Therapeutic Potential of Animal Toxins

Dear Colleagues,

Animal poisons and venoms are rich and complex mixtures, mostly of peptides and proteins, which have a variety of molecular targets and wide-ranging pharmacological activities. The therapeutic properties of animal poisons and venoms are part of the collective imaginary throughout the evolution of humanity. For hundreds of years, the skin secretion from the Chinese toad (Bufo bufo gargarizans), named Chan Su, has been used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for treating infection, cancer, and inflammation. In ancient Rome, animal venoms were used for the treatment of smallpox, leprosy, and fever. In 1911, official reports described the use of globefish to treat neuralgia due to leprosy. Recently, several drugs derived from animal poison- and venom-toxins have been launched on the market, including, e.g., exenatide (a 39 amino-acid peptide used to treat diabetes mellitus type 2, which is a synthetic version of Exendin-4, a hormone found in the saliva of the Gila monster), ziconotide (a non-opioid analgesic drug approved for the management of severe chronic pain, which is a synthetic version of ω-conotoxin MVIIA, a peptide found in the venom of the fish-eating marine snail, Conus magus), eptifibatide (an antiplatelet drug, which is a cyclic heptapeptide derived from a disintegrin protein found in the venom of the southeastern pygmy rattlesnake, Sistrurus miliarius barbouri), and batroxobin (a thrombin-like serine protease obtained from Bothrops atrox and B. moojeni snake venoms, whose defibrinogenating effect is clinically used for the treatment of various thrombotic diseases, including myocardial infarction, pulmonary embolism, and acute ischemic stroke). This Special Issue will accept original research articles and reviews that highlight the potential of toxins found in animal poisons and venoms, especially peptides, as prototypes or templates for the development of new therapeutic agents for the treatment of several diseases and disorders such as cancer, microbial infections, pain, and inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases.

Prof. Dr. Mariana S. Castro
Prof. Dr. Wagner Fontes
Guest Editors

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• animal poisons
• animal venoms
• peptides
• therapeutic agents