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E-Mail Credit: Forestry and Forest Products Research Institute, Japan Cryptomeria japonica, or the Japanese cedar, is highly revered as the national tree of Japan. Locally known as sugi, it covers over 4.5 million hectares of land, accounting for nearly half of Japan s artificial forests. However, it is also notorious for causing hay fever, with a good 26.5% of Japan s population reporting cedar pollen allergies in 2008. Over the past years, pollen allergy caused by this conifer has become a widespread social issue among Japanese residents, with many having to avoid going outdoors during pollen season. As sterile trees cannot produce and release functional pollen, it is believed that breeding of male-sterile cedar trees could be crucial in reducing the pollen released into the environment. However, their frequency is drastically low, with only two male-sterile trees per 8700 trees in a forest! The rarity of these trees, combined with the large and repetitive genom ....