Provided are methods, vectors and gene constructs for enhancing expression of a recombinant nucleic acid sequence in transgenic plants and plant tissues. According to the present invention, nucleic acid sequences are obtained and/or derived from the 3′ untranslated regions of genes encoding ubiquitin proteins and engineered to flank respective portions of a selected coding region of a vector. The vector construct may be introduced into plants and/or plant tissues through conventional or gene targeting procedures, resulting in enhanced expression of the selected coding region. In some embodiments, the selected coding region is a chimeric gene or gene fragment expressing one or more proteins known to impart a level of insecticidal activity to a transgenic plant and/or plant tissue.