TITLE:
Protein Profiles of Pod Borer Maruca Resistant Transgenic Cowpea
AUTHORS:
Mounyratou Rabo, Teyioue Benoit Joseph Batieno, Assita Traoré-Barro, Salimata Traoré, Orokia Coulibaly, Aboubacar Toguyeni, Chantal Kaboré-Zoungrana, Oumar Traoré
KEYWORDS:
Cowpea, Protein, Cry1Ab, Protein Fractions
JOURNAL NAME:
American Journal of Plant Sciences,
Vol.14 No.12,
December
29,
2023
ABSTRACT: The grain legume cowpea Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp. is a major protein source used for food and feed in Sub-Saharan
Africa. The crop is affected by the pod borer Maruca vitrata against
which transgenic lines were developed as part of the genetic control approach.
This study aimed to assess the protein profiles in seeds and leaves of
transgenic cowpea lines and their non-transgenic near-isogenic counterparts.
Crude protein content was determined by the Kjeldahl method, and soluble
proteins were quantified using Bradford dye binding assay. The average crude
protein content ranged between 21.61% and 26.58% in the seeds and between
10.86% and 17.90% in the leaves. Total solubility varied between 13.03% and
20.64%. Osborne’s protein fractions contents in the seeds were 52.41% - 69.52%
(albumin), 4.62% - 7.19% (globulin), 7.95% - 11.40% (glutelin) and 3% - 4%
(prolamin). In any case, protein content differed significantly between cowpea
genotypes but not between pairs of transgenic/non-transgenic lines.
Insecticidal Cry1Ab protein expressed by transgenic lines was only detected in
the albumin and globulin fractions. Altogether, these findings enhance our
understanding of the effects of genetic modification on cowpea protein content
and composition, with potential implications for nutritional and safety
assessments.