Plant yield improvement by ste20-like gene expression

Abstract

The present invention concerns a method for increasing plant yield by modulating expression in a plant of a nucleic acid encoding a Ste20-like polypeptide or a homologue thereof. One such method comprises introducing into a plant a Ste20-like nucleic acid or variant thereof. The invention also relates to transgenic plants having introduced therein a Ste20-like nucleic acid or variant thereof, which plants have increased yield relative to control plants. The present invention also concerns constructs useful in the methods of the invention.

1 - 13 . (canceled) 
     
     
         14 . A construct comprising:
 (i) a Ste20-like nucleic acid or variant thereof;   (ii) one or more control sequences capable of driving expression of the nucleic acid sequence of (i); and optionally   (iii) a transcription termination sequence.   
     
     
         15 . The construct of  claim 14 , wherein said control sequence is a constitutive promoter. 
     
     
         16 . The construct of  claim 15 , wherein said constitutive promoter is a GOS2 promoter. 
     
     
         17 . The construct of  claim 16 , wherein said GOS2 promoter comprises nucleotides 1 to 2193 of SEQ ID NO: 5. 
     
     
         18 . A plant transformed with the construct of  claim 14 . 
     
     
         19 - 27 . (canceled) 
     
     
         28 . A method of producing a transgenic plant, plant, or part thereof, comprising introducing the construct of  claim 14  into a plant cell, plant, or part thereof.