BmTx3B, a novel scorpion toxin from Buthus martensi Karsch, inhibits delayed rectifier potassium current in rat hippocampal neurons
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Updated: Aug 30, 2026
Dual Electrophysiological Recordings of Synaptically-evoked Astroglial and Neuronal Responses in Acute Hippocampal Slices
Published on: November 26, 2012
Ming-Hua Li1, Yue-Feng Wang, Xue-Qin Chen
1State Key Laboratory of Drug Research, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 201203, China.
Aim:
To examine the effect of BmTx3B, a novel short-chain peptide isolated from the venom of Asian scorpion Buthus martensi Karsch, on voltage-gated potassium channels.
Methods:
Two types of voltage-dependent potassium currents were recorded from dissociated hippocampal neurons of neonatal rat in whole-cell voltage-clamp mode, and separated based upon their kinetic properties.
Results:
BmTx3B (10-100 micromol/L) selectively inhibited the delayed rectifier potassium current (I(K)), without affecting the fast transient potassium current (I(A)). The inhibition of the peptide on I(K) was reversible, concentration-dependent and voltage-independent. BmTx3B did not affect the steady-state activation and inactivation kinetics of the current.
Conclusion:
The short-chain scorpion peptide BmTx3B selectively blocked the delayed rectifier potassium channel.
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