The present invention relates to tobacco products from plants comprising mutated berberine bridge enzyme-like nucleic acids and the recessive nic1 and/or nic2 alleles and methods of making the same.

A method of screening for a stevia plant with high rebaudioside M content ratio, that includes detecting from a test stevia plant the presence and/or absence of at least one of (1) and (2), and at least one of (3) to (7): (1) homozygous for the allele wherein position 290 of SEQ ID NO: 1 is T; (2) homozygous for the allele wherein position 33 of SEQ ID NO: 2 is A; (3) homozygous for the allele wherein position 44 of SEQ ID NO: 3 is T; (4) homozygous for the allele wherein position 40 of SEQ ID NO: 4 is T; (5) homozygous for the allele wherein position 48 of SEQ ID NO: 5 is C; (6) homozygous for the allele wherein positions 55-72 of SEQ ID NO: 6 are deleted; (7) homozygous for the allele wherein position 50 of SEQ ID NO: 7 is A.

The present invention provides a means for accurately discriminating whether an onion is an onion with no pungent taste and/or tear-inducing property. The present invention relates to a method of discriminating traits of an onion, comprising a first determination step of determining presence of the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO:1 corresponding to alliinase gene 1 in a nucleic acid derived from the onion, and a second determination step of determining presence of the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO:2 corresponding to alliinase gene 2, wherein the onion is discriminated to be an onion with no pungent taste and/or tear-inducing property if the presence of the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO:1 is not determined in the first determination step and the presence of the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO:2 is determined in the second determination step.

Provided herein is the identification of markers associated with THCV, THCVA, CBDV, CBDVA, CBGV, or CBGVA production in Cannabis plants and their use in selecting Cannabis plants having modified THCV, THCVA, CBDV, CBDVA, CBGV, or CBGVA activity. The markers are useful for breeding plants having modified varin activity, including elevated THCV levels, by obtaining nucleic acids, detecting one or more markers that indicate modified varin activity, and establishing plant lines having such characteristics.

The present invention discloses rice serine hydroxymethyltransferase coded gene OsSHM4 mutants and application thereof. The rice serine hydroxymethyltransferase coded gene mutants are obtained in a manner that T at a 461st position of a CDS sequence region of a wild type rice OsSHM4 gene is mutated to C, so that coded amino acids thereof are mutated from leucine to proline. A CDS sequence of the wild type rice OsSHM4 gene is shown in SEQ ID NO. 1. After mutation of serine hydroxymethyltransferase coded genes OsSHM4, under a field experiment condition, S and Se content of rice shoots is remarkably improved without influencing biomass of rice. After wild type serine hydroxymethyltransferase coded genes OsSHM4 are genetically modified to complement the mutants, S and Se content of shoots of complemented strains is restored to that of wild type rice water planting.

The present invention is directed to methods and compositions for breeding plants with an altered flavor or odor profile. Particularly, next generation plant breeding technologies are utilized for producing plants with target genes edited to reduce pungency in flavor or odor. The breeding method is capable of producing mustard plants in which the mustard bomb reaction is disarmed and/or plants with a reduced pungency and/or bitterness in flavor and/or odor.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method that can effectively/efficiently increase the amount of a phenolic compound such as a polyphenol. The invention provides a method for increasing an amount of a phenolic compound in a plant, or a method for producing a plant containing an increased amount of a phenolic compound, the method comprising irradiating the/a plant with ultraviolet light, wherein a fluence at wavelengths of 270 to 290 nm is 1500 to 50000 μmol/m.sup.2 and a fluence at wavelengths of 310 to 400 nm is less than 50% of that at wavelengths of 270 to 290 nm.

Compositions and methods for providing desired cannabinoid content in cannabis plants. More particularly, the invention relates to compositions and methods for using cannabinoid synthase paralogs as guidance for breeding cannabis plants with a desired cannabinoid content, including but not limited to cultivars, varieties, lines and methods of breeding the same for commercial use.

An embodiment of the present invention provides a tobacco plant having a low alkaloid content. In the tobacco plant, a function of a gene encoding aspartate oxidase AO2 is suppressed.

The present invention provides a method for modulating (e.g. decreasing) the nicotine content of a plant (e.g. a tobacco plant) or part thereof, or tobacco plant cell, the method comprising modifying said plant or cell providing at least one mutation in a Nic3 locus. The present invention provides a method for modulating (e.g. decreasing) the nicotine content of a plant (e.g. a tobacco plant) or part thereof, or tobacco plant cell, the method comprising modifying said plant or cell to modulate the expression or activity of at least one Nic3 gene. The present invention also provides for the use of the Nic3 locus for modulating the alkaloid content of a plant, as well as tobacco cells, plants, plant propagation materials, harvested leaves, processed tobaccos, or delivery systems obtainable in accordance with the invention.