Patent ID: 7241936

Claim:
A method for obtaining high vigor in a cell of an oilseed rape plant, an Arabidopsis plant or a corn plant, when compared to a control plant cell, comprising introducing a chimeric gene in said cell to yield a transgenic cell, wherein said chimeric gene comprises the following operably linked DNA regions: a) a plant-expressible promoter; b) a DNA region, which when transcribed yields a RNA molecule capable of reducing the expression of endogenous PARP genes; and c) a DNA region involved in transcription termination and polyadenylation wherein said RNA molecule for introduction into said cell of said oilseed rape plant or said Arabidopsis plant comprises i) a sense nucleotide sequence comprising a nucleotide sequence of 100 consecutive nucleotides from SEQ ID No: 5; and ii) an antisense nucleotide sequence comprising a nucleotide sequence of 100 consecutive nucleotides from the complement of SEQ ID No: 5; said sense nucleotide sequence and said antisense nucleotide sequence being capable of combining into a double stranded RNA region; or wherein said RNA molecule for introduction into said cell of said corn plant comprises iii) a sense nucleotide sequence comprising a nucleotide sequence of 100 consecutive nucleotides from SEQ ID No: 1, SEQ ID No: 3, or SEQ ID No: 10; and iv) an antisense nucleotide sequence comprising a nucleotide sequence of 100 consecutive nucleotides from the complement of SEQ ID No: 1, SEQ ID No: 3, or SEQ ID No: 10; said sense nucleotide sequence and said antisense nucleotide sequence being capable of combining into a double stranded RNA region; and wherein said vigor of said cell of an oilseed rape plant, an Arabidopsis plant or a corn plant can be measured by measuring the capacity of explants of said plant to reduce 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazoliumchloride.