Scorpion venom peptides: Molecular diversity, structural characteristics, and therapeutic use from channelopathies to viral infections and cancers

Scorpion Venom Antimicrobial Peptide Derivative BmKn2-T5 Inhibits Enterovirus 71 in the Early Stages of the Viral Life Cycle In Vitro

“…Importantly, it was demonstrated that BmKn2-T5 exhibits significant inhibitory activity at the early stages of EV71, especially in attachment and entry. This phenomenon is different from the action stages of most scorpion venom-related antiviral peptides reported in the literature, such as Ctry2459, Hp1090, Hp1036, Hp1239, Kn2-7, and mucroporin-M1, which exert antiviral activity by inactivating infectious viral particles or acting at post-entry stages [23,49]. These data suggest that BmKn2-T5 may affect the early stages of EV71 via a novel antiviral mechanism.…”

“…Through the structural and functional characterization of scorpion venom components, a significant percentage of scorpion-derived AMPs have been identified, showing potential pharmacological activities in antibacterial, antifungal, and antiparasitic aspects. Currently, more than 25 short-chain and 4 long-chain AMPs with antibacterial properties have been isolated from different scorpion species, including Mesobuthus martensii, Androctonus aeneas, Tityus serrulatus, Opisthacanthus madagascarieni, and Heterometrus spinifer [23][24][25][26]. For instance, AaeAP1 and AaeAP2, isolated from the North African scorpion A. aeneas, contain 17 amino acids without disulfide bridges and exhibit more selective growth-inhibitory activities against Staphylococcus aureus (16 mg/L) than against Escherichia coli (512 mg/L) [25].…”

“…For instance, AaeAP1 and AaeAP2, isolated from the North African scorpion A. aeneas, contain 17 amino acids without disulfide bridges and exhibit more selective growth-inhibitory activities against Staphylococcus aureus (16 mg/L) than against Escherichia coli (512 mg/L) [25]. In addition, 19 scorpion-derived peptides have been confirmed to exert significant antifungal activity and 8 peptides with antiparasitic activity have been reported to date [22,23,27]. Interestingly, four peptide analogs of stigmurin from the scorpion T. stigmurus, named StigA6, StigA16, StigA25, and StigA31, not only exhibit antibacterial and antifungal effects superior to those of the native peptide but also efficiently inhibit the growth of epimastigote forms of Trypanosoma cruzi, suggesting that AMPs may serve as potential broad-spectrum therapeutic agents in resistance against foreign invading microorganisms [28,29].…”

“…Interestingly, four peptide analogs of stigmurin from the scorpion T. stigmurus, named StigA6, StigA16, StigA25, and StigA31, not only exhibit antibacterial and antifungal effects superior to those of the native peptide but also efficiently inhibit the growth of epimastigote forms of Trypanosoma cruzi, suggesting that AMPs may serve as potential broad-spectrum therapeutic agents in resistance against foreign invading microorganisms [28,29]. Although 12 scorpion-derived peptides have been confirmed to exert inhibitory activity against viral infection, including hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), herpes simplex virus (HSV), and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the development and optimization of scorpion venom peptides with promising antiviral activity against different viral families is still worth further exploration [23,[30][31][32].…”

Exploring the Potential of Bioactive Peptides: From Natural Sources to Therapeutics

“…Scorpions, snakes, jelly fish, spiders, and many other animals/organisms have evolved for millions of years and employ their venom for self-defence [221]. These venoms contain a multitude of bioactive peptides that display a spectrum of activities including anticancer activity [27,221]. This subsection focusses on venom-derived anticancer peptides (ACPs).…”