Gene cloning and functional characterization of four novel antimicrobial-like peptides from scorpions of the family Vaejovidae |
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Authors: | Ramírez-Carreto Santos Quintero-Hernández Verónica Jiménez-Vargas Juana María Corzo Gerardo Possani Lourival D Becerril Baltazar Ortiz Ernesto |
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Affiliation: | Departamento de Medicina Molecular y Bioprocesos, Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Avenida Universidad, 2001, Colonia Chamilpa, Apartado Postal 510-3, Cuernavaca, Morelos 62210, Mexico. |
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Abstract: | From the cDNA libraries made from the venom glands of two scorpions belonging to the Vaejovidae family, four different putative non disulfide-bridged antimicrobial peptides were identified: VmCT1 and VmCT2 from Vaejovis mexicanus smithi plus VsCT1 and VsCT2 from Vaejovis subcristatus. These short peptides (with only 13 amino acid residues each) share important amino acid sequence similarities among themselves and with other reported antimicrobial peptides, but their biological activities vary dramatically. This communication reports the cloning, chemical synthesis and characterization of these peptides. Two peptides, VmCT1 and VmCT2 showed broad-spectrum antibacterial activity with minimum inhibitory concentrations MICs in the range of 5-25 μM and 10-20 μM respectively, whereas their hemolytic activity at these concentrations was low. Structure-function relationships that might determine the differences in activities are discussed. |
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Keywords: | Antimicrobial peptide cDNA library Scorpion Vaejovis |
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