 First discovered in 1995, the difference in amino-acids and structure compared to other toxins known at that time has made hanatoxin is the founding member of a family of spider toxins which inhibit voltage-gated potassium channels by modifying the voltage-sensor (,).Its amino-acid sequence is homologous to various other toxins, including SGTx1 (76%) and grammotoxin (43%), both of which have similar gating-modification properties as hanatoxin ().Hanatoxin binds to several types of voltage-gated ion channels.