Described herein are devices and methods for increasing the production of steviol glycosides, which have industrial and economic value. The steviol glycosides produced by the devices and methods disclosed herein do not require the ultra purification that is common in conventional or commercial methods and do not have a bitter aftertaste, making them better suited as flavor-enhancing additives to food, pharmaceutical, and nutritional supplement products.

The invention provides methods of engineering plants having lignin deposition or xylan deposition that is substantially localized to the vessels of xylem tissue in the plant. The invention also provides methods of engineering plants to increase production of a desired biosynthetic product, e.g., to have increased secondary cell wall deposition or increased wax/cutin accumulation. The engineered plants of the present invention have use in bioenergy production, e.g., by improving the density and the digestibility of biomass derived from the plant and to improve water usage requirements.

There is described herein a plant cell comprising: (i) a polynucleotide comprising, consisting or consisting essentially of a sequence having at least 81% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 5 (NtINV4-S) or at least 62% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 7 (NtINV4-T); (ii) a polypeptide encoded by the polynucleotide set forth in (i); (iii) a polypeptide comprising, consisting or consisting essentially of a sequence having at least 85% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 6 (NtINV4-S) or at least 85% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 8 (NtINV4-T); or (iv) a construct, vector or expression vector comprising the isolated polynucleotide set forth in (i), wherein said plant cell comprises at least one modification which modulates (a) the expression or activity of the polynucleotide or (b) the expression or activity of the polynucleotide the polypeptide, as compared to a control plant cell in which the expression or activity of the polynucleotide or polypeptide has not been modified.

A plant material comprises a genomic nucleotide sequence encoding a SUSIBA2 or SUSIBA2-like transcription factor under transcriptional control of a promoter active in the plant material. The genomic nucleotide sequence encoding the SUSIBA2 or SUSIBA2-like transcription factor lacks at least a portion of an activation region of a SUSIBA1 or SUSIBA1-like promote represent in an intron of a wild-type version of the genomic nucleotide sequence encoding the SUSIBA2 or SUSIBA2-like transcription factor. The plant material has a controlled production of carbohydrates, in particular starch or starch and fructan. In particular, the plant material can be designed to produce carbohydrates at enhanced levels.

There is described herein a plant cell (i) a polynucleotide comprising, consisting or consisting essentially of a sequence having at least 60% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 1 (NtSULTR3;1A-S), SEQ ID NO: 3 (NtSULTR3;1A-T), SEQ ID NO: 5 (NtSULTR3;1B-S), SEQ ID NO: 7 (NtSULTR3;1B-T), SEQ ID NO: 15 (NtSULTR3;3-T), SEQ ID NO: 17 (NtSULTR3;4A-S), SEQ ID NO: 19 (NtSULTR3;4A-T) or SEQ ID NO: 23 (NtSULTR3;4B-T); (ii) a polypeptide encoded by the polynucleotide set forth in (i); (iii) a polypeptide comprising, consisting or consisting essentially of a sequence having at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 2 (NtSULTR3;1A-S) or at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 4 (NtSULTR3;1A-T) or at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 6 (NtSULTR3;1B-S), or at least 88% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 8 (NtSULTR3;1B-T), or at least 70% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 16 (NtSULTR3;3-T), or at least 84% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 18 (NtSULTR3;4A-S) or at least 79% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 20 (NtSULTR3;4A-T); or at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 24 (NtSULTR3;4B-T); or (iv) a construct, vector or expression vector comprising the isolated polynucleotide set forth in (i), wherein said plant cell comprises at least one modification which modulates (a) the expression or activity of the polynucleotide or (b) the expression or activity of the polynucleotide the polypeptide, as compared to a control plant cell in which the expression or activity of the polynucleotide or polypeptide has not been modified.

Pennycress (Thlaspi arvense) seed, seed lots, seed meal, and compositions with reduced glucosinolate content as well as plants that yield such seed, seed lots, seed meal, and compositions are provided. Methods of making and using the pennycress plants and/or seed that provide such seed, seed lots, seed meal, and compositions are also provided.

The invention provides promoter sequences that regulate specific expression of operably linked sequences in developing xylem cells and/or in developing xylem tissue. The developing xylem-specific sequences are exemplified by the DX5, DX8, DX11, and DX15 promoters, portions thereof, and homologs thereof. The invention further provides expression vectors, cells, tissues and plants that contain the invention's sequences. The compositions of the invention and methods of using them are useful in, for example, improving the quantity (biomass) and/or the quality (wood density, lignin content, sugar content etc.) of expressed biomass feedstock products that may be used for bioenergy, biorefinary, and generating wood products such as pulp, paper, and solid wood.

Genetic constructs capable of manipulating fructan biosynthesis in photosynthetic cells of a plant, said genetic constructs include a promoter operatively linked to a nucleic acid encoding a bacterial FT enzyme. These constructs can be used in modification of fructan biosynthesis in plants and, more particularly, for manipulating fructan biosynthesis in photosynthetic cells. The constructs can also be used for increasing plant biomass and, more particularly, for enhancing biomass yield and/or yield stability, including shoot and/or root growth in a plant, and for enhancing the productivity of biochemical pathways.

The present invention relates to isolated polypeptides having beta-xylosidase activity and polynucleotides encoding the polypeptides. The invention also relates to nucleic acid constructs, vectors, and host cells comprising the polynucleotides as well as methods of producing and using the polypeptides.

The present invention relates to non-mammalian β-1,4-galactosyltransferases that can be used in their wild-type or in modified forms. The invention further relates to transformed plants and plant cells expressing non-mammalian β-1,4-galactosyltransferases and methods to produce glycoproteins with altered and preferably mammalian-type glycosylation. The invention additionally provides nucleic acid molecules and expression vectors of non-mammalian β-1,4-galactosyltransferases.