High-throughput identification of heavy metal binding proteins from the byssus of chinese green mussel (Perna viridis) by combination of transcriptome and proteome sequencing

PLoS One. 2019 May 9;14(5):e0216605. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0216605. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

The Byssus, which is derived from the foot gland of mussels, has been proved to bind heavy metals effectively, but few studies have focused on the molecular mechanisms behind the accumulation of heavy metals by the byssus. In this study, we integrated high-throughput transcriptome and proteome sequencing to construct a comprehensive protein database for the byssus of Chinese green mussel (Perna viridis), aiming at providing novel insights into the molecular mechanisms by which the byssus binds to heavy metals. Illumina transcriptome sequencing generated a total of 55,670,668 reads. After filtration, we obtained 53,047,718 clean reads and subjected them to de novo assembly using Trinity software. Finally, we annotated 73,264 unigenes and predicted a total of 34,298 protein coding sequences. Moreover, byssal samples were analyzed by proteome sequencing, with the translated protein database from the foot transcriptome as the reference for further prediction of byssal proteins. We eventually determined 187 protein sequences in the byssus, of which 181 proteins are reported for the first time. Interestingly, we observed that many of these byssal proteins are rich in histidine or cysteine residues, which may contribute to the byssal accumulation of heavy metals. Finally, we picked one representative protein, Pvfp-5-1, for recombinant protein synthesis and experimental verification of its efficient binding to cadmium (Cd2+) ions.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Biomarkers / metabolism*
  • Computational Biology
  • Gene Expression Regulation*
  • High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing
  • Metals, Heavy / metabolism*
  • Metals, Heavy / pharmacology
  • Perna / drug effects
  • Perna / genetics*
  • Perna / metabolism*
  • Proteome / analysis*
  • Transcriptome*

Substances

  • Biomarkers
  • Metals, Heavy
  • Proteome

Grants and funding

The work was supported by Special Fund for State Oceanic Administration Scientific Research in the Public Interest (No. 201305018), Shenzhen Science and Technology Program (No. GJHS20160331150703934), and Shenzhen Special Program for Development of Emerging Strategic Industries (No. JSGG20170412153411369). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.