Method of increasing growth and yield in plants

• US 6,252,139 B1
• Filed: 07/18/1996
• Issued: 06/26/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Salk Institute for Biological Studies
• Original Assignee: Salk Institute for Biological Studies
• Inventors: Doerner, Peter W., Lamb, Christopher J.
• Primary Examiner(s): McElwain, Elizabeth F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): COLLINS, CYNTHIA E
• Application Number:
  US08/683,242
• Time in Patent Office: 1,804 Days
• Field of Search: 800/205, 800/250, 800/290, 536/23.6, 536/24.1, 435/172.3, 435/240.4, 435/320.1, 435/419
• US Class Current: 800/290
• CPC Class Codes: C07K 14/415 from plants
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 15/8261 with agronomic (input) traits, e.g. crop yield
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 40/146 Genetically Modified [GMO] plants, e.g. transgenic plants

Abstract

The invention provides a method of producing a genetically modified plant characterized as having increased growth and yield as compared to a corresponding wild-type plant comprising increasing the level of cyclin expression in the plant. Genetically modified plants characterized as having increased growth and yield are also provided.

Claims

1. A method of producing a genetically modified plant characterized as having increased root growth and yield as compared to the corresponding wild-type plant, said method comprising:

contacting plant cells with nucleic acid encoding a cyclin protein, wherein said nucleic acid is operably associated with a regulatory sequence, to obtain transformed plant cells;

producing plants from said transformed plant cells; and

selecting a plant exhibiting said increased root gowth and yield.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the cyclin is cyc1aAt.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the regulatory sequence is a promoter.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the promoter is selected from the group consisting of constitutive promoters and inducible promoters.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the contacting is by physical means.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the contacting is by chemical means.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the plant cell is selected from the group consisting of protoplasts, gamete producing cells, and cells which regenerate into whole plants.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein said nucleic acid is contained in a T-DNA derived vector.

9. A method of providing increased transcription of a nucleic acid sequence in plant root tissue, wherein said method comprises:

growing a plant having integrated in its genome a nucleic acid construct comprising nucleic acid encoding a cyclin protein, wherein said nucleic acid is operably associated with a tissue specific promoter whereby expression of said cyclin-encoding nucleic acid is increased in said plant root tissue.