Sapporo Breweries Limited

Rossnagel, Brian G.

Kazutoshi Ito

Yukio Okada

Makoto Kihara

Kazuyoshi Takeda

Naohiko Hirota

Takafumi Kaneko

Hisao Kuroda

Manabu Sugimoto

Naohiro Yoshigi

Kensuke Fukuda

Takashi Asakura

Brian G Rossnagel

A method of selecting a barley variety comprising: a heat treatment step of heat-treating a crude enzyme solution extracted from a seed of a barley (e.g., at 57.5&#xb0; C. for 30 minutes); an activity-determining step of determining the enzyme activity of &#x3b2;-amylase in the crude enzyme solution heat-treated; and a selection step of selecting the barley variety containing a &#x3b2;-amylase having a residual activity of from 85 to 90% as a result of the activity determination.

Method of selecting barley variety, barley &#x3b2;-amylase gene and process for producing malt alcoholic drink

A nucleic acid and a protein increasing expression levels under salt stress provide a nucleic acid with a nucleic acid sequence of SEQ. ID. NO. 1 in Sequence Listing, a variant nucleic acid thereof, a protein with an amino acid sequence of SEQ. ID. NO. 2 in Sequence Listing, and a variant protein thereof. Each of the nucleic acids and the proteins increases an expression level under salt stress. The nucleic acid and the protein are capable of providing a novel protein with a function to impart salt stress tolerance to a plant, and providing a novel gene encoding the novel protein.

Nucleic acids and proteins showing increased expression dose under salt stress

A nucleotide sequence and protein of the hop farnesyl pyrophosphate synthase is described herein.

Farnesyl pyrophosphate synthase proteins, nucleic acids and promoter regions therefor

In barley, the formation of D-hordein constituting gel protein is to be reduced. This reduction in the formation of D-hordein causes a reduction of gel protein because D-hordein fraction decreases in the gel protein; and in addition, it brings about the transformation (reduction) of proteins other than D-hordein which constitute the gel protein from the gel protein. Therefore, by introducing into barley D-hordein expression suppressing vector 1 capable of suppressing the D-hordein formation and transforming the barley therewith, it is possible to attain the reduction of gel protein based on the reduction in the D-hordein formation.

Construction of barley with reduced gel protein content

An isolated and purified nucleic acid comprising a gene specifically expressed in hop lupulin glands. Hops are dioecious, and only female plants bear cones, the lupulin glands of which contain secondary metabolic products which provide bitterness and flavor to beer. These secondary metabolic products contain some pharmacologically effective compounds. In order to breed a more useful cultivar of hops by manipulating the constituent of such useful secondary metabolic products relying on genetic engineering techniques, this invention provides an isolated and purified nucleic acid comprising a gene specifically expressed in hop lupulin glands. By using this nucleic acid, it is possible to develop a novel method for breeding hops with transformation techniques and molecular selection techniques. Furthermore, the present invention also provides a nucleic acid comprising the regulatory region for specifically expressing genes in lupulin glands. This nucleic acid can be used also for hop breeding.

Isolated and purified nucleic acids comprising a gene and a regulatory region for the gene expression of the same

The promoter region of the farnesyl pyrophosphate synthase gene that was expressed in the hop luplin gland in a specific manner was elucidated based on the genomic DNA of the hop farnesyl pyrophosphate synthase gene having the nucleotide sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO:2, the cDNA of the hop farnesyl pyrophosphate synthase gene having the nucleotide sequence set forth in SEQ ID NO:3, and the nucleotide sequence information on the genomic DNA and the cDNA. It will reveal the gene involved in the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites in a hop as well as the nucleotide sequence of the promoter gene that functions in the hop luplin gland in a tissue-specific manner. This will allow for the transformation of the hop by gene manipulations and the in vitro synthesis of the hop secondary metabolites.

Farnesyl pyrophosphate synthase protein, nucleic acid and promoter region thereof

Isolated and purified hop lupulin gland-specific promoter

A method for identifying barley with good brewing properties using the thermostability of the barley &bgr;-amylase as an indicator. The thermostability of the barley &bgr;-amylase significantly affects the degree of the apparent attenuation limit. A method for determining the enzyme activity of a extract solution from one barley seed, an indirect method by an isoelectric point, and an indirect identifying method by DNA polymorphisms of the region containing the &bgr;-amylase structural gene have been developed as a method for determining the type of thermostability for a barley &bgr;-amylase. The selection method is not affected by environmental or climatic conditions.

Method for identifying a barley variety and a barley having a brewing property

The present invention provides new gene expression regulatory DNA. This gene expression regulatory DNA comprises a promotor region derived from the barley D-hordein gene enabling the expression of a desired gene, and a regulatory region for regulating the expression of said gene based on said promoter region. This regulatory region consists at least of an activating region to activate the expression of said gene and a suppressing region to suppress the same. Use of this gene expression regulatory DNA enables controlling as desired the expression of gene within a plant cell such as barley.

Gene expression regulatory DNA, expression cassette, expression vector

Tissue-specific promoter

cDNA derived from the ARF gene that is actively expressed in barley seeds, roots and callus, but is highly suppressed or almost not expressed at all in leaves, was cloned. Next, the upstream region of the ARF gene was cloned, its promoter activity was verified, and a gene expression vector using the expression region of this gene was produced.

Gene expression vector using the gene expression regulating region of

A transformed plant of Gramineae is prepared by culturing an anther of Gramineae in a callus induction medium and, at a stage immediately before the microspore begins to cause division or during the initial division, transducing a genetic substance into the microspore cell through a pore formed by a laser pulse thereby to express genetic information of the genetic substance. According to the present invention, it is unnecessary to prepare protoplast and therefore, time and operations for transformation can be greatly reduced. Since haploid cells are transformed, the character transduced is conveyed without separating at a later generation. In addition, difficulties in experiments between species and strains are minimized so that it is easy to apply the present invention to practical species. According to the present invention, large pores can be formed as compared to the electroporation method so that DNA or substances having a large molecular weight can be introduced.

Growing community of inventors

Nitta-gun, Japan

Kazutoshi Ito