iTRAQ-facilitated proteomic profiling of anthers from a photosensitive male sterile mutant and wild-type cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.)

• A novel photosensitive genetic male sterile cotton mutant and the wild-type were studied.
• Abnormal tapetum degeneration and exine formation were observed in mutant anthers.
• iTRAQ-based proteomic approach was used to investigate protein profiles of cotton anthers.
• We firstly identified 6121 high-confidence proteins in cotton anther.
• We identified 325 differentially expressed proteins between the mutant and wild-type.

Male sterility is a common phenomenon in flowering plants, and it has been successfully developed in several crops by taking advantage of heterosis. Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is an important economic crop, used mainly for the production of textile fiber. Using a space mutation breeding technique, a novel photosensitive genetic male sterile mutant CCRI9106 was isolated from the wild-type upland cotton cultivar CCRI040029. To use CCRI9106 in cotton hybrid breeding, it is of great importance to study the molecular mechanisms of its male sterility. Here, histological and iTRAQ-facilitated proteomic analyses of anthers were performed to explore male sterility mechanisms of the mutant. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy of the anthers showed that the development of pollen wall in CCRI9106 was severely defective with a lack of exine formation. At the protein level, 6121 high-confidence proteins were identified and 325 of them showed differential expression patterns between mutant and wild-type anthers. The proteins up- or down-regulated in MT anthers were mainly involved in exine formation, protein degradation, calcium ion binding,etc. These findings provide valuable information on the proteins involved in anther and pollen development, and contribute to elucidate the mechanism of male sterility in upland cotton.

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