Proteomics: a promising tool for research on sex-related differences in dioecious plants

(2015) Proteomics: a promising tool for research on sex-related differences in dioecious plants. Dioecy is a form of sex distribution in seed plants. In dioecious plants, the male and female reproductive organs sit on different unisexual plants. Dioecy occurs in many plant families, and approximately 14,600 species in 200 families are dioecious (Ming et al., 2007); however, a limited number of dioecious plants have evolved sex chromosomes (Negrutiu et al., 2001; Vyskot and Hobza, 2004). For plants without obvious sex chromosomes, genetic sex determination may be due to a single locus or multiple loci either unlinked or tightly linked on autosomes (Divashuk et al., 2014; Razumova et al., 2015). A complex sex determination mechanism has been found in Mercurialis annua, in which the sex is controlled by multiple unlinked loci (Janousek and Mrackova, 2010). Recently, much research on dioecious plants has focused on sex-linked genes The research on sex-related differences in dioecious plants has the potential to explore the evolutionary, developmental and molecular processes leading to sex differentiation (Diggle et al., 2011) and sex chromosome evolution (Charlesworth, 2015). Unlike animals, most dioecious plants do not exhibit discernible sexual dimorphism prior to sexual maturity. In practice, the economic values often differ between male and female plants. In practice, male plants have an advantage over females in providing edible stems (e. et al., 2013). Therefore, a reliable method for sex identification at the juvenile stage would greatly benefit breeding programs for dioecious plants. Proteomics represents a powerful tool for protein identification and gene functional analysis. In proteomic analyses, proteins are first separated using gel-based (typically 2-DE) or gel-free approaches, followed by mass spectrometry (MS). Both gel-based approaches (e.g., 2-DE) and gel-free approaches (e.g., iTRAQ) are frequently used for proteomic analysis. The aim of most proteomics analyses is to maximize the number of polypeptides that can be resolved, particularly for comparative proteomics, which generally involves identifying minor differences between experimental and control samples. In this regard, 2-DEbased proteomic analysis is particularly suitable for the paired comparison of dioecious plants. In this paper, we take a practical look at the value and the limitations of proteomic approaches for research on sex-related differences in dioecious plants. In dioecious plants, females often invest more in reproduction and less in growth and maintenance compared to males (Barrett, 2015). This differential investment between sexes may result in distinct growth patterns (Cepeda-Cornejo and Dirzo, 2010) and sex-biased responses to …