# US 12,180,495 B2 · Plant tolerance to low water, low nitrogen and cold II

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 12,180,495 B2
- Document ID: US12180495B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 18/462,307
- Filed: 2023-09-06
- Published: 2024-03-21
- Granted: 2024-12-31
- Earliest claimed: 2007-07-20
- Assignees: Mendel Biotechnology, Inc.; Monsanto Technology LLC
- Applicants: Mendel Biotechnology, Inc.; Monsanto Technology LLC
- Inventors: Jose Luis Riechmann; Oliver J. Ratcliffe; T. Lynne Reuber; Katherine Krolikowski; Jacqueline E. Heard; Omaira Pineda; Cai-Zhong Jiang; Robert A. Creelman; Roderick W. Kumimoto; Paul S. Chomet
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12180495B2

## CPC

- C12N 15/827: {Flower development or morphology, e.g. flowering promoting factor [FPF]}
- C07K 14/415: from plants
- C12N 15/8271: {for stress resistance, e.g. heavy metal resistance}
- C12N 15/8273: {for drought, cold, salt resistance}
- C12N: MICROORGANISMS OR ENZYMES; COMPOSITIONS THEREOF; PROPAGATING, PRESERVING, OR MAINTAINING MICROORGANISMS; MUTATION OR GENETIC ENGINEERING; CULTURE MEDIA (microbiological testing media C12Q1/00)
- C07K: PEPTIDES (peptides in foodstuffs A23; obtaining protein compositions for foodstuffs, working-up proteins for foodstuffs A23J; preparations for medicinal purposes A61K; peptides containing beta-lactam rings C07D; cyclic dipeptides not having in their molecule any other peptide link than those which form their ring, e.g. piperazine-2,5-diones, C07D; ergot alkaloids of the cyclic peptide type C07D519/02; macromolecular compounds having statistically distributed amino acid units in their molecules, i.e. when the preparation does not provide for a specific; but for a random sequence of the amino acid units, homopolyamides and block copolyamides derived from amino acids C08G69/00; macromolecular products derived from proteins C08H1/00; preparation of glue or gelatine C09H; single cell proteins, enzymes C12N; genetic engineering processes for obtaining peptides C12N15/00; compositions for measuring or testing processes involving enzymes C12Q; investigation or analysis of biological material G01N33/00)

## Abstract

Polynucleotides incorporated into nucleic acid constructs have been introduced into plants and were ectopically expressed. The encoded polypeptides of the invention have been shown to confer at least one regulatory activity and confer earlier flowering, longer floral organ retention, increased cold tolerance, greater tolerance to water deprivation, altered carbon-nitrogen balance sensing, increased low nitrogen tolerance, and/or increased tolerance to hyperosmotic stress as compared to a control plant.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method for increasing the tolerance of a plant to low nitrogen conditions, hyperosmotic stress or cold as compared to a control plant of the same species and grown under identical conditions, the method comprising:
(a) providing a nucleic acid construct comprising a recombinant nucleic acid sequence comprising a heterologous promoter operably linked to a nucleic acid encoding a polypeptide, wherein:
(i) the polypeptide comprises an amino acid sequence that has at least 95% amino acid sequence identity with the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 14,
(ii) the polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:14; or
(iii) the nucleic acid comprises a nucleotide sequence that comprises at least 95% nucleotide sequence identity with the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 13 and encoding a polypeptide having the functional activity of SEQ ID NO: 14; and
(b) transforming target plants with the nucleic acid construct to produce transformed plants;
(c) selecting a transformed plant from transformed plants of step (b) that overexpresses the polypeptide of parts (i), (ii) or (iii) of step (a) and exhibits increased tolerance to low nitrogen conditions, increased tolerance to hyperosmotic stress, or increased tolerance to cold as compared to a control plant of the same species and grown under identical conditions.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the selected transformed plant is more tolerant than the control plant to 8° C. during germination or growth, to MS medium with 20 mg/l of NH4NO3 as a nitrogen source, to 9.4% sucrose, or removal from growth medium and drying for two hours at the seedling stage.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the polypeptide comprises the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO:14.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the nucleic acid construct comprises the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO: 13.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises selfing or crossing the selected transformed plant with itself or another plant of the same species to produce a transformed seed.