bioRxiv2018
Aluminium in acid soils is a hindrance to crop growth. Nonetheless, Brazilian Cerrado possesses many species such as Qualea grandiflora, which are adapted to acid soils with large amounts of Al and accumulate this metal in its tissues and organs. Nonetheless, the mechanisms involved in these processes are poorly understood, mainly at molecular level. Thus, a root proteomic analysis was accomplished to identify Al-responsive proteins in Q. grandiflora plants. Concomitantly, a root growth analysis of plants grown with and without Al supplementation was conducted to determine the effects of Al on the whole plant. Subsequently, proteins from both treatments were identified and quantified by LC-MS/MS in a label-free fashion. From the 2,520 identified proteins, 410 were differentially abundant between the two treatments, which were associated with carbohydrate metabolism, redox activity, stress response and catabolism of organic compounds. Furthermore, Al was crucial for the growth and development of Q. grandiflora. In fact, this species may have an Al-dependent metabolism. Moreover, it was possible to correlate plant growth to Al-upregulated proteins that were directly involved in cell wall synthesis, oxidative phosphorylation, genetic information processing, and amino acid metabolism. Additionally, this work provides an extensive dataset of Al-regulated protein in Q. grandiflora, which will be crucial to understanding the functions of Al in this species.