Abstract
BackgroundAmaranth is a plant naturally resistant to various types of stresses that produces seeds of excellent nutritional quality, so amaranth is a promising system for food production. Amaranth wild relatives have survived climate changes and grow under harsh conditions, however no studies about morphological and molecular characteristics of their seeds are known. Therefore, we carried out a detailed morphological and molecular characterization of wild species A. powellii and A. hybridus, and compared them with the cultivated amaranth species A. hypochondriacus (waxy and non-waxy seeds) and A. cruentus.ResultsSeed proteins were fractionated according to their polarity properties and were analysed in one-dimensional gel electrophoresis (1-DE) followed by nano-liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry (nLC-MS/MS). A total of 34 differentially accumulated protein bands were detected and 105 proteins were successfully identified. Late embryogenesis abundant proteins were detected as species-specific. Oleosins and oil bodies associated proteins were observed preferentially in A. cruentus. Different isoforms of the granule-bound starch synthase I, and several paralogs of 7S and 11S globulins were also identified. The in silico structural analysis from different isoforms of 11S globulins was carried out, including new types of 11S globulin not reported so far.ConclusionsThe results provide novel information about 11S globulins and proteins related in seed protection, which could play important roles in the nutritional value and adaptive tolerance to stress in amaranth species.
Highlights
Amaranth is a plant naturally resistant to various types of stresses that produces seeds of excellent nutritional quality, so amaranth is a promising system for food production
A. powellii contains the smallest seeds while A. hybridus and A. cruentus are the largest ones
Seeds crosscuts showed that the wild species A. hybridus and A. powellii are translucent; the cultivated species A. cruentus has opaque seeds while A. hypochondriacus cultivars were distinguished due to their translucent and opaque characteristics (Fig. 2a)
Summary
Amaranth is a plant naturally resistant to various types of stresses that produces seeds of excellent nutritional quality, so amaranth is a promising system for food production. Seeds are the centre to crop production, human nutrition, and food security [3, 4], they contain the full genetic complement of the plant allowing it to survive even under prolonged periods of stress conditions [5, 6]. The presence of particular proteins such as the late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins, heat shock proteins (HSPs), and seed storage proteins (SSPs) confer seeds desiccation tolerance, Bojórquez-Velázquez et al BMC Plant Biology (2019) 19:59 allowing them to survive in dry state preserving their germination ability and propagation after long-term storage conditions [8, 9]. LEA proteins are suggested to play an important role in seed desiccation tolerance [10], they are known to stabilize membranes against the deleterious effects of drying. Due to their abundance and high propensity to oxidation, SSPs are considered a powerful reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging system that could protect cellular components that are important for embryo survival [17, 18]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
