International Journal of Medicinal Plants Research

International Journal of Medicinal Plants Research ISSN 2169-303X Vol. 8 (8), pp. 001-006, August, 2019. © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Ecotypic variation of a medicinal plant Imperata cylindrica populations in Taiwan: mass spectrometry-based proteomic evidence

Ing-Feng Chang

Institute of Plant Biology, Department of Life Science, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan ROC. E-mail: [email protected]. Tel: 02-33662534. Fax: 02-23918940.

Accepted 16 April, 2019

Abstract

Cogon grass [Imperata cylindrica L. Beauv. var. major] is the only one species of Imperata, and one of the medicinal plants in Taiwan. The rhizome can be used for medicinal purposes. In the field alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) activity, proline and sodium content in tissues of Imperata showed variation between wetland (Chuwei population) and the other two representative non-wetland ecotypes (Neihu and Sarlun populations) . Chuwei ecotype is known tolerant to flood and salt shown in a flood and salt treatment experiment in previous study. A mass spectrometry (MS)-based proteomic analysis identified a fast moving 2-phospho-D-glycerate hydrolase (enolase) isoform only in the wetland ecotype on a native-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, whereas a slow moving enolase isoform was identified only in the non-wetland ecotypes. In addition, a mitochondrial malate dehydrogenase and a chloroplast ferredoxin-NADP(H) oxidoreductase were identified only in the wetland ecotype. These proteomic results provide additional evidence of the ecotypic variation among Imperata cylindrica ecotypes. The potential use of this novel approach to identify protein markers is discussed in the study.

Key words: Imperata cylindrica, ecotype, mass spectrometry, proteomic, enolase, malate dehydrogenase, ferredoxin-NADP(H) oxidoreductase.