Title: Botulinum Neurotoxin (BoNT) therapeutics: Time to think outside the BoNT?

Authors: Joseph C. Larsen

Addresses: Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), Joint Science and Technology Office for Chemical and Biological Defense (JSTO-CBD), 8725 John J Kingman Road, Fort Belvoir, VA 22060, USA

Abstract: The development of small molecule inhibitors of Botulinum Neurotoxin (BoNT) has been a robust focus of biodefence research funding. Despite an intense effort, no compounds have been identified that would be suitable for extensive preclinical testing. Due to the emphasis on BoNT inhibitor development, research into other aspects of toxin biology may have been overlooked. In particular, the molecular mechanisms that neuronal cells utilise to respond to the presence of BoNT has been an area that, to date, is a significant gap in our understanding of BoNT pathogenesis. An elucidation of these pathways could lay the foundation for the identification of novel targets for the treatment of botulism.

Keywords: BoNT inhibitors; botulinum neurotoxins; therapeutic; host directed; toxin biology; BoNT pathogenesis; botulism treatment; molecular mechanisms; neuronal cells.

DOI: 10.1504/TBJ.2009.031678

The Botulinum Journal, 2009 Vol.1 No.3, pp.261 - 269

Published online: 17 Feb 2010 *

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