Sun Tae Kim

Two-dimensional electrophoretic analysis of rice proteins by polyethylene glycol fractionation for protein arrays.

Two‐dimensional electrophoresis (2‐DE) is known as the most effective as well as one of the simplest methods for separating proteins. However, a few hundred plant leaf proteins out of thousands visualized on a 2‐DE gel can be identified by chemical analysis due to the presence of ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) that limits protein loading. We describe the extraction and fractionation technique with polyethylene glycol (PEG) to analyze rice leaf proteins. Rice proteins were extracted with Mg/NP‐40 extraction buffer. The Mg/Nonidet P‐40 (NP‐40) buffer extract was further fractionated with PEG into three fractions: 10% PEG and 10–20% PEG precipitants and the final supernatant fraction that was precipitated with acetone. Rubisco, the most abundant rice leaf protein, was enriched in the 20% PEG precipitant. This fractionation technique analyzed at least 2600 well‐separated protein spots and exhibited less than 1.2% of noticeable overlapping spots. An immunological approach was used to verify the efficiency whether PEG fractionation technique can detect or enrich signal transduction components such as Gα, ADP ribosylation factor, small GTP binding protein and 14‐3‐3. The ADP ribosylation factor (ARF) and Gα were only detected in the PEG supernatant fraction not in the total protein fraction. The small GTP binding protein (Rab 7) was identified in the 10% PEG fraction and only faintly in the total protein fraction. The 14‐3‐3 protein was detected in all fractions but was especially prevalent in the 20% PEG fraction.

The rice pathogen-related protein 10 (JIOsPR10) is induced by abiotic and biotic stresses and exhibits ribonuclease activity

We previously reported that rice blast fungus or jasmonic acid induced the expression of rice pathogenesis-related class 10 (JIOsPR10) proteins (Kim et al. 2003, 2004). However, no further studies have been carried out to examine the expression, localization, and enzymatic activity of this protein in either developmental tissues or in tissues under abiotic stress conditions. In this study, rice JIOsPR10 was examined by Western blot analysis, immunolocalization, and biochemical assays. Western blots revealed that the JIOsPR10 protein was expressed in developmental tissues, including in flower and root. The protein was also expressed under abiotic stresses, such as occurs during senescence and wounding. Using immunohistochemical techniques, we determined that expression of JIOsPR10 was localized to the palea of flower, in the exodermis, and inner part of the endodermis of the root. In senescencing tissues of leaf and coleoptiles, its expression was localized in vascular bundles. The RNase activity using JIOsPR10 recombinant protein was determined and abolished after treatment with DTT in a native in-gel assay. To test this, we created JIOsPR10 mutant proteins containing serine substitutions of amino acids C81S, C83S, or both and examined their RNase activities. The activity of the C83S mutant was decreased in the agarose gel assay compared to the wild type. Taken together, we hypothesize that the JIOsPR10 protein possesses RNase activity that is sensitive to DTT, suggesting the importance of the disulfide bonding between cysteine residues and that it might play a role in constitutive self-defense mechanisms in plants against biotic and abiotic stresses.

Analysis of embryonic proteome modulation by GA and ABA from germinating rice seeds

The phytohormones gibberellic acid (GA) and abscisic acid (ABA) play essential and often antagonistic roles in regulating plant growth, development, and stress responses. Using a proteomics‐based approach, we examined the role of GA and ABA in the modulation of protein expression levels during seed germination. Rice seeds were treated with GA (200u2005μM), ABA (10u2005μM), ABA followed by GA, GA followed by ABA, and water as a control and then incubated for 3u2005days. The embryo was dissected from germinated seeds, and proteins were subjected to 2‐DE. Approximately, 665 total protein spots were resolved in the 2‐D gels. Among them, 16 proteins notably modulated by either GA or ABA were identified by MALDI‐TOF MS. Northern analyses demonstrated that expression patterns of 13 of these 16 genes were consistent with those of the proteome analysis. Further examination of two proteins, rice isoflavone resuctase (OsIFR) and rice PR10 (OsPR10), using Western blot and immunolocalization, revealed that both are specifically expressed in the embryo but not in the endosperm and are dramatically downregulated by ABA.

