Conus victoriae

Conus victoriae, common name the Queen Victoria cone, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Conidae, the cone snails and their allies.[1]

Conus victoriae
Apertural and abapertural views of shell of Conus victoriae Reeve, L.A., 1843
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Mollusca
Class: Gastropoda
Subclass: Caenogastropoda
Order: Neogastropoda
Superfamily: Conoidea
Family: Conidae
Genus: Conus
Species:
C. victoriae
Binomial name
Conus victoriae
Reeve, 1843
Synonyms[1]
  • Conus (Cylinder) victoriae Reeve, 1843 · accepted, alternate representation
  • Conus complanatus G. B. Sowerby II, 1866
  • Cylinder victoriae (Reeve, 1843)

Like all species within the genus Conus, these snails are predatory and venomous. They are capable of "stinging" humans, therefore live ones should be handled carefully or not at all.

Taxonomy

Conus nodulosus has often been treated as a geographical variant or subspecies of C. victoriae. They have a disjunct distribution, the latter occurring from Exmouth to the Western Australia / Northern Territory border, whereas nodulosus has a distribution restricted from Geraldton to Calbary and the Abrolhos. For conservation implications, the two are here listed as distinct.[1]

Description

The size of the shell varies between 35 mm and 94 mm. Conus victoriae is a mollusc-eating cone (molluscivore) possibly related to Conus textile . It differs from Conus textile in the reticulations. These are mostly smaller, arid light-colored, contrasting strongly with the bands of very dark chocolate longitudinal stripes. They are also more or less overlaid with violaceous clouds.[2]

A component of its venom, alpha conotoxin Vc1.1 (ACV1) has been shown to be a potent analgesic in pain tests in animals[3] and is a potential replacement for morphine for the treatment of neuropathic pain.[4][5]

The biology of this cone species has been extensively studied, in particular the embryonic development of its venom apparatus,[6] the expression of the venom gland proteome[7][8] and the role of the venom bulb in delivery of venom components to the radulae.[9]

Distribution

This marine species is endemic to Australia (Western Australia from Broome north to the mouth of the Victoria River, Northern Territory where it was first discovered by Reeve in 1843)

  • Conus victoriae Reeve, L.A., 1843
  • Conus victoriae Reeve, L.A., 1843
  • Conus victoriae Reeve, L.A., 1843
  • Conus victoriae Reeve, L.A., 1843

References
  1. Conus victoriae Reeve, 1843. Retrieved through: World Register of Marine Species on 27 March 2010.
  2. G.W. Tryon (1884) Manual of Conchology, structural and systematic, with illustrations of the species, vol. VI; Philadelphia, Academy of Natural Sciences
  3. Sandall, DW; Satkunanathan, N; Keays, DA; Polidano, MA; Liping, X; Pham, V; Down, JG; Khalil, Z; Livett, BG; Gayler, KR (June 2003). "A novel alpha-conotoxin identified by gene sequencing is active in suppressing the vascular response to selective stimulation of sensory nerves in vivo". Biochemistry. 42 (22): 6904–11. doi:10.1021/bi034043e.
  4. Livett, BG; Sandall, DW; Keays, D; Down, J; Gayler, KR; Satkunanathan, N; Khalil, Z (December 2006). "Therapeutic applications of conotoxins that target the neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor". Toxicon. 48 (7): 810–29. doi:10.1016/j.toxicon.2006.07.023. PMID 16979678.
  5. Clark, RJ; Jensen, J; Nevin, ST; Callaghan, BP; Adams, DJ; Craik, DJ (September 2010). "The engineering of an orally active conotoxin for the treatment of neuropathic pain". Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 49 (37): 6545–8.
  6. Safavi-Hemami, H; Siero, WA; Kuang, Z; Williamson, NA; Karas, JA; Page, LR; MacMillan, D; Callaghan, B; Kompella, SN; Adams, DJ; Norton, RS; Purcell, AW (June 2011). "Embryonic toxin expression in the cone snail Conus victoriae: primed to kill or divergent function?". J Biol Chem. 286 (25): 22546–57. doi:10.1074/jbc.m110.217703. PMC 3121399. PMID 21504902.
  7. Townsend, A.; Livett, BG; Bingham, J-P; Truong, H-T; Karas, JA; O'Donnell, P; Williamson, NA; Purcell, AW; Scanlon, D (2009). "Mass spectral identification of Vc1.1 and differential distribution of conopeptides in the venom duct of Conus victoriae. Effect of post-translational modifications and disulfide isomerisation on bioactivity". Int. J. Peptide Res and Therap. 15 (3): 195–203. doi:10.1007/s10989-009-9173-4.
  8. Safavi-Hemami, H; Siero, WA; Gorasia, DG; Young, ND; Macmillan, D; Williamson, NA; Purcell, AW (September 2011). "Specialisation of the venom gland proteome in predatory cone snails reveals functional diversification of the conotoxin biosynthetic pathway". J Proteome Res. 10 (9): 3904–19. doi:10.1021/pr1012976.
  9. Safavi-Hemami, H; Young, ND; Williamson, NA; Purcell, AW (November 2010). "Proteomic interrogation of venom delivery in marine cone snails: novel insights into the role of the venom bulb". J Proteome Res. 9 (11): 5610–9. doi:10.1021/pr100431x.
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