Abstract
Heterostyly is a common floral polymorphism, but the proteomic basis of this trait is still largely unexplored. In this study, self- and cross-pollination of L-morph and S-morph flowers and comparison of embryo sac development in eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) suggested that lower fruit set from S-morph flowers results from stigma-pollen incompatibility. To explore the molecular mechanism underlying heterostyly development, we conducted isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ) proteomic analysis of eggplant pistils for L- and S-morph flowers. A total of 5,259 distinct proteins were identified during heterostyly development. Compared S-morph flowers with L-morph, we discovered 57 and 184 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) during flower development and maturity, respectively. Quantitative real time polymerase chain reactions were used for nine genes to verify DEPs from the iTRAQ approach. During flower development, DEPs were mainly involved in morphogenesis, biosynthetic processes, and metabolic pathways. At flower maturity, DEPs primarily participated in biosynthetic processes, metabolic pathways, and the formation of ribosomes and proteasomes. Additionally, some proteins associated with senescence and programmed cell death were found to be upregulated in S-morph pistils, which may lead to the lower fruit set in S-morph flowers. Although the exact roles of these related proteins are not yet known, this was the first attempt to use an iTRAQ approach to analyze proteomes of heterostylous eggplant flowers, and these results will provide insights into biochemical events taking place during the development of heterostyly.
Highlights
In flowering plants, different strategies have evolved to avoid selfing and promote outcrossing, of which heterostyly is one of the most effective mechanisms
The short morph (S-morph) flowers experienced similar growth when the pistil length was less than 10 mm (R2 = 0.968), the pistil generally did not elongate when the buds were more than 10 mm long
We found that cinnamoylCoA reductase, which participates in lignin biosynthesis, was downregulated in both S-morph and long morph (L-morph) flowers [35]
Summary
Different strategies have evolved to avoid selfing and promote outcrossing, of which heterostyly is one of the most effective mechanisms. A complex floral polymorphism, can aid in environmental adaptations of plants and accelerate species diversification [1,2]. Has arisen independently in at least 20 lineages and is present in 199.
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