Synthesis and mode of action on axonal membranes of photoactivable derivatives of tetrodotoxin.

Two photoactivable derivatives of tetrodotoxin have been synthesized. Electrophysiological experiments on crab giant axons and competitive binding with [3H]-tetrodotoxin for the tetrodotoxin receptor indicate that they are only 4.5 to 7.5 times less active than tetrodotoxin itself. These compounds give a reversible block of the sodium channel in the dark but after ultraviolet irradiation they provoke an irreversible blockade of the channel.