Abstract
The increasing dynamic functions of post-translational modifications (PTMs) within protein molecules present outstanding challenges for plant biology even at this present day. Protein PTMs are among the first and fastest plant responses to changes in the environment, indicating that the mechanisms and dynamics of PTMs are an essential area of plant biology. Besides being key players in signaling, PTMs play vital roles in gene expression, gene, and protein localization, protein stability and interactions, as well as enzyme kinetics. In this review, we take a broader but concise approach to capture the current state of events in the field of plant PTMs. We discuss protein modifications including citrullination, glycosylation, phosphorylation, oxidation and disulfide bridges, N-terminal, SUMOylation, and ubiquitination. Further, we outline the complexity of studying PTMs in relation to compartmentalization and function. We conclude by challenging the proteomics community to engage in holistic approaches towards identification and characterizing multiple PTMs on the same protein, their interaction, and mechanism of regulation to bring a deeper understanding of protein function and regulation in plants.
Highlights
In their native environment, the growth and survival of plants are often threatened by biotic stress including plant pathogens such as bacteria, fungi, and viruses
The relevance of SUMOylation in plant biology is further supported by studies performed in plants of agronomic interest, which point to manipulation of SUMOylation as a promising strategy to improve crop productivity [165]
It can be noted that post-translational modifications (PTMs) play vital roles in the various plant molecular process and responses to external stimuli (Figure 1)
Summary
The growth and survival of plants are often threatened by biotic stress including plant pathogens such as bacteria, fungi, and viruses. PTMs are among the earliest and most rapid plant responses to changes in the environment and trigger downstream molecular and cellular responses including fundamental plant growth, development, and immunity in an appropriate and timely manner [1]. Previous studies have observed that some proteins do not change when plants are exposed to various biotic or abiotic stress conditions but at the PTM level differential changes were noted. These studies provide an important element in understanding the sequence of events during signal transduction (e.g., [3]). Other PTMs such as N-myristoylation, S-acylation, S-nitrosylation, sulphenylation modification, which have been reported to have roles in plant immunity, have been described elsewhere [1,7,8]
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