Plant Proteome Dynamics

Abstract

Proteins are intimately involved in executing and controlling virtually all cellular processes. To understand the molecular mechanisms that underlie plant phenotypes, it is essential to investigate protein expression, interactions, and modifications, to name a few. The proteome is highly dynamic in time and space, and a plethora of protein modifications, protein interactions, and network constellations are at play under specific conditions and developmental stages. Analysis of proteomes aims to characterize the entire protein complement of a particular cell type, tissue, or organism—a challenging task, given the dynamic nature of the proteome. Modern mass spectrometry–based proteomics technology can be used to address this complexity at a system-wide scale by the global identification and quantification of thousands of proteins. In this review, we present current methods and technologies employed in mass spectrometry–based proteomics and provide examples of dynamic changes in the plant proteome elucidated by proteomic approaches.