Librería Samer Atenea
Kálamo Books
Librería Elías (Asturias)
Librería Kolima (Madrid)
Librería Proteo (Málaga)
This book describes the discovery and engineering of spider venom peptides that selectively inhibit the Nav1.7 sodium channel, a validated target for chronic pain relief. It begins with the identification of two novel toxins, µ-TRTX-Ca1a and µ-TRTX-Ca2a, from the Thai zebra tarantula Cyriopagopus albostriatus. Both peptides show potent, dose-dependent analgesia in rodent pain models. The authors then demonstrate that inactive HNTX‑I can be transformed into a potent Nav1.7 blocker by introducing conserved residues, creating a 36 nM inhibitor. Finally, through systematic alanine scanning and molecular docking of HNTX‑III, they engineer the optimized variant H4, which achieves an IC₅₀ of 7 nM, >1400‑fold selectivity over cardiac and muscle sodium channels, and superior analgesic efficacy compared to morphine in inflammatory and neuropathic pain models. The book illustrates a complete arc from natural venom prospecting to rational peptide engineering and preclinical validation for safer pain therapeutics.
