion neurons and cardiac myocytes. In neurons, TbScV dramatically reduced the rate of sodium current inactivation, increased current amplitude, and caused a negative shift in the voltage-dependence of activation and inactivation of tetrodotoxin-sensitive channels. Enhanced activation of modified sodium channels was independent of a depolarizing prepulse. We identified two components of neuronal tetrodotoxin-resistant current with biophysical properties similar to those described for NaV1.8 and NaV1.9. In contrast to its effects on neuronal tetrodotoxin-sensitive current, TbScV caused a small decrease in neuronal tetrodotoxin-resistant sodium current amplitude and the gating modifications described above were absent. A third tetrodotoxin-resistant current, NaV1.5 recorded in rat cardiac ventricular myocytes, was inhibited approximately 50% by TbScV, and the remaining current exhibited markedly slowed activation and inactivation. In conclusion, TbScV has very different effects on different sodium channel isoforms. Among the neuronal types, currents resistant to tetrodotoxin are also resistant to gating modification by TbScV. The cardiac tetrodotoxin-resistant current has complex sensitivity that includes both inhibition of current amplitude and slowing of activation and inactivation.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr Silvia Guatimosim and Enéas de Morais Gomes for supplying dissociated cardiac myocytes. Supported by CNPq (Brasil), FAPEMIG (Brasil), PRPq/UFMG (Brasil).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Biologia Geral, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Evanguedes Kalapothakis

  2. Departamento de Fisiologia e Biofísica, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, 31270-901, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Eder R. Moraes, Lígia A. Naves & Christopher Kushmerick

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  1. Eder R. Moraes
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  2. Evanguedes Kalapothakis
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  3. Lígia A. Naves
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  4. Christopher Kushmerick
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Correspondence to Christopher Kushmerick.

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Moraes, E.R., Kalapothakis, E., Naves, L.A. et al. Differential Effects of Tityus bahiensis Scorpion Venom on Tetrodotoxin-Sensitive and Tetrodotoxin-Resistant Sodium Currents. Neurotox Res 19, 102–114 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12640-009-9144-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12640-009-9144-8

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