Abstract: In order to obtain a crop which provides an increased storage lipid content in its seed, the activity of cytosolic pyruvate kinase of a seed is substantially lowered as compared with the endogenous activity of pyruvate kinase in the plant seed. Preferably, the activity of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase is substantially lowered as compared with the endogenous activity of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase in the seed. Thus the storage lipid content in the plant seed is increased.

Abstract: A novel gene that can be used to identify male-sterile cytoplasm in plants, for example, of the Cruciferae family, and a method for producing hybrid plants using this gene are provided. This novel cms cytoplasmic gene is valuable in that it can be utilized in the production of hybrid plant seeds. This invention is also useful for rapidly identifying Kosena cms cytoplasm, a novel cytoplasm which exhibits characteristics valuable in plant breeding. In addition, this gene may possibly be used to confer cms onto a broad range of plant species, not limited to those of the Cruciferae family, by its introduction into nuclear or mitochondrial genomes.