Ziconotide (SNX–111; Prialt), also called intrathecal ziconotide (ITZ) because of its administration route, is an atypical analgesic agent for the amelioration of severe and chronic pain. Derived from Conus magus, a cone snail, it is the synthetic form of an ω-conotoxin peptide. It is 1,000 times as powerful as morphine.In December 2004 the Food and Drug Administration approved ziconotide when delivered as an infusion into the cerebrospinal fluid using an intrathecal pump system. Discovery
Ziconotide is derived from the toxin of the cone snail species Conus magus. Scientists have been intrigued by the effects of the thousands of chemicals in marine snail toxins since the initial investigations in the late 1960s by Baldomero Olivera. Olivera, now a professor of biology in the University of Utah, was inspired by accounts of the deadly effects of these toxins from his childhood in the Philippines. Ziconotide was discovered in the early 1980s by University of Utah research scientist Michael McIntosh, when he was barely out of high school and working with Baldomero Olivera.Ziconotide was developed into an artificially manufactured drug by Elan Corporation. It was approved for sale under the name Prialt by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on December 28, 2004, and by the European Commission on February 22, 2005. Azur Pharma acquired worldwide rights (except Europe) to Prialt in 2010. Mechanism of action
Ziconotide is a hydrophilic molecule that is freely soluble in water and is practically insoluble in methyl t-butyl ether. Ziconotide acts as a selective N-type voltage-gated calcium channel blocker.
Sources
Fungus, from USDA nutrient database (per 100g), D2 + D3:
Mushrooms, Agaricus bisporus:
raw portobello: 0.3 μg (10 IU); exposed to ultraviolet light: 11.2 µg (446 IU)
raw crimini: 0.1 μg (3 IU); exposed to ultraviolet light: 31.9 µg (1276 IU)
Mushrooms, shiitake:
raw: Vitamin D (D2 + D3): 0.4 μg (18 IU)
dried: Vitamin D (D2 + D3): 3.9 μg (154 IU)Lichen

Cladina arbuscula specimens grown under different natural conditions contain provitamin D2 and vitamin D2, ranges 89-146 and 0.22-0.55 μg/g dry matter respectively. They also contain vitamin D3 (range 0.67 to 2.04 μg/g) although provitamin D3 could not be detected. Vitamin D levels correlate positively with UV irradiation.Plantae

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa subsp. sativa), shoot: 4.8 μg (192 IU) vitamin D2, 0.1 μg (4 IU) vitamin D3

Biosynthesis
The vitamin D2 content in mushrooms and C. arbuscula increase with exposure to ultraviolet light. Ergosterol (provitamin D2) found in these fungi is converted to previtamin D2 on UV exposure, which then turns into vitamin D2. As cultured mushrooms are generally grown in darkness, less vitamin D2 is found compared to those grown in the wild or dried in the sun.When fresh mushrooms or dried powders are purposely exposed to ultraviolet light, vitamin D2 levels can be concentrated to much higher levels. The irradiation procedure does not cause significant discoloration, or whitening, of mushrooms. Claims have been made that a normal serving (approx.