Molecular characterization of novel haplotypes of eIF4E family in Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L. ssp. pekinensis)

Two genes coding for eukaryotic translation initiation factors, eIF4E.a and eIF4E.c, were isolated from twelve accessions of Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa L. ssp. pekinensis). Polymorphism analysis revealed that 94 and 142 polymorphic sites were characterized from allele of BraeIF4E.a and BraeIF4E.c which produced complex haplotype structures. Six novel haplotypes were characterized from the two alleles respectively. Among the six novel haplotypes of BraeIF4E.a, three loss-of-function mutations were identified in which a conserved single nucleotide deletion mutation cause the early termination of BraeIF4E.a coding product; while for six new BraeIF4E.c haplotypes, their coding product show amino acid substitution mutations on non-conservative amino acid residues which might affect TuMV infection in Chinese cabbage.