Dermendjiev, G. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2023

A bench-top dark-root device built with LEGO bricks enables a non-invasive plant root development analysis in soil conditions mirroring nature

Roots are the hidden parts of plants, anchoring their above ground counterparts in the soil. They are responsible for water and nutrient uptake, as well as for interacting with biotic and abiotic factors in the soil. The root system architecture (RSA) and its plasticity are crucial for resource acquisition and consequently correlate with plant performance, while being highly dependent on the surrounding environment, such as soil properties and therefore environmental conditions. Thus, especially for crop plants and regarding agricultural challenges, it is essential to perform molecular and phenotypic analyses of the root system under conditions as near as possible to nature (#asnearaspossibletonature). To prevent root illumination during experimental procedures, which would heavily affect root development, dark-root (D-Root) devices (DRDs) have been developed. In this article, we describe the construction and different applications of a sustainable, affordable, flexible, and easy to assemble open-hardware bench-top LEGO(R) DRD, the DRD-BIBLOX (Brick Black Box). The DRD-BIBLOX consists of one or more 3D-printed rhizoboxes which can be filled with soil, while still providing root visibility. The rhizoboxes sit in a scaffold of secondhand LEGO(R) bricks, which allows root development in the dark as well as non-invasive root-tracking with an infrared (IR) camera and an IR light emitting diode (LED) cluster. Proteomic analyses confirmed significant effects of root illumination on barley root and shoot proteome. Additionally, we confirmed the significant effect of root illumination on barley root and shoot phenotypes. Our data therefore reinforces the importance of the application of field conditions in the lab and the value of our novel device, the DRD-BIBLOX. We further provide a DRD-BIBLOX application spectrum, spanning from investigating a variety of plant species and soil conditions as well as simulating different environmental conditions and stresses, to proteomic and phenotypic analyses, including early root tracking in the dark.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2019

Cytoskeleton members, MVBs and the ESCRT-III HvSNF7s are putative key players for protein sorting into protein bodies during barley endosperm development

Cereal endosperm is a short-lived tissue adapted for nutrient storage, containing specialized organelles, such as protein bodies (PBs) and protein storage vacuoles (PSVs), for the accumulation of storage proteins. PBs can be used as efficient biotechnological systems to produce high yields of stable recombinant proteins. During development, protein trafficking and storage require an extensive reorganization of the endomembrane system. Consequently, endomembrane-modifying proteins will influence the final grain quality, yield and recombinant protein production. Barley, a cereal crop of worldwide importance for the brewing industry, animal feed and to a lesser extent, human nutrition, has been identified as promising candidate for recombinant protein production. However, little is known about the molecular mechanism underlying endomembrane system remodeling during barley grain development. By using in vivo label-free quantitative proteomics profiling, we quantified 1,822 proteins across developing barley grains. Based on proteome annotation and a homology search, 95 proteins associated with the endomembrane system were identified, and 83 of these exhibited significant changes in abundance during grain development. Clustering analysis allowed characterization of three different development stages; notably, integration of proteomics data with in situ subcellular microscopic analyses showed a high abundance of cytoskeleton proteins associated with acidified protein bodies at the early development stages. Endosomal sorting complex required for transport (ESCRT)-related proteins and their transcripts are most abundant at early and mid-development. Specifically, multivesicular bodies (MVBs), and the ESCRT-III HvSNF7 proteins are associated with protein bodies (PBs) during barley endosperm development. Taken together, our proteomics results specifically identified members of the cytoskeleton, MVBs, and ESCRT as putative key players for protein sorting into PBs during barley endosperm development. These results present a comprehensive overview of proteins involved in the rearrangement of the endomembrane system during barley early grain development and will provide the basis for future work on engineering the endomembrane system to optimize nutrient content and to produce high yields of recombinant proteins.

plant biology↗