Green mud crab, Scylla paramamosain, is an important commercial species in aquaculture. Therefore, more and more researches focus on its molecular mechanism of reproduction. ERK pathway is essential for the regulation of gonad development. The 14-3-3 was proved to be bonded to phosphorylated protein and involved in transmission of ERK pathway. The full length cDNA of tyrosine 3 monooxygenase/tryp tophane 5 monooxygenase activator protein (14-3-3ζ) from green mud crab were obtained by SMART RACE in this study. The full length cDNA of 14-3-3ζ gene is 1 092 bp encoding a polypeptide of 248 amino acids. The results of real time quantitative PCR revealed that 14-3-3ζ gene was constitutively expressed in examined tissues, and its expression level in ovary was higher than that in the other tissues (P<0.05), while the expression level of 14-3-3ζ gene in secondary vitellogenesis stage was higher than that in proliferation stage (P<0.05). Consequently, we may infer that 14 3 3ζ plays a key role in ovarian development of the crab.