PR002613 (Project)

Description:Amongst the thousands of transport proteins constituting approximately 10% of coding sequences in a genome, only few have an assigned function. Heterologous expression of transporters in combination with the use of plant extracts as complex mixtures of substrates can be a powerful tool for untargeted identification of plant transporter functionality. In this study, we developed and evaluated four extraction protocols to generate Arabidopsis thaliana seedling extracts for use as substrate mixtures in high-throughput screening of transporters expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes, a well-established system for transporter studies. Our study highlights the importance of developing metabolically diverse yet low-toxicity plant extracts as a critical step toward advancing plant transporter substrate screening. The optimized extraction protocol in combination with X. laevis oocyte assays provide a robust platform for the functional characterization of plant transporters, paving the way for deeper insights into plant physiology and metabolism.