Peptidome: Chaos or Inevitability

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 22; no. 23; p. 13128
• Main Authors: Lyapina, Irina, Ivanov, Vadim, Fesenko, Igor
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 04.12.2021; MDPI
• Subjects: Antigens; Antimicrobial agents; Bacteria; Bacterial Proteins - metabolism; biologically active peptides; Cytokines; Fungal Proteins - metabolism; Growth factors; Hormones; Humans; Mammals; Mass Spectrometry - methods; Neuropeptides; Open Reading Frames; Peptide hormones; Peptides; Peptides - chemistry; Peptides - metabolism; peptidome generation; peptidomes; Plant cells; Plant Proteins - metabolism; Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex; protein precursors; Protein Precursors - metabolism; Proteins; Proteomics - methods; Review; Vertebrates; peptidome generation; peptidomes; biologically active peptides; protein precursors
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms222313128

Thousands of naturally occurring peptides differing in their origin, abundance and possible functions have been identified in the tissue and biological fluids of vertebrates, insects, fungi, plants and bacteria. These peptide pools are referred to as intracellular or extracellular peptidomes, and besides a small proportion of well-characterized peptide hormones and defense peptides, are poorly characterized. However, a growing body of evidence suggests that unknown bioactive peptides are hidden in the peptidomes of different organisms. In this review, we present a comprehensive overview of the mechanisms of generation and properties of peptidomes across different organisms. Based on their origin, we propose three large peptide groups-functional protein "degradome", small open reading frame (smORF)-encoded peptides (smORFome) and specific precursor-derived peptides. The composition of peptide pools identified by mass-spectrometry analysis in human cells, plants, yeast and bacteria is compared and discussed. The functions of different peptide groups, for example the role of the "degradome" in promoting defense signaling, are also considered.