Spatial distribution of proteins and metabolites in developing wheat grain and their differential regulatory response during the grain filling process

Author(s)
Shuang Zhang, Arindam Ghatak, Mitra Mohammadi Bazargani, Prasad Bajaj, Rajeev K. Varshney, Palak Chaturvedi, Dong Jiang, Wolfram Weckwerth
Abstract

Grain filling and grain development are essential biological processes in the plant’s life cycle, eventually contributing to the final seed yield and quality in all cereal crops. Studies of how the different wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) grain components contribute to the overall development of the seed are very scarce. We performed a proteomics and metabolomics analysis in four different developing components of the wheat grain (seed coat, embryo, endosperm, and cavity fluid) to characterize molecular processes during early and late grain development. In-gel shotgun proteomics analysis at 12, 15, 20, and 26 days after anthesis (DAA) revealed 15 484 identified and quantified proteins, out of which 410 differentially expressed proteins were identified in the seed coat, 815 in the embryo, 372 in the endosperm, and 492 in the cavity fluid. The abundance of selected protein candidates revealed spatially and temporally resolved protein functions associated with development and grain filling. Multiple wheat protein isoforms involved in starch synthesis such as sucrose synthases, starch phosphorylase, granule-bound and soluble starch synthase, pyruvate phosphate dikinase, 14-3-3 proteins as well as sugar precursors undergo a major tissue-dependent change in abundance during wheat grain development suggesting an intimate interplay of starch biosynthesis control. Different isoforms of the protein disulfide isomerase family as well as glutamine levels, both involved in the glutenin macropolymer pattern, showed distinct spatial and temporal abundance, revealing their specific role as indicators of wheat gluten quality. Proteins binned into the functional category of cell growth/division and protein synthesis/degradation were more abundant in the early stages (12 and 15 DAA). At the metabolome level all tissues and especially the cavity fluid showed highly distinct metabolite profiles. The tissue-specific data are integrated with biochemical networks to generate a comprehensive map of molecular processes during grain filling and developmental processes.

Organisation(s)
Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, Research Platform Vienna Metabolomics Center
External organisation(s)
Iranian Research Organization for Science and Technology (IROST), International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) India, Murdoch University, Nanjing Agricultural University
Journal
The Plant Journal
Volume
107
Pages
669-687
No. of pages
19
ISSN
0960-7412
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/tpj.15410
Publication date
08-2021
Peer reviewed
Yes
Austrian Fields of Science 2012
106037 Proteomics, 106031 Plant physiology, 106044 Systems biology, 106010 Developmental biology
Keywords
ASJC Scopus subject areas
Genetics, Plant Science, Cell Biology
Portal url
https://ucris.univie.ac.at/portal/en/publications/spatial-distribution-of-proteins-and-metabolites-in-developing-wheat-grain-and-their-differential-regulatory-response-during-the-grain-filling-process(a29e6261-3789-499b-a821-c079b809b57d).html