Proteomic analysis of the regulatory network of salt stress in Chrysanthemum

Saline-alkali stress is one of the main abiotic stresses that constrains plant growth. Understanding the response mechanism of ornamental plants to saline-alkali stress is of great significance for improving saline-alkali landscape greening. Chrysanthemum is a good ornamental plant with strong resistance to stress, rich colors and easy management.

Using TMT quantitative proteomics technology, leave and root of Chrysanthemum that were either untreated or treated with 200 mM NaCl for 12 h, screened the differentially expressed proteins. The results showed that 66 and 452 differential proteins were present in leaves and roots after salt treatment, respectively. GO function is mainly related to carbohydrate and energy metabolism, hormone response, antioxidant response and membrane protein activity. The KEGG metabolic pathway is mainly concentrated in glycine metabolism, glutathione metabolic pathway, carbon fixation in prokaryotes, 2-oxy-carboxylic acid metabolism. Combining transcripto-proteomics, GO and KEGG analyses revealed significant enrichment in starch anabolic catabolism, redox processes, ion homeostatic transport, phenylpropane biosynthesis.

Under salt stress, the active pathways of carbohydrate and energy metabolism and glutathione metabolism enable plants to accumulate more energy substances and improve antioxidant capacity, which may play a safeguarding role in maintaining growth and development and mitigating reactive oxygen species damage in Chrysanthemum under stress. The purpose of this study was to screen key proteins and regulatory networks through proteomic assay, and reveal the molecular mechanism of response to salt stress. The research not only provides resources for salt-tolerant breeding of Chrysanthemum but also offers theoretical support for agricultural production and ecological environmental protection.