In roses, light is a central environmental factor controlling bud break and involves a stimulation of sugar metabolism. Very little is known about the role of sucrose transporters in the bud break process and its regulation by light. In this study, we show that sugar promotes rose bud break and that bud break is accompanied by an import of sucrose. Radio-labelled sucrose accumulation is higher in buds exposed to light than to darkness and involves an active component. Several sucrose transporter (RhSUC1, 2, 3 and 4) transcripts are expressed in rose tissues, but RhSUC2 transcript level is the only one induced in buds exposed to light after removing the apical dominance. RhSUC2 is preferentially expressed in bursting buds and stems. Functional analyses in baker's yeast demonstrate that RhSUC2 encodes a sucrose/proton co-transporter with a K(m) value of 2.99 mm at pH 4.5 and shows typical features of sucrose symporters. We therefore propose that bud break photocontrol partly depends upon the modulation of sucrose import into buds by RhSUC2.
© 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.