Plants having enhanced yield-related traits and a method for making the same

摘要

The present invention relates generally to the field of molecular biology and concerns a method for enhancing various economically important yield-related traits in plants. More specifically, the present invention concerns a method for enhancing yield-related traits in plants by modulating expression in a plant of a nucleic acid encoding a Yield Enhancing Protein (YEP). The YEP is selected from a Vacuolar Processing Enzyme (VPE) or a CCA1-like polypeptide or a SAP-like polypeptide or a Seed Yield Promoting Factor 1 (SYPF1) polypeptide or a Ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCO) activase (RCA) polypeptide. The present invention also concerns plants having modulated expression of a nucleic acid encoding such a YEP, which plants have enhanced yield-related traits relative to control plants. The invention also provides hitherto unknown YEP-encoding nucleic acids, and constructs comprising the same, useful in performing the methods of the invention.

主权项

1. A method for enhancing a yield-related trait in a plant relative to a control plant, comprising increasing expression in a plant of a nucleic acid encoding a SAP-like polypeptide, wherein said nucleic acid is selected from the group consisting of:
(a) a nucleic acid comprising the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 210; (b) a nucleic acid encoding a polypeptide comprising the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 211; and (c) a nucleic acid which hybridizes with the nucleic acid of (a) under high stringent hybridization conditions comprising hybridization at 65° C. in 1×SSC or at 42° C. in 1×SSC and 50% formamide, followed by washing at 65° C. in 0.3×SSC, and encodes a polypeptide comprising: (i) Motif 1 of SEQ ID NO: 243 or a motif having at least 80% sequence identity to Motif 1 of SEQ ID NO: 243; (ii) Motif 2 of SEQ ID NO: 244 or a motif having at least 80% sequence identity to Motif 2 of SEQ ID NO: 244; and (iii) Motif 3 of SEQ ID NO: 245 or a motif having at least 80% sequence identity to Motif 3 of SEQ ID NO: 245, wherein said plant has an enhanced yield-related trait comprising increased yield and/or increased seed yield relative to a control plant, wherein increased expression is effected by expressing an introduced nucleic acid encoding said SAP-like polypeptide in a plant and wherein said nucleic acid is operably linked to a promoter.