System, trends and perspectives of proteomics in dicot plants

The first 3 years of the 21st century have seen the impact of plant proteomics on functional genomics that has enhanced our understanding, not only on the plant genome(s), but also more importantly, on the functional aspect of proteins. This is mainly due to availability of the complete genome sequence of the Arabidopsis thaliana-a dicotyledoneous (dicot) model plant-and technological advancements in proteomics. Proteomic analyses of a variety of dicot plants, including both Arabidopsis and the model legume species, barrel medic (Medicago truncatula), have greatly helped in an efficient separation, identification and cataloguing of a large number of proteins, and thereby defining their proteomes. Therefore, we have composed an inclusive review on dicot plant materials, as of February 2004, that provides system, trends and perspectives of proteomics in growth and development and the environment. The review is summarized and discussed as three individual, but interlinked, entities: Part I, technologies in proteome establishment (this review), Part II, proteomes of the complex developmental stages [G.K. Agrawal, M. Yonekura, Y. Iwahashi, H. Iwahashi, R. Rakwal, J. Chromatogr. B (2004)], and Part III, unraveling the proteomes influenced by the environment, and at the levels of function and genetic relationships [G.K. Agrawal, M. Yonekura, Y. Iwahashi, H. Iwahashi, R. Rakwal, J. Chromatogr. B (2004)]. This review deals with the diverse proteomic technologies being used in proteome development of different dicot plants.