Design, Synthesis, and Activity of an α-Conotoxin LtIA Fluorescent Analogue.

Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) are essential pentameric ligand-gated ion channels that are distributed throughout the central and peripheral nervous systems and non-neuronal tissues in mammalian species that play critical roles in a variety of neural and mental activities. The α3β2 nAChR subtype participates in pain, addiction to nicotine, and other neurophysiological and pathological activities. Owing to the lack of highly selective pharmacological tools targeting α3β2, related research on its tissue distribution and function has been hindered. α-Conotoxin (α-CTx) LtIA, discovered from