A differentially expressed proteomic analysis in placental tissues in relation to pungency during the pepper fruit development.

Using proteomic analysis including 2-DE, image analysis, and protein identification with LC-MS/MS, an investigation aimed at a better understanding of the differentially expressed proteins and/or gene products was carried out with total cell extracts from placental tissues in nonpungent (Capsicum annuum cv. Saeng-Ryeog #213) and pungent peppers (C. annuum cv. Saeng-Ryeog #211). Mobilization of the most abundant proteins, which were on the gels of pH ranges of 4-7, 4.5-5.5, 5.5-6.7, and 6-9, and showed very similar profiles in the two tissues, revealing approximately 2600 protein spots consisting of 1200 on pH 4-7, 600 on 4.5-5.5, 550 on 5.5-6.7, 250 on 6-9. Of these, 37 protein spots, which appeared in only pungent tissues but not in nonpungent tissues or markedly increased in their staining intensities on the gels from pungent tissue, were selected, excised, in-gel trypsin digested, and analyzed by LC-ESI-MS/MS. Peptide MS/MS data were searched against publicly available protein and EST databases, and 22 proteins were identified. Based on this result, we tested and compared the differential expression during fruit development on the 2-DE gels with total cell extracts from placental tissues of pungent and nonpungent peppers at an interval of 10 days from 10 to 40 days after flowering. In addition, this differential protein expression was further confirmed for some subsets of candidates by Northern-blot analysis with RNA samples from placental tissues harvested from each pepper fruit at the same sampling intervals. In this study, the physiological implications, revealed from the experimental data in the levels of proteome and transcripts, are discussed in the context of a complex biosynthesis network of capsaicinoids in pepper cells responsive to pungency.