A collaboration between researchers in Australia and China identified a gene that allows the soybean plant to better tolerate soil salinity, says the University of Adelaide. Soybeans are one of the most widely grown crops in the world and a major source of vegetable oil and meal. A University of Adelaide associate professor, Matthew Gilliham, says many soybean varieties are sensitive to salinity and there are projections agricultural land affected by salt will double in area over the next 35 years.
Chinese researchers examined the genetic sequences of hundreds of soybean varieties to identify a gene that might confer salt tolerance. Their Australian colleagues then investigated the function of the gene. Professor Lijuan Qiu says the gene, which conferred salt tolerance in commercial cultivars, old domesticated varieties and even in wild soybeans, apparently was lost when plant breeders developed soybean varieties in areas without salinity. “By identifying the gene, genetic markers can now be used in breeding programs to ensure that salt tolerance can be maintained in future cultivars of soybeans that will be grown in areas prone to salinity,” says the university.