Abstract: The subject invention pertains to materials and methods for producing improved sweet corn. Sweet corn produced according to the present invention exhibits increased sweetness without a reduction in germination or seedling vigor. One aspect of the invention pertains to a dominant loss-of-function sh2 allele. Another aspect of the invention pertains to a mixture of corn seed that provides for corn plants that produce improved sweet corn. A further aspect of the invention concerns methods for producing corn plants with increased sucrose content in their kernels.

Abstract: The present invention provides a novel means for enhancing the expression of genes by the use of the first intron of the Zea mays Sh1 cDNA, functional sequences derived therefrom and/or sequences flanking the first Sh1 intron, placed between the transcription start site and the translation start site of the coding sequence for enhanced expression is sought. The DNA sequences provided herein can be used, for example, to increase protein expression in engineered plant cells or in transgenic plants.