Living organisms have been used as source for different traditional medicines from
several ethnic groups since antiquity. In recent years, one of the greatest challenges
within the field of natural products is to understand its functioning for future rational
applications. Mass spectrometry methodologies are important strategies for investigating
the complex chemistry of natural products. During the last years, the increasing power
of informatics for data analysis has increased our capacity to inventory many biological
systems [1]. In our laboratory, for instance, we have investigated neuroactive and antimicrobial
compounds from skin secretions of anuran amphibians [2]. We have found that some components of the rich secretion can be associated with
chemical communication between frogs at intra and interspecific levels [2], [3]. In this talk we will present and discuss the potential relevance of plants and
bacteria as a source of chemical signals in frogs, which represent one component of
the vast Brazilian Biodiversity.
