A two-dimensional electrophoresis protocol suitable for Medicago truncatula leaf proteome

Medicago truncatula leaves were used as the experimental materials. Total proteins of leaves were extracted by trichloracetic acid (TCA)-acetone method and proteins had a better separation using gel strips, forming an immobilized non-linear 3 to 10 pH gradient focusing 123,000 vhr combined with 12% sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). The gels were stained with Coomassie Brilliant Blue G-250 and digitalized gels were analyzed using the PDquest 8.0.1 software. The results indicated that 931 protein dots were detected in the gel. A technology suitable for the M. truncatula leaves protein extraction by TCA/acetone and a protocol for two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) was established, which provides technical support for M. truncatula leaf proteome research.   Key words: Medicago truncatula, proteome, two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-DE), isoelectrofocusing (IEF).