Sesame and sesame products with improved taste and enhanced nutritional value, from shatter resistant sesame plants

A sesame plant with shatter-resistant capsules, progeny thereof, seeds and/or part(s) thereof, the sesame plant comprising:

• a plurality of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) having a corresponding plurality of nucleic acid genetic markers that are associated with a plurality of phenotypic traits concerning taste and nutritional content of the seeds, wherein the QTLs are combined in the sesame plant from a plurality of sesame varieties by computationally supported breeding,
• wherein the QTLs comprise QTL 1 associated with improved taste, with corresponding markers set forth in SEQ ID NOs 1 or 2, wherein the sesame plant or part thereof is homozygous or heterozygous with respect to SEQ ID NO 1 and at least one additional QTL, and
• wherein the markers are arranged in cassettes comprising at least one of:
• cassettes 1, 2, 3 or 4, comprising at least QTL 1, and QTL 2 associated with lowered ash content and increased protein level, with corresponding markers set forth in SEQ ID NOs 3 or 4, and wherein the sesame plant or part thereof is homozygous or heterozygous with respect to SEQ ID NO 3;
• cassette 5 comprising at least QTL 1, and QTLs 8 and 9 associated with high protein content, with QTL 8 having corresponding markers set forth in SEQ ID NOs 15 or 16, wherein the sesame plant or part thereof is homozygous or heterozygous with respect to SEQ ID NO 15, and with QTL 9 having corresponding markers set forth in SEQ ID NOs 17 or 18, wherein the sesame plant or part thereof is homozygous or heterozygous with respect to SEQ ID NO 17;
• cassette 6 comprising at least QTL 1, and QTL 10 associated with improved taste, with corresponding markers set forth in SEQ ID NOs 19 or 20, wherein the sesame plant or part thereof is homozygous or heterozygous with respect to SEQ ID NO 19;
• and
• cassette 7 comprising at least QTL 1, and QTL 11 and QTL 12 associated with high protein content, with QTL 11 having corresponding markers set forth in SEQ ID NOs 21 or 22, wherein the sesame plant or part thereof is homozygous or heterozygous with respect to SEQ ID NO 21 and with QTL 12 having corresponding markers set forth in SEQ ID NOs 23 or 24, wherein the sesame plant or part thereof is homozygous or heterozygous with respect to SEQ ID NO 23.