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- Mar 8, 2004
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oceanbound said:actually from what i have heard the toxin is a biproduct of the bacteria which live in the "rings" of the spotted octopus. as opposed to residing inside the creatures themselves
It is produced by bacteria, but it's not near the rings; I believe the bacteria are "cultured" in the salivary glands: see What makes blue-rings so deadly? - The Cephalopod Page
This also answers my original question:
Interestingly, blue-ringed octopuses are not affected by TTX, probably because they have evolved a slightly different sodium channel receptor that does not interact with the TTX molecule.
Does anyone (perhaps Roy, who wrote the article, hint hint) know any more details on this? I know there are a lot of people interested in studying the biochemistry of ion channels, and the evolutionary genetics of their development, so it seems like it would be very interesting to learn how these octos have TTX-proofing. On the other hand, most researchers prefer to avoid working with animals that can easily kill them...
I'm actually emailing a friend who studies the biochemistry of ion channels to see if their community knows about this adaptation... If no one has looked into it, this seems like a potentially very fruitful tool for understanding the mechanics of ion channels....