Isolation of toxin TsTX-VI from Tityus serrulatus scorpion venom. Effects on the release of neurotransmitters from synaptosomes.

A detailed procedure for the purification of Tityustoxin-VI, TsTX-VI, from Tityus serrulatus scorpion venom is described. For comparative purposes, a second toxin, CM-VI, obtained from the same fractionation procedure, was analyzed in parallel. Typical biochemical parameters, such as electrophoretic migration, mol.weight, amino acid composition and N-terminal sequence (first 42 amino acid residues out of a total of approx. 60) were determined for both. Our data showed that CM-VI is identical or extremely homologous to gamma-toxin (TsTX-I), the highly toxic major toxin from T. serrulatus venom. TsTX-VI was less toxic, although still effective at inducing an allergic reaction, lacrymation and contraction of the hind legs of mice. Both toxins produced a dose dependent release of the neurotransmitters glutamic acid and gamma aminobutyric acid from rat brain synaptosomes, this effect being blocked by tetrodotoxin.