Mass spectrometric characterization of the neuropeptidome of the ghost crab Ocypode ceratophthalma (Brachyura, Ocypodidae).

The horn-eyed ghost crab Ocypode ceratophthalma is a terrestrial brachyuran native to the Indo-Pacific region, including the islands of Hawaii. Here, multiple mass spectrometric platforms, including matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight/time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF/TOF MS) and nanoflow liquid chromatography coupled with electrospray ionization quadrupole time-of-flight tandem mass spectrometry (nanoLC-ESI-Q-TOF MS/MS), were used to characterize the neuropeptidome of this species. In total, 156 peptide paracrines/hormones, representing 15 peptide families, were identified from the O.

Genomic analyses of gas (nitric oxide and carbon monoxide) and small molecule transmitter (acetylcholine, glutamate and GABA) signaling systems in Daphnia pulex.

Diffusible gasses and small molecule transmitters are classes of compounds used by neurons and other cell types for local and hormonal signaling. In crustaceans, there is evidence for the neuronal production of the gasses nitric oxide (NO) and carbon monoxide (CO), as well as the small molecule transmitters acetylcholine, glutamate and GABA. While much is known about the physiological roles played by these molecules in crustaceans, little is known about them at the molecular level.