[Effect of polypeptides from scorpion venom on morpho-functional changes of the incubated Mauthner neurons in...

Using the electron microscopical method of negative staining it was shown that one of the fractions obtained from scorpion venom directly interacts with monomeric chromatographically pure actin causing its polymerization and transformation from globular into fibrillar form. The effect of long-term orthodromic stimulation on evoked electric activity and on the ultrastructure of Mauthner neurons (MN) in the goldfish hindbrain slices incubated in vitro was studied after the application of this venom fraction. The peptides of this fraction were shown to stabilize the amplitude of MN evoked electric responses to fatigue and to protect the ultrastructure of afferent chemical synapses and MN themselves from stimulation-induced injuries. Increase in morpho-functional resistivity is accompanied by the stabilization of specialized synaptic structures--actin-containing desmosome-like junctions. These data suggest the direct effect of peptides from scorpion venom fraction on actin component of MN cytoskeleton and show the perspective for their application as pharmacological tools capable of penetration into the living cells that may be used for investigation of the role of actin in the mechanisms of adaptation and memory.