Physiological and proteomic responses of cotton (Gossypium herbaceum L.) to drought stress

Cotton genotype RAHS 187 was analyzed for changes in physiology, biochemistry and proteome due to drought stress. The deleterious effect of drought in cotton plants was mainly targeted towards photosynthesis. The gas-exchange parameters of net photosynthesis (A), stomatal conductance (gs) and transpiration (E) showed a decreasing trend as the drought intensity increased. The fluorescence parameters of, effective quantum yield of PSII (ΦPSII), and electron transport rates (ETR), also showed a declining trend. As the intensity of drought increased, both H2O2 and MDA levels increased indicating oxidative stress. Anthocyanin levels were increased by more than four folds in the droughted plants. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis detected more than 550 protein spots. Significantly expressed proteins were analyzed by peptide mass fingerprinting (PMF) using MALDI-TOF-TOF. The number of up-regulated spots was found to be 16 while 6 spots were down-regulated. The reasonable implications in drought response of the identified proteins vis-à-vis physiological changes are discussed. Results provide some additional information that can lead to a better understanding of the molecular basis of drought-sensitivity in cotton plants.

► We studied drought induced changes in cotton plants.
► Photosynthetic parameters were down while there was differential expression of proteins.
► Drought responsive proteins were related to defense, signaling, metabolism & gene regulation.