Environmental stresses including salinity are viewed as the most important limiting factors in crop production. The genetic improvement of banana is important in order to design more productive hybrids. Most of the molecular techniques are based on tissue culture. ASR protein located in both cytoplasm and nucleus and it is functioning as transcriptional regulator. Most of the ASR genes are up-regulated under different environmental stress conditions and during fruit ripening. ASR1 protein is a highly charged low molecular weight plant protein that is regulated by salt- and water-stresses and generated by abscisic acid. In this study, we obtained the full-inducing gene ABA, which is called MaASR1, from banana leaves based on cDNA and method of RT-PCR from a single clone Dwarf Cavendish cultured in MS medium treated with 250 mM of NaCL for 0, 6, 12, 24, and 48 hours, and studied it with agarose gel electrophoresis. The study indicated that the expression of MaASR1 gene in banana leaves is induced under salt-stress and the high expression of MaASR1 will improve plant tolerance to salinity stress. Further studies on identifying the direct target genes of MaASR1 using chip method and the cellular mechanisms of MaASR1 in the nucleus and plasma membrane, as well as further studies on the gene expression of ABA/stress-responsive and their effects on salinity and structure and function of abscisic acid receptors in salinity stresses, it would be easier to find the role and significance of MaASR1 in tolerance to salinity stress.
