High throughput methods are described for identifying combinations of mutations that can be used to improve a phenotypic feature in an organism. Large populations of organisms (e.g., plants) containing different combinations of mutations can be assessed using the methods.

Disclosed are rice environmental conditional-lethal mutant gene osesl1, an encoding protein and use thereof The gene osesl1 has a nucleotide sequence shown as SEQ ID NO: 1 in the Sequence Listing. The encoding protein thereof has an amino acid sequence shown as SEQ ID NO: 2. After heading of osesl1 mutant rice, seed embryo lethal phenotype appears at 12 days after pollination, exhibiting darkening at the junction between embryo and endosperm. When an average temperature is below 22 C., a seed embryo is normal; when the average temperature is above 28 C., the seed embryo is lethal; when the temperature is between 22 C. and 28 C., the seed embryo is lethal under long daylight conditions (>13 h) and normal under short daylight conditions (<13 h). Use of the gene osesl1 in controlling seed embryo development of rice is further provided.

The invention relates to methods for increasing nitrogen uptake, nitrogen assimilation, nitrogen use efficiency as well as yield in a plant, without affecting plant height, the method comprising increasing the expression or levels of a growth regulatory factor (GRF). Also described are genetically altered plants characterised by the above phenotype as well as methods of producing such plants.

Anthranilate synthase allele fragments for increasing rice yields and uses thereof. A method of differentiating rice materials with a superior allele associated with high yield includes: (1) detecting a genotype of rice to be detected based on a specific gene fragment; where the specific gene fragmentOsASA1 is located in rice genome, and there are typically two allelic forms of OsASA1, OsASA1_a shown as SEQ ID NO. 1 and OsASA1_b shown as SEQ ID NO. 2; and (2) determining and comparing the average yield of a rice population with a genotype of homozygous OsASA1_b and that of a rice population with a genotype of homozygous OsASA1_a under the same growth conditions in different geographical regions. The rice population with the genotype of homozygous OsASA1_b shows a higher average yield than the rice population with the genotype of homozygous OsASA1_a.

The present invention provides for a method for inserting a selectable marker-free DNA fragment into a target location in a genome of a plant cell.

A rice cultivar designated S-202 is disclosed. The invention relates to the seeds of rice cultivar S-202, to the plants of rice S-202 and to methods for producing a rice plant produced by crossing the cultivar S-202 with itself or another rice variety. The invention further relates to methods for producing a rice plant containing in its genetic material one or more transgenes and to the transgenic rice plants and plant parts produced by those methods. This invention also relates to rice cultivars or breeding cultivars and plant parts derived from rice cultivar S-202, to methods for producing other rice cultivars, lines or plant parts derived from rice cultivar S-202 and to the rice plants, varieties, and their parts derived from the use of those methods. The invention further relates to hybrid rice seeds and plants produced by crossing the cultivar S-202 with another rice cultivar.

A rice cultivar designated Calhikari-203 is disclosed. The invention relates to the seeds of rice cultivar Calhikari-203, to the plants of rice Calhikari-203 and to methods for producing a rice plant produced by crossing the cultivar Calhikari-203 with itself or another rice variety. The invention further relates to methods for producing a rice plant containing in its genetic material one or more transgenes and to the transgenic rice plants and plant parts produced by those methods. This invention also relates to rice cultivars or breeding cultivars and plant parts derived from rice cultivar Calhikari-203, to methods for producing other rice cultivars, lines or plant parts derived from rice cultivar Calhikari-203 and to the rice plants, varieties, and their parts derived from the use of those methods. The invention further relates to hybrid rice seeds and plants produced by crossing the cultivar Calhikari-203 with another rice cultivar.

This invention describes a new method to generate hybrid seed in any crop plant while also reducing contamination from out-crossings and self-pollination. In contrast to conventional seed production methods, the method of the invention is not dependent on the use of any form of male sterility in the female parent plants, nor the use of isolation distances from unrelated and undesirable plants of the same species, nor the use of male parent plants in proximity to the targeted females. The process involves the delivery of pollen of the male parent at will, as available either in a preserved pollen bank, or using real-time collection from male plants as they become available. Desired pollen is delivered to fertile females during the period when viable pollen from the females and locally proximal unrelated plants is not being released. The delivered male pollen is in such amounts and fortuitously timed that it preferentially pollinates the females and produces relatively pure hybrid seed at levels much higher than if one used current hybrid production practices and did not utilize male sterility practices or prescribed isolation distances. Such fortuitous timing may involve the intentional application of pollen to females a day or two prior to female parent pollen becoming viable, and/or several consecutive mornings prior to female parent pollen or other proximal plant pollen beginning to shed each day.

A breeding method of a polyploid rice photo-thermo-sensitive genetic male sterile line includes determining a diploid rice line with photo-thermo-sensitive genetic male sterility or PMeS characteristic as a parent; carrying out hybridization on a diploid photo-thermo-sensitive genetic male sterile line and a diploid PMeS gene line, carrying out doubling culture on a young ear of a hybrid plant into a hybrid tetraploid; back-crossing the hybrid tetraploid with a tetraploid photo-thermo-sensitive genetic male sterile line; selecting a tetraploid male sterile plants from the back-crossed progeny, self-crossing during a low-temperature and short-day fertile period, and then carrying out composite hybridization with another tetraploid rice line having PMeS gene; selecting tetraploid male sterile plants, and detecting the stability of tetraploid male sterile plants after multiple generations of continuous self-crossing; and determining the stable and consistent tetraploid rice sterile line as the polyploid rice photo-thermo-sensitive genetic male sterile line, named as PSXXX.

A rice cultivar designated CLL18 is disclosed herein. The present invention provides seeds, plants, and plant parts derived from rice cultivar CLL18. Further, it provides methods for producing a rice plant by crossing CLL18 with itself or another rice variety. The invention also encompasses any rice seeds, plants, and plant parts produced by the methods disclosed herein, including those in which additional traits have been transferred into CLL18 through the introduction of a transgene or by breeding CLL18 with another rice cultivar.