Ion Channel Tools and Therapeutics from Venoms and Toxins

For almost as long as the ion channels in our brains have powered conscious thought, we have been fascinated by venoms and toxins. Initially thought of  as magical, now we are understanding their true power and utility in drug discovery.  A diverse range of venoms and toxins have been used to decipher the properties of  ion channels and as a result hold a key functional place as positive controls in many  assays. Such control toxins include tetrodotoxin, protoxin and charybdotoxin that  are found in diverse species. The latest advances in computational chemistry and  structural biology, such as cryogenic electron microscopy and free energy perturbation, are opening our drug discovery gaze to the atomic interactions of toxins and  ion channels. Coupled with advances in ion channel screening and peptide biochemistry, we are on the verge of a new wave of toxin discovery and clinical application. These toxins also tackle challenging drug targets that are in desperate need  of new chemical modalities. This chapter details the advances in toxin drug discovery though clinical development and new understanding of licensed drugs that feeds  back to improve further therapeutic opportunities.

Keywords: Q2 2024