Neuropeptidomic Analysis of Zebrafish Brain

A wide variety of bioactive peptides are present in all metazoan species where they govern diverse functions as small messenger molecules. In the last 15 years, mass spectrometry-based methods have identified endogenous peptides in diverse species. Mass spectrometry enables the precise peptide sequences to be determined, including the potential existence of truncated versions or the presence of post-translational modifications. Because small modifications can have a large effect on biological activity, knowledge of the actual peptide sequences paves the way for further functional studies such as analysis of neuropeptidergic signaling cascades. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) is an important animal model that is commonly used in a wide range of studies. Here we provide a detailed description of the peptide extraction procedure and peptidomics workflow for zebrafish.