Sucrose transporter genes for increasing plant seed lipids

A method of increasing oil content in a soybean plant seed comprising:

• (a) introducing into a regenerable soybean plant cell:
• (i) a first recombinant DNA construct comprising a first polynucleotide encoding a DGAT polypeptide having at least 95% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO:180, based on the Clustal W method of alignment with pairwise alignment default parameters of KTUPLE=1, GAP PENALTY=3, WINDOW=5 and DIAGONALS SAVED=5, and
• (ii) a second recombinant DNA construct comprising a second polynucleotide encoding a SUT4 sucrose transporter polypeptide, wherein the SUT4 sucrose transporter polypeptide has at least 95% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO:
• 40, based on the Clustal W method of alignment with pairwise default parameters of KTUPLE=1, GAP PENALTY=3, WINDOW=5 and DIAGONALS SAVED=5;
• (b) regenerating a transgenic plant from the regenerable plant cell after step (a), wherein the transgenic plant comprises in its genome the first recombinant DNA construct and the second recombinant DNA construct;
• and,
• (c) obtaining a progeny plant derived from the transgenic plant of step (b), wherein the progeny plant comprises in its genome the first recombinant DNA construct and the second recombinant DNA construct, wherein the progeny plant exhibits increased oil content as a percentage of seed weight when compared to a control soybean plant comprising the first recombinant DNA construct but not comprising the second recombinant DNA construct.

A method of evaluating increased seed oil content in a soybean plant seed comprising:

• evaluating seed from a progeny plant grown from a transgenic plant for increased oil content, the transgenic plant comprising in its genome:
• (i) a first recombinant DNA construct comprising a first polynucleotide encoding a DGAT polypeptide having at least 95% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO:180, based on the Clustal W method of alignment with pairwise alignment default parameters of KTUPLE=1, GAP PENALTY=3, WINDOW=5 and DIAGONALS SAVED=5, wherein the DGAT polypeptide has DGAT activity;
• and
• (ii) a second recombinant DNA construct comprising a second polynucleotide encoding a SUT4 sucrose transporter polypeptide, wherein the SUT4 sucrose transporter polypeptide has at least 95% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO:
• 40, based on the Clustal W method of alignment with pairwise alignment default parameters of KTUPLE=1, GAP PENALTY=3, WINDOW=5 and DIAGONALS SAVED=5
• wherein the progeny plant comprises in its genome the first recombinant DNA construct and the second recombinant DNA construct;
• and wherein the seed from the progeny plant shows increased oil content compared to a control soybean plant not comprising the first recombinant DNA construct and the second recombinant DNA construct.