Abstract
The Japanese morning glory (Ipomoea nil or Pharbitis nil) is a floricultural plant developed in Japan. Various mutants for flower colors and morphologies have been applied in genetic studies. Because of its high day-length sensitivity, it was also used in plant physiology. The Japanese morning glory has several strong advantages that make it useful for research in various areas of plant science, such as its highly homogeneous genome, which is the result of its high selfing rate and its restricted origin. Most mutants of the Japanese morning glory were induced by transposable elements carrying common terminal sequences and they enable us to isolate responsible genes. Under the NBRP project, we are maintaining mutant strains, DNA clones, mutated gene information, and other resources. It is expected that the Japanese morning glory will become one of Japan's leading bioresources.
