Patents by Inventor Stephen Sturner

Stephen Sturner has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Cyanobacterial nucleic acid fragments encoding proteins useful for controlling plant traits via nuclear or plastome transformation
    Patent number: 7083967
    Abstract: This invention provides an alternative source of ahas and pds nucleic acids for plant transformation and selection. In particular, the invention provides ahas and pds nucleic acids from cyanobacteria, for example, Synechocystis, and expression elements of these genes for control of expression in plastids. The invention further provides nucleic acids encoding the acetolactate synthase (ahas) large subunit and the ahas small subunit which were found to provide herbicide resistance to plants. The present invention also provides a novel Synechocystis mutant phytoene desaturase (PDS) gene conferring resistance to 4?-fluoro-6-[(alpha, alpha, alpha,-trfluoro-m-tolyl)oxy]-picolinamide, a bleaching herbicide. The present invention provides improved methods involving cyanobacteria for the screening of compounds, including a new high throughput protocol that is a rapid and cost effective way to identify target site genes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2001
    Date of Patent: August 1, 2006
    Assignee: BASF Corporation
    Inventors: Genichi Kakefuda, Hans Koop, Stephen Sturner, Rui-Guang Zhen
  • Cyanobacterial nucleic acid fragments encoding proteins useful for controlling plant traits via nuclear or plastome transformation
    Publication number: 20060143730
    Abstract: This invention provides cyanobacteria as an alternative source of ahas and pds genes for plant transformations and for selectable markers. In particular, it provides for cyanobacteria, for example, Synechocystis, as a source of genes encoding herbicide insensitive proteins, and elements of genes for control of expression in plastids. Nucleic acid fragments, both the acetolactate synthase (ahas) large subunit and the ahas small subunit, were found to provide herbicide resistance. Also, the present invention provides novel Synechocystis mutant phytoene desaturase (PDS) gene conferring resistance to 4?-fluoro-6[(alpha,alpha,alpha,-trifluoro-m-tolyl)oxy]-picolinamide, a bleaching herbicide. The present invention provides improvements to method involving cyanobacteria for the screening of compounds, including a new high-through-put protocol that is a rapid and cost effective way to identify target site genes.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 6, 2005
    Publication date: June 29, 2006
    Applicant: BASF CORPORATION
    Inventors: Genichi Kakefuda, Hans-Ulrich Koop, Stephen Sturner, Rui-Guang Zhen
  • Hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase gene from arabidopsis and method of screening for inhibitors thereof
    Patent number: 6118050
    Abstract: The present invention provides purified isolated nucleic acids encoding arabidopsis 4-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase (HPPD), plasmids encoding HPPD, and transformed cells capable of expressing HPPD. The invention also provides methods for identifying HPPD inhibitors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 25, 1997
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2000
    Assignee: American Cyanamid Company
    Inventors: Stephen Sturner, Lynne Miyo Hirayama, Bijay Singh, Newell Bascomb