Journal article

Phospholipase A2 in Cnidaria

TJ Nevalainen, HJ Peuravuori, RJ Quinn, LE Llewellyn, JAH Benzie, PJ Fenner, KD Winkel

COMPARATIVE BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY B-BIOCHEMISTRY & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY | ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC | Published : 2004

Abstract

Phospholipase A2 (PLA2) is an enzyme present in snake and other venoms and body fluids. We measured PLA2 catalytic activity in tissue homogenates of 22 species representing the classes Anthozoa, Hydrozoa, Scyphozoa and Cubozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. High PLA2 levels were found in the hydrozoan fire coral Millepora sp. (median 735 U/g protein) and the stony coral Pocillopora damicornis (693 U/g) that cause skin irritation upon contact. High levels of PLA2 activity were also found in the acontia of the sea anemone Adamsia carciniopados (293 U/g). Acontia are long threads containing nematocysts and are used in defense and aggression by the animal. Tentacles of scyphozoan and cubozoan species h..

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