Proteinaceous Toxins in the Mucus and Proboscis of the Ribbon Worm Cephalothrix cf. simula (Palaeonemertea: Nemertea).

ABSTRACT: Cephalothrix cf. simula is a highly toxic ribbon worm of the class Palaeonemertea, known for its high concentrations of tetrodotoxin. Recent transcriptomic and proteomic studies across Nemertea have revealed that species from all classes possess a diverse array of protein and peptide toxins, which are associated with unicellular glands of the proboscis and the integument epithelium. Previous studies have identified a large number of putative toxins in the transcriptome of C. cf. simula; however, corresponding proteomic data have so far been lacking. This study presents the first comprehensive analysis of the mucus and proboscis proteome of C. cf. simula using high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. We identified three putat

SUBMITTER: Kuznetsov VG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12846013 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature