Neurotoxins Acting at Synaptic Sites: A Brief Review on Mechanisms and Clinical Applications

Kunming Zhou; Weifeng Luo; Tong Liu; Yong Ni; Zhenghong Qin

doi:10.3390/toxins15010018

Neurotoxins Acting at Synaptic Sites: A Brief Review on Mechanisms and Clinical Applications

Toxins (Basel). 2022 Dec 27;15(1):18. doi: 10.3390/toxins15010018.

Authors

Kunming Zhou¹, Weifeng Luo², Tong Liu³, Yong Ni², Zhenghong Qin¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pharmacology and Laboratory of Aging and Nervous Diseases, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
² Department of Neurology and Clinical Research Center of Neurological Disease, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou 215004, China.
³ Institute of Pain Medicine and Special Environmental Medicine, Nantong University, Nantong 226019, China.

Abstract

Neurotoxins generally inhibit or promote the release of neurotransmitters or bind to receptors that are located in the pre- or post-synaptic membranes, thereby affecting physiological functions of synapses and affecting biological processes. With more and more research on the toxins of various origins, many neurotoxins are now widely used in clinical treatment and have demonstrated good therapeutic outcomes. This review summarizes the structural properties and potential pharmacological effects of neurotoxins acting on different components of the synapse, as well as their important clinical applications, thus could be a useful reference for researchers and clinicians in the study of neurotoxins.

Keywords: botulinum toxin; cobrotoxin; neurotoxins; pain; synapse.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Botulinum Toxins* / chemistry
Neurotoxins* / chemistry
Neurotoxins* / pharmacology
Neurotoxins* / therapeutic use
Neurotransmitter Agents
Synapses

Substances

Neurotoxins
Botulinum Toxins
Neurotransmitter Agents

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 81730092) and the Priority Academic Program Development of the Jiangsu Higher Education Institutes (PAPD).