Identification of two capa cDNA transcripts and detailed peptidomic characterization of their peptide products in Periplaneta americana

The first CAPA peptides of insects were identified from Periplaneta americana using extracts of 8000 abdominal perisympathetic organs. The corresponding gene of cockroaches and other basal insects, however, remained undiscovered. Here we identified two capa cDNA transcripts of P. americana. Single cell mass spectrometry of capa neurons in abdominal ganglia yielded a complete coverage of the precursor sequences of both transcripts; with intermediates of precursor processing more prominent in somata than in perisympathetic organs. The processing of the CAPA precursor in P. americana is compared with that in the beetle Tribolium castaneum which was re-evaluated in this study.