Plasma Membrane Proteomics

Proteins residing in the plasma membrane have key functions in transport, signal transduction, vesicle trafficking and many other important processes. To better understand these processes it is necessary to reveal the identity of plasma membrane proteins and to monitor modifications and regulation of their expression. This chapter is an overview of the methods used in plant plasma membrane proteomic studies and the results obtained so far. It focuses on studies using mass spectrometry for identification and includes aspects of plasma membrane fractionation, extraction and washing treatments, assessment of purity, separation methods for plasma membrane proteins and choice of techniques for protein cleavage. Finally, the results of plasma membrane proteomic studies are compared and problems with contaminating proteins are discussed.