Image: Joseph R. Ecker, Salk Institute of Biological Studies. Plant Photo: Joe Belcovson, Salk Institute for Biological studies. Network Map: Mary Galli, Salk Institute for Biological Studies and Matija Dreze, Center for Cancer Systems Biology at the Dana-Faber Cancer Institute.
"The image shows an Arabidopsis plant overlaid on a network map of protein-protein interactions. The clusters of colors represent "communities" of interacting proteins that are enriched in specific plant processes.
Scientists have created the largest map of protein-to-protein interactions of the plant Arabidopsis thaliana:
"For this project, over 10,000 'open reading frame' clones were converted and sequence verified in preparation for protein-interaction screening," says Galli.
Vidal, Braun, Hill and their colleagues systematically ran these open reading frames through a high quality protein-interaction screening process, based on a test known as the yeast two-hybrid screen. Out of more than forty million possible pair combinations, they found a total of 6,205 Arabidopsis protein- protein interactions, involving 2,774 individual proteins. The researchers confirmed the high quality of these data, for example by showing their overlap with protein interaction datafrom past studies.
The new map of 6,205 protein partnerings represents only about two percent of the full protein- protein "interactome" for Arabidopsis, since the screening test covered only a third of all Arabidopsis proteins, and wasn't sensitive enough to detect many weaker protein interactions. "There will be larger maps after this one," says Ecker."
see also Largest-Ever Map of Plant Protein Interactions
