Development and Optimization of Label-Free Quantitative Proteomics under Different Crossing Periods of Bottle Gourd

Anurag Malik; Virender Singh Mor; Himani Punia; D S Duhan; Jayanti Tokas; Axay Bhuker; Mohammed Nasser Alyemeni; Awais Shakoor

doi:10.3390/cimb45020088

Development and Optimization of Label-Free Quantitative Proteomics under Different Crossing Periods of Bottle Gourd

Curr Issues Mol Biol. 2023 Feb 6;45(2):1349-1372. doi: 10.3390/cimb45020088.

Authors

Anurag Malik¹, Virender Singh Mor¹, Himani Punia², D S Duhan³, Jayanti Tokas², Axay Bhuker¹, Mohammed Nasser Alyemeni⁴, Awais Shakoor⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Seed Science & Technology, College of Agriculture, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar 125 004, India.
² Department of Biochemistry, College of Basic Sciences & Humanities, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar 125 004, India.
³ Department of Vegetable Science, College of Agriculture, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar 125 004, India.
⁴ Botany and Microbiology Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Department of Environment and Soil Sciences, University of Lleida, 25198 Lleida, Spain.

Abstract

Bottle gourd, a common vegetable in the human diet, has been valued for its medicinal and energetic properties. In this experiment, the time-resolved analysis of the changes in the proteins' electrophoretic patterning of the seed development at different crossing periods was studied in bottle gourd using label-free quantitative proteomics. Hybrid HBGH-35 had the highest observed protein levels at the 4th week of the crossing period (F₄) compared to the parental lines, viz. G-2 (M) and Pusa Naveen (F). The crossing period is significantly correlated with grain filling and reserve accumulation. The observed protein expression profile after storage was related to seed maturation and grain filling in bottle gourds. A total of 2517 proteins were identified in differentially treated bottle gourd fruits, and 372 proteins were differentially expressed between different crossing periods. Proteins related to carbohydrate and energy metabolism, anthocyanin biosynthesis, cell stress response, and fruit firmness were characterized and quantified. Some proteins were involved in the development, while others were engaged in desiccation and the early grain-filling stage. F4 was distinguished by an increase in the accumulation of low molecular weight proteins and enzymes such as amylase, a serine protease, and trypsin inhibitors. The seed vigor also followed similar patterns of differential expression of seed storage proteins. Our findings defined a new window during seed production, which showed that at F₄, maximum photosynthetic assimilates accumulated, resulting in an enhanced source-sink relationship and improved seed production. Our study attempts to observe the protein expression profiling pattern under different crossing periods using label-free quantitative proteomics in bottle gourd. It will facilitate future detailed investigation of the protein associated with quality traits and the agronomic importance of bottle gourd through selective breeding programs.

Keywords: SDS-PAGE; bottle gourd; crossing periods; label-free quantitation; plant proteomics; seed vigor.

Grants and funding

This research received no external funding.