Wenzhong Huang

Biomass Research Center, Hainan Institute of Tropical Agricultural Resouces, Sanya, 572025, Hainan, China
Author    Correspondence author
Cotton Genomics and Genetics, 2025, Vol. 16, No. 3   doi: 10.5376/cgg.2025.16.0013
Received: 30 Mar., 2025    Accepted: 11 May, 2025    Published: 31 May, 2025

This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Huang W.Z., Proteomics analysis of cotton’s response to drought and salt stress, Cotton Genomics and Genetics, 16(3): 126-136 (doi: 10.5376/cgg.2025.16.0013)

 

Cotton is one of the most economically important fiber crops worldwide, yet its productivity is significantly hindered by abiotic stresses such as drought and salinity. In this study, we utilized proteomics approaches to explore the molecular mechanisms underlying cotton’s response to drought and salt stress, providing a comprehensive overview of stress-induced protein expression profiles. We summarized the major types of abiotic stress affecting cotton, detailed current proteomics technologies, and highlighted key proteins involved in stress perception, antioxidant defense, ion transport, and signaling pathways. Comparative proteomic analyses revealed both common and stress-specific protein expression patterns, enhancing our understanding of cotton’s adaptive responses. A case study involving Gossypium hirsutum under field-imposed conditions demonstrated how proteomic insights can inform breeding for stress tolerance. This study underscores the value of proteomics in dissecting cotton’s complex responses to environmental stress and anticipates that future research integrating multi-omics and functional genomics will facilitate the development of stress-resilient cotton cultivars.

Cotton; Proteomics; Drought stress; Salt stress; Stress tolerance mechanisms