STRUCTURAL CHARACTERIZATION OF A NEW ACYLPOLYAMINETOXIN FROM THE VENOM OF BRAZILIAN GARDEN SPIDER NEPHILENGYS CRUENTATA

Mario Sergio Palma, Yasuhiro Itagaki, Tsuyoshi Fujita, Hideo Naoki and Terumi Nakajima. Structural characterization of a new acylpolpamineto xin from the venom of Brazilian garden spider Nephilengys: cruentata. Toxicon 36, 455-493, 1998.-The use of mass spectrometry, in which high -energy CID and charge remote fragmentation both of protonated and sod ium-attached molecular ions was applied, afforded the structural eluci dation of a new acylgolyaminetoxin with M-W= 801 Da from the venom of the Brazilian garden spider Nephilengys cruentata. In spite of having the same M-W of the NPTX-2, previously described in the venom of the J oro spider Nephila clavata, neither toxins are isomers. In order to di fferentiate them by using the most usual nomenclature, the new toxin w as named NPTX-801C and the NPTX-2 was renamed to NPTX-801E. Both toxin s have as common structure the 4-hydroxyindole-3-acetyl-asparaginyl-ca daveryl moiety in their molecules and their structure may be represent ed in a simplified way: NPTX-801E is HO-indole-Asn-Cad-Pta-Orn-Arg and NPTX-801C is HO-indole-Asn-Cad-Gly-Put-Pta-Pta. (C) 1998 Elsevier Sci ence Ltd. All rights reserved.