Altria Client Services LLC

U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company LLC

University of Virginia Patent Foundation

Micreos B.v.

Profigen, Inc.

Dongmei Xu

Yanxin Shen

Chengalrayan Kudithipudi

Jesse Frederick

James A Strickland

Ujwala Warek

Mark T Nielsen

Marcos Fernando De Godoy Lusso

Jaemo Yang

Elisabeth Miller

Andrew Carl Adams

Sreepriya Pramod

Alec J Hayes

Robert Frank Hart, Iii

Steven Hagens

Michael Paul Timko

Mingwu Cui

Roel Rabara

James Powell

Yahya Karga

Yahya Kargalioglu

Kwang Choi

Xiaohong Jin

Xue Luo

Jason W Flora

Randall Eugene Baren

Jerry Whit Morris

Gregory A Davis

Weiling Li

Jeffery S Edmiston

Raja Payyavula

Dong Qi

Rajanikanth Govindarajulu

Fritz Eichenseher

John Kotrola

Marc W Fariss

Nazmul Bhuiyan

The present disclosure relates to compositions and methods related to tissue-specific promoters and their uses in plants, including tobacco and cannabis. The provided trichome-specific promoters enable the expression of heterologous polynucleotides in trichome tissues.

Tissue-specific promoters in plants

The present disclosure relates to compositions and methods related to modification of trichome density and transport of metabolite and their uses in plants, including tobacco and. The provided transcription factors enable the increase in trichome density in plants.

Increasing trichome density and improving transport of metabolites in plant trichomes

Provided herein are genetic markers and a coding sequence associated with a low- or ultra-low anatabine trait in tobacco.

Genetic locus imparting a low anatabine trait in tobacco and methods of using

The present disclosure provides the identification of genes involved in sucker growth in tobacco. Also provided are promoters that are preferentially active in tobacco axillary buds. Also provided are modified tobacco plants comprising reduced or no sucker growth. Also provided are methods and compositions for producing modified tobacco plants comprising reduced or no sucker growth.

Compositions and methods for producing tobacco plants and products having reduced or eliminated suckers

The present disclosure provides metabolic signatures and genetic markers for tracking enhanced nitrogen utilization efficiency phenotypes in tobacco plants and for introgressing enhanced nitrogen utilization efficiency phenotypes into tobacco plants. The disclosure also provides tobacco plants comprising enhanced nitrogen utilization efficiency and methods to the creation of tobacco plants comprising enhanced nitrogen utilization efficiency. The disclosure also provides recombinant polynucleotides and polypeptides for enhancing nitrogen utilization efficiency in modified tobacco plants and tobacco plants comprising the provided recombinant polynucleotides and polypeptides.

Methods and compositions related to improved nitrogen utilization efficiency in tobacco

The present application provides tobacco inbred plants dS1746, dS1746MS, dS1564 and dS1564MS. The present application also provides parts of such plants and products made from those parts. The present application also includes progeny of the provided plants including hybrids.

Low-nicotine tobacco plants and tobacco products made therefrom

The present disclosure provides composition and methods for improving leaf quality of low-alkaloid tobacco plants. Also provided are the identification and genetic engineering of target genes (Leaf Quality Genes) for producing tobacco plants with altered total alkaloid and nicotine levels and commercially acceptable leaf grade, their development via breeding or transgenic approaches, and production of tobacco products from these tobacco plants.

Compositions and methods for producing tobacco plants and products having altered alkaloid levels with desirable leaf quality via manipulating leaf quality genes

The present disclosure provides tobacco having genetic modification(s) in a group of ERF genes. Also provided are tobacco plants with altered total alkaloid and nicotine levels and commercially acceptable leaf grade, their development via breeding or transgenic approaches, and production of tobacco products from these tobacco plants. Further provided are compositions and methods for producing tobacco plants having novel mutations or alleles to reduce nicotine levels. Further provided are sequence polymorphisms and molecular markers for breeding tobacco with reduced nicotine or alkaloids while maintaining tobacco leaf grade and tobacco product quality.

Compositions and methods for producing tobacco plants and products having altered alkaloid levels

This disclosure provides a number of sequences involved in axillary bud growth in tobacco, methods of using such sequences, tobacco plants carrying modifications to such sequences or transgenes of such sequences, and tobacco products made from tobacco leaf harvested from such plants.

Genetic control of axillary bud growth in tobacco plants

A stabilizing process for tobacco and tobacco products includes sterilizing the tobacco by applying an electron beam treatment to the tobacco. The process may also include treating the tobacco. The treating the tobacco includes pre-conditioning the tobacco, pasteurizing the tobacco, curing the tobacco, fermenting the tobacco, or combinations thereof. The method may also include forming a smokeless tobacco product containing the tobacco.

Stabilization methods for tobacco and tobacco products

This disclosure provides a number of sequences involved in nitrogen utilization, methods of using such sequences, tobacco plants carrying modifications to such sequences, tobacco plants transgenic for such sequences, and tobacco products made from such plants.

Tobacco plants having increased nitrogen efficiency and methods of using such plants

The present disclosure provides approaches for reducing tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs) in tobacco. Some of these approaches include genetically engineering tobacco plants to increase one or more antioxidants, increase oxygen radicle absorbance capacity (ORAC), or reduce nitrite. Also provided are methods and compositions for producing modified tobacco plants and tobacco products therefrom comprising reduced TSNAs.

Composition and methods for producing tobacco plants and products having reduced tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs)

The present disclosure provides tobacco Nic1b locus and associated genes. Also provided are tobacco plants with altered total alkaloid and nicotine levels and commercially acceptable leaf grade, their development via breeding or transgenic approaches, and production of tobacco products from these tobacco plants. Further provided are compositions and methods for producing tobacco plants having novel mutations or alleles to reduce nicotine levels. Further provided are sequence polymorphisms and molecular markers for breeding tobacco with reduced nicotine or alkaloids while maintaining tobacco leaf grade and tobacco product quality.

The present disclosure provides approaches for reducing nicotine. Also provided are tobacco plants with decreased tobacco-specific nitrosamines (TSNAs). The present disclosure further provides modified tobacco plants with low nicotine and increased antioxidant capacity. Further provided are tobacco plants or material with low nicotine and low TSNAs. Also provided is cured tobacco material of the tobacco plants provided herein and tobacco products comprising this cured tobacco material.

Growing community of inventors

Glen Allen, VA, United States of America

Dongmei Xu