Comparative proteomic analyses of Asian cotton ovules with attached fibers in the early stages of fiber elongation process

Background Plenty of proteomic studies were performed to characterize the allotetraploid upland cotton fiber elongation process, whereas little is known about the elongating diploid cotton fiber proteome. Methods In this study, we used a two-dimensional electrophoresis-based comparative proteomic approach to profile dynamic proteomes of diploid Asian cotton ovules with attached fibers in the early stages of fiber elongation process. One-way ANOVA and Student-Newman-Keuls test were used to find the differentially displayed protein (DDP) spots. Results A total of 55 protein spots were found having different abundance ranging from 1 to 9 days post-anthesis (DPA) in a two-day interval. These 55 DDP spots were all successfully identified using high-resolution mass spectrometric analyses. Gene ontology analyses revealed that proteoforms involved in energy/carbohydrate metabolism, redox homeostasis, and protein metabolism are the most abundant. In addition, orthologues of the 13 DDP spots were also found in differential proteome of allotetraploid elongating cotton fibers, suggesting their possible essential roles in fiber elongation process. Conclusions Our results not only revealed the dynamic proteome change of diploid Asian cotton fiber and ovule during early stages of fiber elongation process but also provided valuable resource for future studies on the molecular mechanism how the polyploidization improves the trait of fiber length.