Cloning and Expression Analysis of Vacuolar ATPase Subunit F Gene from Hevea brasiliensis

Based on EST sequence from an ethphon-induced latex SSH cDNA library of Hevea brasiliensis,a full-length cDNA encoding H+-ATPase F subunit,designated HbVHA-F,was cloned from H.brasiliensis by RACE-PCR,which has a total length of 658 bp with an open reading frame (ORF) of 393 bp and encodes 130 amino acid residues.The deduced amino acid sequence showed high identity of 88.46%,86.15%,84.62%,83.85% and 74.62% to those of VHA-F from Populus trichocarpa,Oryza sativa Japonica Group,Corchorus olitorius,Triticum aestivum and Musa acuminata.Phyogenetic analysis showed that HbVHA-F and other plant VHA-Fs were grouped into one large cluster.Semi-quantitative RT-PCR analysis indicated that the transcription of HbVHA-F in latex was induced by tapping and ethphon treatment,suggesting that HbVHA-F may be involved in the regulation of ehphon-induced high latex yield in H.brasiliensis.