2 articles
Latrotoxin
α-Latrotoxin (α-LTX) is the vertebrate-specific 120 kDa neurotoxin of black widow spider venom; it binds neurexin, latrophilin, and PTPσ receptors, forms tetrameric cation pores, and triggers massive neurotransmitter release, causing latrodectism.
Neurexin
Neurexins (NRXN1, NRXN2, NRXN3) are presynaptic cell adhesion proteins discovered as alpha-latrotoxin receptors; three large human genes yield thousands of alternatively spliced isoforms that couple calcium channels to neurotransmitter release and, when mutated, link to schizophrenia and autism.