Proteomics and posttranslational proteomics of seed dormancy and germination.

The seed is the dispersal unit of plants and must survive the vagaries of the environment. It is the object of intense genetic and genomic studies because processes related to seed quality affect crop yield and the seed itself provides food for humans and animals. Presently, the general aim of postgenomics analyses is to understand the complex biochemical and molecular processes underlying seed quality, longevity, dormancy, and vigor. Due to advances in functional genomics, the recent past years have seen a tremendous progress in our understanding of several aspects of seed development and germination. Here, we describe the proteomics protocols (from protein extraction to mass spectrometry) that can be used to investigate several aspects of seed physiology, including germination and its hormonal regulation, dormancy release, and seed longevity. These techniques can be applied to the study of both model plants (such as Arabidopsis) and crops.