Proteomic analysis of upland rice (Oryza sativa L.) exposed to intermittent water deficit

Rice is the most important crop consumed all over the world. In Brazil, irrigated rice covers 50 % of the rice producing area and is responsible for 75 % of the national production. Upland rice covers most of the remaining area, and is therefore, a very important production system in the country. In the present study, we have used the drought tolerant upland rice variety Três Meses Antigo to investigate the proteomic changes that occur during drought stress. Plants were submitted to drought by the reposition of 50 % of the water lost daily. Twenty days after the beginning of the drought stress period, leaves were harvested and used for protein extraction. The 2D maps obtained from treated and control plants revealed 408 reproducible spots, 44 of which were identified by mass spectrometry, including 15 differential proteins. Several unaltered proteins were also identified (39 spots) and were mainly involved in photosynthesis. Taken together, the results obtained suggest that the tolerant upland rice up-regulates anti-oxidant and energy production related proteins in order to cope with water deficit.