New research reveals a method to increase rubber latex production

Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science (CSRS) in Japan and colleagues at Sains University in Malaysia (USM) have succeeded in explaining the genetic sequence for Hevea brasiliensis, rubber trees. Native in Brazil. In Scientific Reports, the study reports the sequence of draft genes over 93% of expressed genes and specific regions for the biosynthesis of rubber trees.

Natural rubber flows in rubber ducts and protects plants from insects when the tree is injured. For humans, this is an important resource for many industrial applications because some useful features are not reproduced in synthetic rubber.

Although some of the characteristics of the plant whose rubber yield may be higher than the other, the reasons for this explanation are unknown. The team led by Minami Matsui at RIKEN CSRS and Alexander Chong at USM has set out to sequence and analyze the genome of H. brasiliensis. Genetic information can reveal which genes contribute to the ability of high latex production. This helps scientists develop higher yielding rubber varieties.

After sequencing the rubber gene sequence, the researchers compared it to other plant genes in the Euphobiaceae family, such as cassava and castor. The comparison shows that when these plants share a large cluster of more than 12,000 relatives, nearly 200 relatives are unique to the rubber tree.

The team observed genes related to rubber and disease resistance - two factors that affect latex production, and found that the two most present proteins make up rubber - High elasticity factor Su and small rubber molecules - explained on a large amount of genes are concentrated in a small area of ​​the genome. Although other tropical plants also express these proteins in a certain way, being explained more than 8 times in different genes is unique to H. brasiliensis. Gene expression analysis (CAGE) - a method of development at RIKEN - revealed that the expression of these proteins is tissue-specific, with expression 100 times greater in pus than in leaves.

The team also found that, compared to other members of the family Euphobiaceae, rubber trees have more genes involved in disease resistance, and these genes also form clusters within the genome. This finding will help improve the production of important latex and industrial crops in Malaysia. For USM, scientists hope to continue working with RIKEN and related industry partners to apply knowledge from genes to better rubber production.