# name
Metal-Specificity Divergence between Metallothioneins of Nerita peloronta (Neritimorpha, Gastropoda) Sets the Starting Point for a Novel Chemical MT Classification Proposal

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Metallothioneins' (MTs) biological function has been a matter of debate since their discovery. The importance to categorize these cysteine-rich proteins with high coordinating capacity into a specific group led to numerous classification proposals. We proposed a classification based on their metal-binding abilities, gradually sorting them from those with high selectivity towards Zn/Cd to those that are Cu-specific. However, the study of the NpeMT1 and NpeMT2isoforms of Nerita peloronta, has put a new perspective on this classification. N. peloronta has been chosen as a representative mollusk to elucidate the metal-binding abilities of Neritimorpha MTs, an order without any MTs characterized recently. Both isoforms have been recombinantly synthesized in cultures supplemented with ZnII, CdII, or CuII, and the purified metal-MT complexes have been thoroughly characterized by spectroscopic and spectrometric methods, leading to results that confirmed that Neritimorpha share Cd-selective MTs with Caenogastropoda and Heterobranchia, solving a so far unresolved question. NpeMTs show high coordinating preferences towards divalent metal ions, although one of them (NpeMT1) shares features with the so-called genuine Zn-thioneins, while the other (NpeMT2) exhibits a higher preference for Cd. The dissimilarities between the two isoforms let a window open to a new proposal of chemical MT classification.

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International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2021, vol. 22, p. 13114

# metadata.dc.rights[].value
cc-by (c) García-Risco, Mario et al., 2021

# metadata.dc.source[].value
Articles publicats en revistes (Genètica, Microbiologia i Estadística)

# metadata.dc.title[].value
Metal-Specificity Divergence between Metallothioneins of Nerita peloronta (Neritimorpha, Gastropoda) Sets the Starting Point for a Novel Chemical MT Classification Proposal