Peptidomics in Drosophila melanogaster

Brief Funct Genomic Proteomic. 2003 Jul;2(2):114-20. doi: 10.1093/bfgp/2.2.114.

Abstract

In analogy with proteomics technology, where all proteins expressed in a cell or tissue are analysed, the peptidomic approach aims at the simultaneous visualisation and identification of the whole peptidome of a cell or tissue, ie all expressed peptides with their post-translational modifications. With nanoscale liquid chromatography (nanoLC), combined with mass spectrometry and subsequent database searching, the peptidome of the Drosophila larval brain has been identified at the amino acid sequence level. In a single experiment involving only 50 Drosophila larval brains, one can obtain a display of the expressed peptides. In this paper, current peptidomics technology will be explained, using Drosophila as an example. Compared with the 400,000 Drosophila whole bodies that were required as a starting material for traditional biochemical peptide purification rounds, the authors are convinced that peptidomics technology, which in the future will certainly be applied to the analysis of different physiological states, has the inherent potential to bring about a true revolution in the study of the molecular physiology of Drosophila.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Chromatography, Liquid
  • Drosophila melanogaster / growth & development
  • Drosophila melanogaster / metabolism*
  • Mass Spectrometry
  • Peptides / metabolism*
  • Proteomics*
  • Sequence Analysis, Protein

Substances

  • Peptides