Conotoxin diversification and evolution of venom peptides in cone snails

圆锥螺属的海蜗牛已经进化出了一种最复杂的毒液，这种毒液已成为新型生物活性肽的丰富来源。然而，迄今为止，它们的真正潜力还不到0.1%。利用我们实验室首创的先进的基因组学、蛋白质组学、结构和药理学方法，本研究将通过确定正选择concontoxin的进化轨迹，破译concontoxin如何从祖先的蠕虫猎人多样化，促进了饮食向现代鱼类和软体动物狩猎物种的转变。对这些高度优化的毒液肽的结构和功能的研究将提供新的研究工具和潜在的新药物和农用化学品。

The marine snails of the genus Conus have evolved one of the most complex venoms that has emerged as a rich source of novel bioactive peptides. However, < 0.1% of their true potential has been characterised to-date. Using advanced genomic, proteomic, structural and pharmacological approaches pioneered in our laboratory, this study will decipher how conotoxin diversification from ancestral worm hunters facilitated the shift in diet to modern fish and mollusc hunting species by determining the evolutionary trajectories of positively selected conotoxins. Investigation of the structure and function of these highly optimised venom peptides will provide new research tools and potential leads to new pharmaceuticals and agrochemicals.