Is the Australian Striped Burrowing Frog Litoria alboguttata a member of Litoria or Cyclorana? A profeling study using skin peptides as a probe

Abstract

The skin secretion of the Striped Burrowing Frog Litoria alboguttata contains the peptides named guttatins 1, 2 and 3. The sequences of these peptides are as follows:- guttatin 1 (GLLDSVL-NH2); guttatin 2 (GLLDNVL-NH2) and guttatin 3 (GLLDTVKGLN-NH2). This peptide profile is different from those of congeners so far studied in that it contains neither neuropeptides nor antibiotic peptides. In contrast, the peptide profile of L. alboguttata is similar to that of Cyclorana australis. In particular, the two peptides in the skin secretion of C. australis correspond to guttatin 1 and GLLDGTVL-NH2. Guttatin 1 is not present in the secretions of the other 22 Litoria species that we have investigated. Peptide profiling indicates that Litoria alboguttata is more closely related to the genus Cyclorana than Litoria. © 2006, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. All rights reserved.