Toxins 2012, 4(2), 139-156; doi:10.3390/toxins4020139
Review

Host-Defense Activities of Cyclotides

David J. Craikemail
Institute for Molecular Bioscience, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
Received: 22 November 2011; in revised form: 25 January 2012 / Accepted: 31 January 2012 / Published: 15 February 2012
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Insecticidal Toxins)
PDF Full-text Download PDF Full-Text [1267 KB, Updated Version, uploaded 22 February 2012 17:12 CET]
The original version is still available [1267 KB, uploaded 15 February 2012 09:02 CET]
Abstract: Cyclotides are plant mini-proteins whose natural function is thought to be to protect plants from pest or pathogens, particularly insect pests. They are approximately 30 amino acids in size and are characterized by a cyclic peptide backbone and a cystine knot arrangement of three conserved disulfide bonds. This article provides an overview of the reported pesticidal or toxic activities of cyclotides, discusses a possible common mechanism of action involving disruption of biological membranes in pest species, and describes methods that can be used to produce cyclotides for potential applications as novel pesticidal agents.
Keywords: circular protein; cyclic peptide; cyclotide; cystine knot; insecticide; kalata B1

Article Statistics

Click here to load and display the download statistics.

Cite This Article

MDPI and ACS Style

Craik, D.J. Host-Defense Activities of Cyclotides. Toxins 2012, 4, 139-156.

AMA Style

Craik DJ. Host-Defense Activities of Cyclotides. Toxins. 2012; 4(2):139-156.

Chicago/Turabian Style

Craik, David J. 2012. "Host-Defense Activities of Cyclotides." Toxins 4, no. 2: 139-156.

Toxins EISSN 2072-6651 Published by MDPI AG, Basel, Switzerland RSS E-Mail Table of Contents Alert