cosmeceuticals and atypical therapies (bee venom and leech therapies) are also reported. The level of cumulative and detailed information provided in this review may help pharmacists, physicians, biotechnologists, pharmacologists, and scientists interested in toxinology, drug discovery, and development of toxin-based products.

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BackgroundIn recent decades, snake venom disintegrins have received special attention due to their potential use in anticancer therapy. Disintegrins are small and cysteine-rich proteins present in snake venoms and can interact with specific integrins to inhibit their activities in cell-cell and cell-ECM interactions. These molecules, known to inhibit platelet aggregation, are also capable of interacting with certain cancer-related integrins, and may interfere in important processes involved in carcinogenesis. Therefore, disintegrin from Crotalus durissus collilineatus venom was isolated, structurally characterized and evaluated for its toxicity and ability to interfere with cell proliferation and migration in MDA-MB-231, a human breast cancer cell line.MethodsBased on previous studies, disintegrin was isolated by FPLC, through two chromatographic steps, both on reversed phase C-18 columns. The isolated disintegrin was structurally characterized by Tris-Tricine-SDS-PAGE, mass spectrometry and N-terminal sequencing. For the functional assays, MTT and wound-healing assays were performed in order to investigate cytotoxicity and effect on cell migration in vitro, respectively.ResultsDisintegrin presented a molecular mass of 7287.4 Da and its amino acid sequence shared similarity with the disintegrin domain of P-II metalloproteases. Using functional assays, the disintegrin showed low cytotoxicity (15% and 17%, at 3 and 6 μg/mL, respectively) after 24 h of incubation and in the wound-healing assay, the disintegrin (3 μg/mL) was able to significantly inhibit cell migration (24%, p < 0.05), compared to negative control.ConclusionThus, our results demonstrate that non-RGD disintegrin from C. d. collilineatus induces low cytotoxicity and inhibits migration of human breast cancer cells. Therefore, it may be a very useful molecular tool for understanding ECM-cell interaction cancer-related mechanisms involved in an important integrin family that highlights molecular aspects of tumorigenesis. Also, non-RGD disintegrin has potential to serve as an agent in anticancer therapy or adjuvant component combined with other anticancer drugs.

Metabolic networks are interconnected and influence diverse cellular processes. The protein-metabolite interactions that mediate these networks are frequently low affinity and challenging to systematically discover. We developed mass spectrometry integrated with equilibrium dialysis for the discovery of allostery systematically (MIDAS) to identify such interactions. Analysis of 33 enzymes from human carbohydrate metabolism identified 830 protein-metabolite interactions, including known regulators, substrates, and products as well as previously unreported interactions. We functionally validated a subset of interactions, including the isoform-specific inhibition of lactate dehydrogenase by long-chain acyl–coenzyme A. Cell treatment with fatty acids caused a loss of pyruvate-lactate interconversion dependent on lactate dehydrogenase isoform expression. These protein-metabolite interactions may contribute to the dynamic, tissue-specific metabolic flexibility that enables growth and survival in an ever-changing nutrient environment.

Metabolism is highly interconnected and also has profound effects on other cellular processes. However, the interactions between metabolites and proteins that mediate this connectivity are frequently low affinity and difficult to discover, hampering our understanding of this important area of cellular biochemistry. Therefore, we developed the MIDAS platform, which can identify protein-metabolite interactions with great sensitivity. We analyzed 33 enzymes from central carbon metabolism and identified 830 protein-metabolite interactions that were mostly novel, but also included known regulators, substrates, products and their analogs. We validated previously unknown interactions, including two atomic-resolution structures of novel protein-metabolite complexes. We also found that both ATP and long-chain fatty acyl-CoAs inhibit lactate dehydrogenase A (LDHA), but not LDHB, at physiological concentrations in vitro. Treating cells with long-chain fatty acids caused a loss of pyruvate/lactate interconversion, but only in cells reliant on LDHA. We propose that these regulatory mechanisms are part of the metabolic connectivity that enables survival in an ever-changing nutrient environment, and that MIDAS enables a broader and deeper understanding of that network.