# US 2018/0020629 A1 · Rice plants with altered seed phenotype and quality

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- Number: US 2018/0020629 A1
- Document ID: US20180020629A1
- Status: Published application
- Kind: A1
- Application number: 15/548,562
- Filed: 2016-02-03
- Published: 2018-01-25
- Earliest claimed: 2015-02-03
- Assignees: Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
- Applicants: The Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology Chinese Academy of Sciences
- Inventors: Xiangdong FU; Shaokui WANG; Kun WU; Qian LIU; Shan LI
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20180020629A1

## CPC

- A01H 6/4636: {Oryza sp. [rice]}
- A01H 5/10: Seeds
- C07K 14/415: from plants
- C12N 15/8218: {Antisense, co-suppression, viral induced gene silencing [VIGS], post-transcriptional induced gene silencing [PTGS]}
- C12N 15/8261: {with agronomic (input) traits, e.g. crop yield}
- C12Q 1/6895: for plants, fungi or algae
- C12Q 2600/13: Plant traits
- C12Q 2600/156: Polymorphic or mutational markers
- C12Q 2600/158: Expression markers
- Y02A 40/146: Genetically Modified [GMO] plants, e.g. transgenic plants
- A01H: NEW PLANTS OR {NON-TRANSGENIC} PROCESSES FOR OBTAINING THEM; PLANT REPRODUCTION BY TISSUE CULTURE TECHNIQUES
- 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)
- C12N: MICROORGANISMS OR ENZYMES; COMPOSITIONS THEREOF; PROPAGATING, PRESERVING, OR MAINTAINING MICROORGANISMS; MUTATION OR GENETIC ENGINEERING; CULTURE MEDIA (microbiological testing media C12Q1/00)
- C12Q: MEASURING OR TESTING PROCESSES INVOLVING ENZYMES, NUCLEIC ACIDS OR MICROORGANISMS (immunoassay G01N33/53); COMPOSITIONS OR TEST PAPERS THEREFOR; PROCESSES OF PREPARING SUCH COMPOSITIONS; CONDITION-RESPONSIVE CONTROL IN MICROBIOLOGICAL OR ENZYMOLOGICAL PROCESSES
- Y02A: TECHNOLOGIES FOR ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE

## Abstract

The invention relates to plants with an improved organ phenotype. In particular, the invention relates to rice plants which have better grain quality and altered seed phenotype due to increased expression of GW7 (LOC_Os07g41200) or due to a combination of increased expression of GW7 and reduced expression of GS3 (OsSPL16). Grains show increased length and increased slenderness.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A plant wherein the expression of a nucleic acid sequence encoding a GW7 polypeptide or the activity of a GW7 polypeptide is increased.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

A plant according to claim 1 wherein said plant expresses a nucleic acid construct comprising a GW7 nucleic acid sequence comprising or consisting of SEQ ID NO: 1 or 2, a homolog or a functional variant thereof and wherein said plant is not Arabidopsis.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

A plant according to claim 1 wherein said plant expresses a nucleic acid construct comprising a OsGW7 nucleic acid sequence comprising or consisting of SEQ ID NO: 1 or 2 or a functional rice variant thereof.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

A plant according to claim 1 wherein said nucleic acid construct further comprises a regulatory sequence, wherein preferably said regulatory sequence is a constitutive promoter, a strong promoter, an inducible promoter or a tissue specific promoter, and wherein preferably said regulatory sequence is the CaMV35S promoter.

### Claim 5

(canceled)

### Claim 6

(canceled)

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

A plant according to claim 1 with increased expression of a GW7 nucleic acid sequence comprising or consisting of SEQ ID NO: 1 or 2, a homolog or functional variant thereof wherein said plant comprises a mutation in the promoter or coding sequence of said GW7 nucleic acid sequence and wherein preferably, said GW7 nucleic acid encodes a protein comprising or consisting of SEQ ID NO: 3, and wherein preferably, said GW7 homolog has at least 50% overall sequence identity to the sequence represented by SEQ ID NO: 3, and wherein more preferably, said promoter comprises a mutation in a repressor binding domain.

### Claim 8

(canceled)

### Claim 9

(canceled)

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

A plant according to claim 1 wherein the said plant does not produce a functional GS3 polypeptide, and wherein preferably, said GS3 polypeptide comprises a sequence comprising or consisting of SEQ ID NO: 7, a functional variant or homologue thereof, wherein more preferably, said GS3 homolog has at least 50% overall sequence identity to the sequence comprising or consisting of SEQ ID NO: 7, and wherein preferably said plant comprises a mutation in the promoter or coding sequence of said GS3 nucleic acid sequence.

