NUCLEIC ACID SEQUENCES AND PEPTIDES/PROTEINS OF THE FT FAMILY PROVIDING FLOWER REPRESSING PROPERTIES IN TOBACCO AND TRANSGENIC PLANTS TRANSFORMED THEREWITH

The present invention is directed to nucleic acid sequences coding for a protein which, (1) under a respective promoter, is able to suppress or repress or delay flowering of a plant, and (2) includes the motive "NAPDIIDS" (SEQ ID NO: 10) or, in preferred cases, "VNAPDIIDS" SEQ ID NO: 67), with the exception of the nucleic acid of the gene StSP5G or a part thereof. Preferably, the nucleic acid sequence belongs phylogenetically to the FT-clade of the PEBP gene family, wherein the motive "(V)NAPDIIDS" (SEQ ID NO: 68) is in place of the "(V)YAPGW" motive_ (SEQ ID NO: 69) of the flowering promoting proteins AtFT and BvFT2. The invention is further directed to peptides or proteins, obtainable by expression of the nucleic acid of any of the preceding claims, vectors, comprising a nucleic acid sequence as defined above, and to plants, parts of plants, or seed of plants, the plants comprising such a nucleic acid sequence.