Short Peptides from Asian Scorpions: Bioactive Molecules with Promising Therapeutic Potential

Scorpion venom peptides, particularly those derived from Asian species, have garnered significant attention, offering therapeutic potential in pain management, cancer, anticoagulation, and infectious diseases. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of scorpion venom peptides, focusing on thei...

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Main Authors: Kaiyun Xin, Ruize Sun, Wanyang Xiao, Weijie Lu, Chenhui Sun, Jietao Lou, Yanyan Xu, Tianbao Chen, Di Wu, Yitian Gao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-02-01
Series:Toxins
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6651/17/3/114
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author Kaiyun Xin
Ruize Sun
Wanyang Xiao
Weijie Lu
Chenhui Sun
Jietao Lou
Yanyan Xu
Tianbao Chen
Di Wu
Yitian Gao
author_facet Kaiyun Xin
Ruize Sun
Wanyang Xiao
Weijie Lu
Chenhui Sun
Jietao Lou
Yanyan Xu
Tianbao Chen
Di Wu
Yitian Gao
author_sort Kaiyun Xin
collection DOAJ
description Scorpion venom peptides, particularly those derived from Asian species, have garnered significant attention, offering therapeutic potential in pain management, cancer, anticoagulation, and infectious diseases. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of scorpion venom peptides, focusing on their roles as voltage-gated sodium (Nav), potassium (Kv), and calcium (Cav) channel modulators. It analyzed Nav1.7 inhibition for analgesia, Kv1.3 blockade for anticancer activity, and membrane disruption for antimicrobial effects. While the low targeting specificity and high toxicity of some scorpion venom peptides pose challenges to their clinical application, recent research has made strides in overcoming these limitations. This review summarizes the latest progress in scorpion venom peptide research, discussing their mechanisms of action, therapeutic potential, and challenges in clinical translation. This work aims to provide new insights and directions for the development of novel therapeutic drugs.
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institution DOAJ
issn 2072-6651
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publishDate 2025-02-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Toxins
spelling doaj-art-9c14e8e293424a059337f6061e37d39c2025-08-20T02:43:09ZengMDPI AGToxins2072-66512025-02-0117311410.3390/toxins17030114Short Peptides from Asian Scorpions: Bioactive Molecules with Promising Therapeutic PotentialKaiyun Xin0Ruize Sun1Wanyang Xiao2Weijie Lu3Chenhui Sun4Jietao Lou5Yanyan Xu6Tianbao Chen7Di Wu8Yitian Gao9Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Water Environment and Marine, Biological Resources Protection, College of Life and Environmental Science, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou 325035, ChinaNatural Drug Discovery Group, School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast BT7 1NN, UKZhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Water Environment and Marine, Biological Resources Protection, College of Life and Environmental Science, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou 325035, ChinaZhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Water Environment and Marine, Biological Resources Protection, College of Life and Environmental Science, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou 325035, ChinaZhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Water Environment and Marine, Biological Resources Protection, College of Life and Environmental Science, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou 325035, ChinaSchool of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325035, ChinaSchool of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325035, ChinaNatural Drug Discovery Group, School of Pharmacy, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast BT7 1NN, UKSchool of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325035, ChinaZhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory for Water Environment and Marine, Biological Resources Protection, College of Life and Environmental Science, Wenzhou University, Wenzhou 325035, ChinaScorpion venom peptides, particularly those derived from Asian species, have garnered significant attention, offering therapeutic potential in pain management, cancer, anticoagulation, and infectious diseases. This review provides a comprehensive analysis of scorpion venom peptides, focusing on their roles as voltage-gated sodium (Nav), potassium (Kv), and calcium (Cav) channel modulators. It analyzed Nav1.7 inhibition for analgesia, Kv1.3 blockade for anticancer activity, and membrane disruption for antimicrobial effects. While the low targeting specificity and high toxicity of some scorpion venom peptides pose challenges to their clinical application, recent research has made strides in overcoming these limitations. This review summarizes the latest progress in scorpion venom peptide research, discussing their mechanisms of action, therapeutic potential, and challenges in clinical translation. This work aims to provide new insights and directions for the development of novel therapeutic drugs.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6651/17/3/114scorpion venom peptidesion channel blockermembrane-targeting mechanismstherapeutic potentialpeptide engineering
spellingShingle Kaiyun Xin
Ruize Sun
Wanyang Xiao
Weijie Lu
Chenhui Sun
Jietao Lou
Yanyan Xu
Tianbao Chen
Di Wu
Yitian Gao
Short Peptides from Asian Scorpions: Bioactive Molecules with Promising Therapeutic Potential
Toxins
scorpion venom peptides
ion channel blocker
membrane-targeting mechanisms
therapeutic potential
peptide engineering
title Short Peptides from Asian Scorpions: Bioactive Molecules with Promising Therapeutic Potential
title_full Short Peptides from Asian Scorpions: Bioactive Molecules with Promising Therapeutic Potential
title_fullStr Short Peptides from Asian Scorpions: Bioactive Molecules with Promising Therapeutic Potential
title_full_unstemmed Short Peptides from Asian Scorpions: Bioactive Molecules with Promising Therapeutic Potential
title_short Short Peptides from Asian Scorpions: Bioactive Molecules with Promising Therapeutic Potential
title_sort short peptides from asian scorpions bioactive molecules with promising therapeutic potential
topic scorpion venom peptides
ion channel blocker
membrane-targeting mechanisms
therapeutic potential
peptide engineering
url https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6651/17/3/114
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