The >10,000 living venomous marine snail species [superfamily Conoidea (Fleming, 1822)] include cone snails (Conus), the overwhelming focus of research. Hastula hectica (Linnaeus, 1758), a venomous snail in the family Terebridae (Mörch, 1852) was comprehensively investigated. The Terebridae comprise a major monophyletic group within Conoidea. H. hectica has a striking radular tooth to inject venom that looks like a perforated spear; in Conus, the tooth looks like a hypodermic needle. H. hectica venom contains a large complement of small disulfide-rich peptides, but with no apparent overlap with Conus in gene superfamilies expressed. Although Conus peptide toxins are densely post-translationally modified, no post-translationally modified amino acids were found in any Hastula venom peptide. The results suggest that different major lineages of venomous molluscs have strikingly divergent toxinological and venom-delivery strategies.

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The cone snails belong to the superfamily Conoidea, comprising ∼10,000 venomous marine gastropods. We determined the complete mitochondrial DNA sequence of Conus textile. The gene order is identical in Conus textile, Lophiotoma cerithiformis (another Conoidean gastropod), and the neogastropod Ilyanassa obsoleta, (not in the superfamily Conoidea). However, the intergenic interval between the coxI/coxII genes, was much longer in C. textile (165 bp) than in any other previously analyzed gastropod.We used the intergenic region to evaluate evolutionary patterns. In most neogastropods and three conidean families the intergenic interval is small (<30 nucleotides). Within Conus, the variation is from 130-170 bp, and each different clade within Conus has a narrower size distribution. In Conasprella, a subgenus traditionally assigned to Conus, the intergenic regions vary between 200-500 bp, suggesting that the species in Conasprella are not congeneric with Conus. The intergenic region was used for phylogenetic analysis of a group of fish-hunting Conus, despite the short length resolution was better than using standard markers. Thus, the coxI/coxII intergenic region can be used both to define evolutionary relationships between species in a clade, and to understand broad evolutionary patterns across the large superfamily Conoidea.

To investigate structure-function relationships in gamma-glutamyl carboxylases, the enzyme from Drosophila melanogaster was characterized. Four cysteine residues were shown to be important determinants for enzymatic activity. Native Drosophila substrates have not yet been identified, but propeptides of human prothrombin and factor IX are recognized by the Drosophila enzyme. The presence of the propeptide region increased apparent affinity by approximately 200-fold, and mutation of a hydrophobic residue of factor IX propeptide (F-16A) decreased carboxylation by 90%, as in the human enzyme. Substrate recognition appears to be highly conserved between the human and Drosophila gamma-glutamyl carboxylases. Inactivation of Drosophila gamma-glutamyl carboxylase by non-sense mutations or insertional mutagenesis by P-element insertion have no apparent effects on growth and fertility under laboratory conditions.

Introduction. Persistent genital arousal disorder (PGAD) is a newly recognized disorder in women. It is described as unwanted, persistent feelings of genital arousal unrelated to sexual desire and not relieved by orgasm. Its prevalence is estimated to approach 1% of young women. Until now, this has not been described in men. Aim. Here we present a case of a 27-year-old male with symptoms consistent with PGAD and describe successful treatment. Methods. A 27-year-old male presented to urology clinic with the chief complain of persistent feelings of impending orgasm. He reported a sensation similar, but not identical, to sexual arousal that did not occur in the setting of sexual thoughts or desire. Orgasm alleviated the arousal for only a short time after which the symptoms would return. This had become quite bothersome to him. Results. After assessing for a neurological cause and finding none, the patient was started on paroxetine daily with complete resolution of symptoms. Conclusions. PGAD is a disorder previously described only in females. Although symptoms of PGAD have been described in a male as part of another disorder complex, this report describes the first reported isolated case in a male and the successful treatment.