### Claim 11

(canceled)

### Claim 12

(canceled)

### Claim 13 (depends on 1)

A plant according to claim 1 wherein said plant comprises an RNA interference construct that reduces the expression of GS3, a functional variant or homolog thereof.

### Claim 14

(canceled)

### Claim 15

(canceled)

### Claim 16

(canceled)

### Claim 17

(canceled)

### Claim 18

(canceled)

### Claim 19

(canceled)

### Claim 20

(canceled)

### Claim 21

(canceled)

### Claim 22

(canceled)

### Claim 23

(canceled)

### Claim 24

(canceled)

### Claim 25

(canceled)

### Claim 26 (depends on 1)

A plant according to claim 1 wherein said plant is a monocot or dicot plant, wherein preferably said plant is selected from maize, rice, wheat, oilseed rape, sorghum, soybean or lettuce.

### Claim 27

(canceled)

### Claim 28

(canceled)

### Claim 29

(canceled)

### Claim 30

(canceled)

### Claim 31

A vector comprising an isolated nucleic acid comprising a OsGW7 nucleic acid sequence comprising or consisting of SEQ ID NO: 1 or 2.

### Claim 32

(canceled)

### Claim 33

(canceled)

### Claim 34

(canceled)

### Claim 35

(canceled)

### Claim 36

A method for altering the phenotype of a plant organ said method comprising increasing the expression of a nucleic acid sequence encoding a GW7 polypeptide or increasing the activity of a GW7 polypeptide.

### Claim 37 (depends on 36)

The method of claim 36 comprising introducing and expressing in said plant a nucleic acid construct comprising a nucleic acid as defined in SEQ ID NO: 1 or 2, a homolog or a functional variant thereof.

### Claim 38 (depends on 36)

The method of claim 36 comprising introducing a mutation in the promoter or coding region of a GW7 nucleic acid sequence as defined in SEQ ID NO: 1 or 2, a homolog or functional variant thereof.

### Claim 39

A method for producing a genetically engineered plant said method comprising increasing the expression of a nucleic acid sequence comprising or consisting of SEQ ID NO: 1 or 2 or a functional rice variant thereof or increasing the activity of a GW7 polypeptide comprising or consisting of SEQ ID. NO: 3, a homolog or a functional rice variant thereof or comprising introducing a mutation in the promoter or coding region of a GW7 nucleic acid sequence comprising or consisting of SEQ ID. No 1 or 2, a homolog or functional variant thereof.

### Claim 40 (depends on 36)

The method of claim 36 comprising reducing or abolishing the expression of a nucleic acid sequence encoding a GS3 polypeptide or the activity of a GS3 polypeptide.

### Claim 41

A method for identifying and/or selecting a rice plant of a rice germplasm that has a phenotype selected from increased length of grain or other organs and increased slenderness grain or other organs, comprising detecting in the first rice plant or the rice germplasm at least one polymorphism within a marker locus that is associated with said phenotype of said rice plant or said rice germplasm, wherein said marker locus is genetically linked with a chromosomal region comprising nucleic acid sequence SEQ ID NO:1, and wherein the rice plant or a progeny thereof or the first rice germplasm or a progeny thereof is selected.

### Claim 42 (depends on 41)

The method of claim 41, wherein the method further comprises introgressing said chromosomal region comprising at least one of said polymorphisms into a second rice plant or a second rice germplasm to produce an introgressed rice plant or introgressed rice germplasm, wherein preferably said second rice plant comprises a gs3 allele.

### Claim 43

(canceled)

### Claim 44

A method of identifying alleles in rice plants or rice germplasm that are associated with improved grain quality and/or increased yield, the method comprising:
a. obtaining a population of rice plants, wherein one or more plants exhibit improved grain quality;
b. evaluating allelic variations with respect to the polynucleotide sequence encoding a protein comprising a polypeptide comprising: SEQ ID NO: 3 or in the genomic region that regulates the expression of the polynucleotide encoding the protein;
c. obtaining phenotypic values of improved grain quality for a plurality of rice plants in the population;
d. associating the allelic variations in the genomic region associated with the polynucleotide with the phenotype; and
e. identifying the alleles that are associated with improved grain quality.

### Claim at position 45

-51. (canceled)