Conotoxin in pain transmission

Pritsana Khamchaew, Edwin ten Winkel, bbPharma

In the vertebrate nervous system the calcium influx in the pre-synaptic end of the nerve fiber leads to a release of neurotransmitter in the synaptic cleft. Specific ion channels facilitate the calcium influx and the synaptic signal transmission.
The conopeptide reversibly antagonises -highly specifically- a special type of calcium channel (the N-Type), that can be found in a high density in the Central Nervous System and that is responsible for pain transmission.
Our conotoxin, a nerve agent, binds to and blocks these N-Type calcium channels and thus blocks the release of neurotransmitter. The nerve impuls is thus interrupted pre-synaptically. This effect -in contrast to morphine- is immediate and complete.