A Decade of Pollen Phosphoproteomics.

Božena Klodová,Jan Fíla

doi:10.3390/ijms222212212

Abstract

Angiosperm mature pollen represents a quiescent stage with a desiccated cytoplasm surrounded by a tough cell wall, which is resistant to the suboptimal environmental conditions and carries the genetic information in an intact stage to the female gametophyte. Post pollination, pollen grains are rehydrated, activated, and a rapid pollen tube growth starts, which is accompanied by a notable metabolic activity, synthesis of novel proteins, and a mutual communication with female reproductive tissues. Several angiosperm species (Arabidopsis thaliana, tobacco, maize, and kiwifruit) were subjected to phosphoproteomic studies of their male gametophyte developmental stages, mostly mature pollen grains. The aim of this review is to compare the available phosphoproteomic studies and to highlight the common phosphoproteins and regulatory trends in the studied species. Moreover, the pollen phosphoproteome was compared with root hair phosphoproteome to pinpoint the common proteins taking part in their tip growth, which share the same cellular mechanisms.

Highlights

Species’ existence on Earth is maintained by reproduction
The female gametophyte develops within the ovary, where it is protected from any damage and in most species, it is composed of seven cells with eight nuclei [2]
Mature pollen grains are shed from anthers either in such a bi-cellular stage or alternatively undergo pollen mitosis II that forms two sperm cells out of one generative cell prior to pollen grain shedding, meaning they will be in a mature state tri-cellular [4,5]

Summary

Introduction

Species’ existence on Earth is maintained by reproduction. The angiosperm (Angiospermae) life cycle consists of two altering generations—a diploid sporophyte and a haploid gametophyte [1]. The pollen tube delivers two sperm cells, the male gametes, to the mature embryo sac. Both carried sperm cells take part in fertilization. The change from metabolically quiescent, resistant mature pollen to a metabolically active, rapidly growing pollen tube is precisely regulated both at the level of protein synthesis and posttranslational modifications The former regulation is mediated by the synthesis of mRNAs for storage in translationally inactive EDTA/puromycine-resistant particles (EPPs [10,11]), later described as monosomes [12], since, for instance, tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) pollen tube growth was reported to be highly dependent on translation, but nearly independent of transcription [13]. This review aims at an analysis of the known phosphoproteomic datasets acquired on male gametophyte stages and compares them with the root hair phosphoproteome, since these structures share the same type of tip growth that relies on common cellular mechanisms [18,19,20]

Male Gametophyte Phosphoproteomic Studies

Common Phosphoproteins in Angiosperm Male Gametophyte Phosphoproteomes

Common Trends for Male Gametophyte and Root Hairs

Beyond Pollen Phosphoproteomics

Conclusions