The Chemical Arsenal of Amazonian Tree Frogs: Evolutionary Diversification of Skin Peptides across Phyllomedusidae

@article{nogueira2026chemical,
  title = {{The Chemical Arsenal of Amazonian Tree Frogs: Evolutionary Diversification of Skin Peptides across Phyllomedusidae}},
  author = {Thais de Almeida Corrêa Nogueira and Jéssica B. Maciel and Anne Grace Andrade da Cunha Marques and Edvaldo Mota and Felipe Bittioli Rodrigues Gomes and Emil José Hernández-Ruz and Manuela Berto Pucca and Boniek Gontijo and Gesiane S. Lima and Gabriel F. dos Santos and Andrea R. Chaves and Luiz G. Gardinassi and Christoph Hartwig and Maik Damm and Tim Lüddecke and Hector H. F. Koolen and Igor L. Kaefer and Wuelton M. Monteiro and Marco A. Sartim},
  journal = {ACS Omega},
  year = {2026},
  month = nov,
  doi = {10.1021/acsomega.6c08901},
  url = {https://pubs.acs.org/acsodf/article/doi/10.1021/acsomega.6c08901/5466111/The-Chemical-Arsenal-of-Amazonian-Tree-Frogs},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}

TY  - JOUR
TI  - The Chemical Arsenal of Amazonian Tree Frogs: Evolutionary Diversification of Skin Peptides across Phyllomedusidae
AU  - Thais de Almeida Corrêa Nogueira
AU  - Jéssica B. Maciel
AU  - Anne Grace Andrade da Cunha Marques
AU  - Edvaldo Mota
AU  - Felipe Bittioli Rodrigues Gomes
AU  - Emil José Hernández-Ruz
AU  - Manuela Berto Pucca
AU  - Boniek Gontijo
AU  - Gesiane S. Lima
AU  - Gabriel F. dos Santos
AU  - Andrea R. Chaves
AU  - Luiz G. Gardinassi
AU  - Christoph Hartwig
AU  - Maik Damm
AU  - Tim Lüddecke
AU  - Hector H. F. Koolen
AU  - Igor L. Kaefer
AU  - Wuelton M. Monteiro
AU  - Marco A. Sartim
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/11/06
JO  - ACS Omega
DO  - 10.1021/acsomega.6c08901
UR  - https://pubs.acs.org/acsodf/article/doi/10.1021/acsomega.6c08901/5466111/The-Chemical-Arsenal-of-Amazonian-Tree-Frogs
AB  - Amphibian poisons are one of the most complex chemical defense systems among vertebrates, yet their diversity remains largely unresolved. Here, we present a comparative peptidomic analysis of six Amazonian species of Monkey Tree Frogs (Phyllomedusidae) sampled across three geographic regions. Mass spectrometry-based profiling revealed 18,466 features. Despite this extensive diversity, a subset of 961 features was shared across all species, while thousands of additional features were restricted to individual taxa or combinations of taxa. Poison profiles showed a highly uneven relative abundance distribution, with a small number of peptides accounting for a large proportion of the detected signal. Phylloseptins and dermaseptins were prominent components of several profiles, whereas bradykinin-related peptides, tryptophyllins, dermorphin-like peptides, medusins, and phyllomedusins showed variable contributions across taxa and regions. Geographic variation in the relative abundance of major peptide subfamilies indicates differences in peptide composition among the sampled populations. Such patterns are consistent with spatially structured variation and align with previous studies suggesting that amphibian peptide repertoires may be shaped by local ecological and biotic interactions. Our results reveal substantial variation in peptide composition and relative abundance while maintaining a broadly shared molecular component across phyllomedusid taxa. This study expands current knowledge of amphibian chemical diversity and provides new insights into how ecological and evolutionary processes may contribute to the diversification of chemical defense systems.
SN  - 2470-1343
ER  -