Expression of sucrose transporter (ShSUT1) in a Hawaiian sugarcane cultivar infected with Sugarcane yellow leaf virus (SCYLV)

►A sugarcane disease was detected in Hawaii in the 1990s, which is caused by the phloem-located Sugarcane yellow leaf virus (SCYLV). ►The sucrose transporter was isolated from a Hawaiian cultivar and its distribution in the plant was determined. ►The transporter belongs to the SUT1 group. ►It is expressed in leaves and stem internodes, in the latter the transcript levels increase during maturation and sucrose storage. ►No significant differences of transcript levels were found between SCYLV-infected and virus-free sugarcane. ►Therefore the previously reported reduction of assimilate export in SCYLV-infected plants cannot be attributed to a reduction of sucrose transporter expression.