Polypeptide changes induced by salt stress, water deficit, and osmotic stress in barley roots: a comparison using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis.

Two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis was used to analyze and compare the effects of short term treatments (24 h) of salt stress, water deficit (desiccation), and osmotic stress (polyethylene glycol and mannitol) on protein synthesis in roots of barley seedlings (Hordeum vulgare L. cv. CM 72). These comparisons were made to determine if the polypeptides of Mr 26,000 and 27,000 and pI of 6.3 and 6.5 that were observed previously to increase significantly with salt stress (Plant Physiol. 1987, 83 517-524) also increased with water deficit and osmotic stress. The polypeptide patterns for control- and stress-treated plants were qualitatively similar, but the net synthesis of a number of polypeptides was quantitatively altered by each of the stress treatments. Of the polypeptide changes induced by the stress treatments, many were unique to a specific stress. Other polypeptide changes were common between two or more of the stress treatments. Only one polypeptide change, a decrease, was common to all of the stress treatments. An important finding was that polypeptides that increased significantly in response to salt stress did not increase in response to water deficit or osmotic stress.