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ARS Home » Plains Area » Manhattan, Kansas » Center for Grain and Animal Health Research » Stored Product Insect and Engineering Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #278097
Title: Differences between conventional and glyphosate tolerant soybeans and moisture effect in their discrimination by near infrared spectroscopy

Author
item AGELET, LIDIA - Iowa State University
item RIPPKE, GLEN - Iowa State University
item Armstrong, Paul
item TALLADA, JASPER - Cavite State University
item HURBURGH, CHARLES - Iowa State University

Submitted to: Food Chemistry
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/25/2013
Publication Date: 5/7/2013
Citation: Agelet, L.E., Rippke, G.R., Armstrong, P.R., Tallada, J.G., Hurburgh, C.R. 2013. Differences between conventional and glyphosate tolerant soybeans and moisture effect in their discrimination by near infrared spectroscopy. Food Chemistry. 141(3):1895-1901. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2013.04.087.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2013.04.087

Interpretive Summary: Roundup Ready® soybeans which are resistant to Roundup® herbicide were one of the first genetically modified commercial crops recognized as safe. However, most current worldwide regulations for importing and exporting food demand the control, identification, and proper labeling of all genetically modified agriculture products. Previous studies have shown that Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) could distinguish between Roundup Ready® (RR) and conventional soybeans at the bulk and single-seed sample level. This recent study found that NIRS was able to discriminate between five conventional varieties and their respective Roundup Ready® version. Correct classifications ranged from 82% to 98%. Moisture content of the seeds was found to affect classification accuracy and may limit the use of the NIRS instrumentation tested as a screening tool where moisture can be controlled.

Technical Abstract: Roundup Ready® soybeans which have been genetically modified to be resistant to Roundup® herbicide were one of the first genetically modified commercial crops recognized as safe. However, most current worldwide regulations for importing and exporting food demand the control, identification, and proper labeling of all genetically modified agriculture products. Previous studies showed that Near Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) could distinguish between Roundup Ready® and conventional soybeans at the bulk and single-seed sample level (classification accuracies were between 80% and 94%). In this research the focus was on single-seed discrimination using five conventional varieties and their respective Roundup Ready® version. Measurement and analysis of spectra of single-seeds using Fourier-Transform transmittance and whole-surface reflectance modes, revealed similar discrimination ability compared to the reflectance mode previously studied. Least Squares Support Vector Machines or K-Nearest Neighbors analytical approaches resulted in 82% and 98% correct classifications. Varieties with higher misclassification rates had the lowest bulk moistures, but when validating the models for seeds at higher moistures, the majority of these were classified correctly as Roundup Ready®, regardless of seed variety or moisture content. A possible interaction between carbohydrate bonds, relevant in the discrimination models, and moisture was identified and graphically proven. The excellent discrimination accuracies within varieties, above 95% for most, show how the Roundup Ready® gene generates changes in the seeds which make them distinguishable from conventional seeds and are thus easily identified by NIRS. This could help breeders to obtain lots with high purity of either conventional or Roundup Ready® soybean seeds as long as sample moisture range is controlled.