Molecular markers useful for identifying, selecting, and/or providing soybean plants displaying tolerance, improved tolerance, or susceptibility to iron deficiency, methods of their use, and compositions having one or more marker loci are provided. Methods comprise detecting at least one marker locus, detecting a haplotype, and/or detecting a marker profile. Methods may further comprise crossing a selected soybean plant with a second soybean plant. Isolated polynucleotides, primers, probes, kits, systems, as well as soybean plants, seeds, and parts thereof are also provided.

The disclosure relates to improving plant breeding methods by controlling for microbial diversity present in the plant breeding process.

Provided is one gene CpRap2 isolated from Carica papaya identified as CpRap2.4b and that includes SEQ. ID NO: 2, as well as the genetic transformation methods for the overexpression of said gene and the obtaining of tolerant non-transgenic plants through grafts. Genetic transformation of plants that overexpress genes CpRap2 and their grafts showed they could survive extreme temperatures up to 12 days for heat and more than 30 days for cold.

Molecular markers useful for identifying, selecting, and/or providing soybean plants displaying tolerance, improved tolerance, or susceptibility to iron deficiency, methods of their use, and compositions having one or more marker loci are provided. Methods comprise detecting at least one marker locus, detecting a haplotype, and/or detecting a marker profile. Methods may further comprise crossing a selected soybean plant with a second soybean plant. Isolated polynucleotides, primers, probes, kits, systems, as well as soybean plants, seeds, and parts thereof are also provided.

The hereby invention provides four genes CpRap2 isolated from Carica papaya identified as CpRap2.4a, CpRap2.4b, CpRap2.1, CpRap2.10 and that consist of SEQ. ID NO: 1, SEQ. ID NO: 2, SEQ. ID NO: 3 and SEQ. ID NO: 4, as well as the genetic transformation methods for the overexpression of these genes and the obtaining of tolerant non-transgenic plants through grafts. Genetic transformation of plants that overexpress genes CpRap2 and their grafts showed they could survive extreme temperatures up to 12 days for heat and more than 30 days for cold.

Provided are methods of increasing tolerance of a plant to abiotic stress, and/or increasing biomass, growth rate, vigor and/or yield of a plant. The methods are effected by expressing within the plant an exogenous polynucleotide encoding a polypeptide comprising an amino acid sequence at least 90% homologous to the amino acid sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs:201, 207, 212, 202-206, 208-211, 213-391, 1655, 961-1529, and 1660-1663. Also provided are polynucleotides, nucleic acid constructs, polypeptides and transgenic plants expressing same which can be used to increase tolerance of a plant to abiotic stress, and/or increase biomass, growth rate, vigor and/or yield of a plant.

The hereby invention provides four genes CpRap2 isolated from Carica papaya identified as CpRap2.4a, CpRap2.4b, CpRap2.1, CpRap2.10 and that consist of SEQ. ID NO: 1, SEQ. ID NO: 2, SEQ. ID NO: 3 and SEQ. ID NO: 4, as well as the genetic transformation methods for the overexpression of these genes and the obtaining of tolerant non-transgenic plants through grafts. Genetic transformation of plants that overexpress genes CpRap2 and their grafts showed they could survive extreme temperatures up to 12 days for heat and more than 30 days for cold.

A new Lantana plant named LANZ0019 having medium-large sized dark orange mature flowers, excellent flower production, moderately large plant size and uniform dense mounded habit with medium green foliage.

A new and distinct cultivar of Gardenia plant named LEEFIVE is disclosed, characterized by a distinctive columnar plant habit. Foliage is very glossy, broadly ovate and uniquely crinkled. Flowering will occur on a reblooming cycle Summer and Fall. Plants are compact, dense and suitable for Southern climates. The new cultivar is a Gardenia, suitable for ornamental garden purposes.

A nitrogen molecular sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention detects the nitrogen content in a plant. The nitrogen molecular sensor is manufactured by a novel method that includes the isolation of new nitrogen-sensitive genes. Transgenic rice plant containing the nitrogen sensor eventually may respond to nitrogen with high sensitivity. The biological nitrogen sensor can be applied to develop the crops improved nitrogen use efficiency through overcoming the current limitation of the phenotype characterization related to nitrogen metabolism in plants. As a result, it can be used as a core technology for isolating and analyzing industrially valuable genes involving in crop nitrogen use efficiency using a mutant pool harboring nitrogen sensor.