Identification of differentially expressed proteins relating to ovary development in Portunus trituberculatus

Portunus trituberculatus is an important marine crustacean that is widely cultured in China. In the present study, differentially expressed proteins between mature and immature ovaries were analyzed using two-dimensional electrophoresis and mass spectrometry. One hundred and sixteen differential protein spots were obtained from the two-dimensional electrophoresis including 44 down-regulated and 72 up-regulated in mature ovary. The differential protein spots were analyzed with mass spectrometry, and 96 of the differential spots were successfully identified, including 28 unique proteins. Twenty proteins were up-regulated and 8 were down-regulated. Farnesoic acid O-methyltransferase, mesoderm development candidate 2, tropomyosin OS, ecdysteroid receptor and cryptocyanin were suggested to be correlated with ovarian maturation. According to gene ontology (GO) annotation of molecular function category, 20% of the proteins are involving in ATP metabolism. KEGG annotation indicated that the detected differential proteins were classified into 8 pathways. Some proteins functionally involved in the ovarian development of P. trituberculatus were identified, which may be beneficial to elucidate the molecular mechanism of ovarian maturation.