Rabbit seminal plasma proteome: The importance of the genetic origin

[EN] The present study was conducted to characterise rabbit seminal plasma proteins (SP proteins) focusing on the influence of the genetic origin and seasonality. In addition, ß-NGF protein quantity in SP was determined. Semen samples were recovered from January to December 2014 using 6 males belonging to genotype A and six from genotype R. For each genotype, one pooled sample at the beginning, middle and end of each season was selected to develop the experiment. A total of 24 pools (3 for each season and genetic line) were analysed. SP proteins of the two experimental groups were recovered and subjected to in-solution digestion nano LC¿MS/MS and bioinformatics analysis. The resulting library included 402 identified proteins validated with ¿95% Confidence (unused Score¿1.3). These data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD006308. Only 6 proteins were specifically implicated in reproductive processes according to Gene Ontology annotation. Twenty-three proteins were differentially expressed between genotypes, 11 over-expressed in genotype A and 12 in genotype R. Regarding the effect of season on rabbit SP proteome, results showed that there is no clear pattern of protein variation throughout the year. Similar ß-NGF relative quantity was observed between seasons and genotypes. In conclusion, this study generates the largest library of SP proteins reported to date in rabbits and provides evidence that genotype is related to a specific abundance of SP proteins.
This research was supported in part by the RTA2013-00058-00-00 from INIA, the European Social Fund and the European FEDER Funds. L. Casares-Crespo is supported by a scholarship from Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Agrarias (IVIA) and the European Social Fund. P. Fernandez-Serrano is supported by Spanish funds from IVIA and Ministerio de Empleo y Seguridad Social (Youth Guarantee Program). The authors are grateful to M. Luz Valero for her excellent technical assistance.