<P> Rubber particles are formed in the cytoplasm of specialized latex - producing cells called laticifers within rubber plants . Rubber particles are surrounded by a single phospholipid membrane with hydrophobic tails pointed inward . The membrane allows biosynthetic proteins to be sequestered at the surface of the growing rubber particle, which allows new monomeric units to be added from outside the biomembrane, but within the lacticifer . The rubber particle is an enzymatically active entity that contains three layers of material, the rubber particle, a biomembrane and free monomeric units . The biomembrane is held tightly to the rubber core due to the high negative charge along the double bonds of the rubber polymer backbone . Free monomeric units and conjugated proteins make up the outer layer . The rubber precursor is isopentenyl pyrophosphate (an allylic compound), which elongates by Mg - dependent condensation by the action of rubber transferase . The monomer adds to the pyrophosphate end of the growing polymer . The process displaces the terminal high - energy pyrophosphate . The reaction produces a cis polymer . The initiation step is catalyzed by prenyltransferase, which converts three monomers of isopentenyl pyrophosphate into farnesyl pyrophosphate . The farnesyl pyrophosphate can bind to rubber transferase to elongate a new rubber polymer . </P> <P> The required isopentenyl pyrophosphate is obtained from the mevalonate pathway, which derives from acetyl - CoA in the cytosol . In plants, isoprene pyrophosphate can also be obtained from the 1 - deox - D - xyulose - 5 - phosphate / 2 - C - methyl - D - erythritol - 4 - phosphate pathway within plasmids . The relative ratio of the farnesyl pyrophosphate initiator unit and isoprenyl pyrophosphate elongation monomer determines the rate of new particle synthesis versus elongation of existing particles . Though rubber is known to be produced by only one enzyme, extracts of latex host numerous small molecular weight proteins with unknown function . The proteins possibly serve as cofactors, as the synthetic rate decreases with complete removal . </P> <P> Close to 28 million tons of rubber were produced in 2013, of which approximately 44% was natural . Since the bulk is synthetic, which is derived from petroleum, the price of natural rubber is determined, to a large extent, by the prevailing global price of crude oil . Asia was the main source of natural rubber, accounting for about 94% of output in 2005 . The three largest producers, Thailand, Indonesia (2.4 million tons) and Malaysia, together account for around 72% of all natural rubber production . Natural rubber is not cultivated widely in its native continent of South America due to the existence of South American leaf blight, and other natural predators . </P> <P> Rubber latex is extracted from rubber trees . The economic life period of rubber trees in plantations is around 32 years--up to 7 years of immature phase and about 25 years of productive phase . </P>

Where does most of the world's rubber come from