title: Characterization of a peptide from skin secretions of male specimens of the frog, Leptodactylus fallax that stimulates aggression in male frogs.
abstract: During the breeding season of the mountain chicken frog Leptodactylus fallax, fighting between males results in the emergence of dominant animals that subsequently attract females to nesting sites. A peptide, termed Leptodactylus aggression-stimulating peptide (LASP), was isolated from norepinephrine-stimulated skin secretions from male specimens of L. fallax that was not present in skin secretions obtained from females. The primary structure of the peptide was established as: Gly-Leu-Trp-Asp-Asp-Leu-Lys-Ala-Ala-Ala-Lys-Lys-Val-Val-Ser-Ser-Leu-Ala-Ser-Ala-Ala-Ile-Glu-Lys-Leu NH2. LASP had no pheromone-like action on females but had a chemoattractive effect on males and stimulated aggressive behaviors, such as rearing and leaping. It is suggested that this peptide may play an important role in initiating the competitive male-male interactions that are associated with the onset of reproductive behavior in L. fallax.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Missouri-St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63121, USA.
authors.forename: Jay D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: King
authors.forename: Louise A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Rollins-Smith
authors.forename: Per F
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Nielsen
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: John
authors.forename: J Michael
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Conlon
mesh_terms: D000374:Aggression; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001001:Anura; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal; D012867:Skin / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D010455:Peptides