Proteomic analysis of the secretome of rice calli

The cell wall and extracellular matrix in higher plants include secreted proteins that play critical roles in a wide range of cellular processes, such as structural integrity and biogenesis. Compared with the intensive cell wall proteomic studies in Arabidopsis, the list of cell wall proteins identified in monocot species is lacking. Therefore, we conducted a large-scale proteomic analysis of secreted proteins from rice. Highly purified secreted rice proteins were obtained from the medium of a suspension of callus culture and were analyzed with multidimensional protein identification technology (MudPIT). As a result, we could detect a total of 555 rice proteins by MudPIT analysis. Based on bioinformatic analyses, 27.7% (154 proteins) of the identified proteins are considered to be secreted proteins because they possess a signal peptide for the secretory pathway. Among the 154 identified proteins, 27% were functionally categorized as stress response proteins, followed by metabolic proteins (26%) and factors involved in protein modification (24%). Comparative analysis of cell wall proteins from Arabidopsis and rice revealed that one third of the secreted rice proteins overlapped with those of Arabidopsis. Furthermore, 25 novel rice-specific secreted proteins were found. This work presents the large scale of the rice secretory proteome from culture medium, which contributes to a deeper understanding of the rice secretome.

Proteomics of weakly bound cell wall proteins in rice calli

In the present work, we present a proteomic analysis of weakly bound cell wall proteins (CWPs) in rice. CWPs from rice calli were extracted with mannitol/CaCl(2), followed by back extraction with water-saturated phenol. The isolated CWPs were evaluated for contamination by cytosolic proteins by measuring the enzymatic activity of an intracellular marker (glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase). This revealed the presence of low levels of intracellular proteins and a significant enrichment of CWPs, as compared to the total extract. Protein samples were digested in gels with trypsin and analyzed using the multidimensional protein identification technology (MudPIT). A total of 292 proteins were identified, which included numerous classical CWPs and antioxidant proteins. Bioinformatics analysis showed that 72.6% of these proteins possessed a signal peptide, and a total of 198 proteins were determined to be CWPs in rice. Functional classification divided the extracellular proteins into different groups, including glycosyl hydrolases (23%), antioxidant proteins (12%), cell wall structure-related proteins (6%), metabolic pathways (9%), protein modifications (4%), defense (4%), and protease inhibitors (3%). Furthermore, comparative analysis of our identified rice CWPs with known Arabidopsis CWPs revealed 25 novel rice-specific CWPs. The study described here is an unprecedented large-scale analysis of CWPs in rice.

Proteomic analysis of reactive oxygen species (ROS)-related proteins in rice roots

To investigate the rice root proteome, we applied the PEG fractionation technique combined with two-dimensional gel electrophoresis which rendered more well-separated protein spots. Out of the 295 chosen proteins, 93 were identified by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. The proteins were classified as relating to metabolism (38.7%), reactive oxygen species (ROS)-related proteins (22.5%), protein processing/degradation (8.6%), stress/defense (7.5%), energy (6.5%) and signal transduction (5.4%). The high percentage of ROS-related proteins found in rice root brings us to assess the roles of ROS on rice root growth. Treatment with ROS quenching chemicals such as reduced glutathione (GSH), diphenyleneiodonium (DPI) and ascorbate inhibited root growth dose-dependently. Forty-nine proteins identified were either up- or down-regulated by GSH treatment, of which 14 were ROS-related proteins, such noticeably modulated ones as glutathione-S-transferase (GST), superoxide dismutases (SOD) and l-ascorbate peroxidases. The protein levels of four GSTs (NS4, 8, 56 and 57), three APXs (NS46, 49 and 50) and MnSOD (NS45) were strongly reduced by GSH treatment but slightly reduced by ascorbate and DPI. Ascorbate and DPI strongly inhibited expression levels of a catalase A (NP23) and an APX (NS65) but did not affect APXs (NS46, 49 and 50) protein levels. Northern analysis demonstrated that changes in transcript levels of five genes––GST (NS4), GST (NS43), Mn-SOD (NS45), APX (NS50) and APX (NS46/49) in response to ROS quenching chemicals were coherent with patterns shown in two-dimensional electrophoresis analyses. Taken together, we suggest that these proteins may take part in an important role in maintaining cellular redox homeostasis during rice root growth.

Expression of a salt-induced protein (SALT) in suspension-cultured cells and leaves of rice following exposure to fungal elicitor and phytohormones

Phytohormones are essential signal compounds in the regulation of stress-related and defense-related genes. However, there is no clear evidence for any effect of these signal molecules and biotic elicitors on the regulation of the SALT gene in suspension-cultured rice cells. We characterized the expression of a SALT gene following treatment with fungal elicitor, phytohormones, cycloheximide, and inhibitors of protein kinase/phosphatases. SALT expression was up-regulated following treatment with a fungal elicitor, jasmonic acid (JA), abscisic acid (ABA), and NaCl. However, salicylic acid (SA) alone or in combination with one of the other elicitors not only strongly inhibited SALT gene expression but also exhibited an antagonistic effect in suspension cells and leaves. Cycloheximide inhibited SALT accumulation in suspension cells and in leaves, but the inhibitors of protein kinase/phosphatase did not. Immunolocalization revealed that SALT protein was present in xylem parenchyma cells of vascular bundles in the major and minor leaf veins.