Ancestral neuronal receptors are bacterial accessory toxins
Finaritra Raoelijaona, Joanna Szczepaniak, Adrien Schahl, James E. Bray, Jin Chuan Zhou, Lindsay A. Baker, Kamel El Omari, E.D. Lowe, Yu Shang Low, Chandra Rodriguez, Michael J. Landsberg, J. Shaun Lott, Colin Kleanthous, Matthieu G. Chavent, Martin C. J. Maiden, Elena Seiradake
This study shows bacterial Teneurins are accessory proteins with encapsulated toxins, suggesting they were repurposed by metazoans for neuronal communication.
Nature Communications · Feb 14, 2026Peer-reviewedBiochemistry