Registration of high yielding high-protein soybean germplasm USDA-N7007 derived from wild soybean PI 366122

Authors: Fallen, Benjamin; Mian, Rouf; Robertson, Marta; Taliercio, Earl; CARTER, THOMAS - Former ARS Employee

Submitted to: Journal of Plant Registrations
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/30/2024
Publication Date: 7/1/2024
Citation: Fallen, B.D., Mian, R.M., Robertson, M.H., Taliercio, E.W., Carter, T.E. 2024. Registration of high yielding high-protein soybean germplasm USDA-N7007 derived from wild soybean PI 366122. Journal of Plant Registrations. https://doi.org/10.1002/plr2.20383.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/plr2.20383

Interpretive Summary: Soybean is a major source of high-quality plant protein and oil in animal and human diets. Consumption of both animal-based and plant-based proteins are increasing globally, both of which depend on high-quality soybean protein. A challenge for current breeders is maintaining a high protein content in high-yielding soybean cultivars. Protein content in soybean is negatively correlated with oil content and with yield, and a long history of selection for increased yield in soybean has depressed protein content in elite soybean varieties. USDA-N7007 is a high-yielding maturity group (MG) VII germplasm with high protein and increased diversity. This is the first release that uses wild soybean to increase genetic diversity and protein content without a yield drag. Over 47 combined testing environments of the USDA Southern Uniform and USB Protein Diversity Tests (2018-2021), USDA-N7007 yielded 98% of the check mean and 102% of the test mean. The average protein content of USDA-N7007 was significantly higher (432g kg-1) than the average check means of 402g kg-1 and 413g kg-1 in the USDA Southern Uniform and USB Protein Diversity Tests, respectively. USDA-N7007 will be a valuable resource to breeders to increase the quality and value of US soybean.

Technical Abstract: USDA-N7007 is a non-GM, maturity group (MG) VII soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] germplasm released by the USDA Agricultural Research Service in conjunction with the North Carolina Agricultural Research Service in December of 2023. USDA-N7007 is a high-yielding high-protein germplasm derived from wild soybean [G. soja Siebold & Zucc] PI 366122 and small-seeded MG VII USDA cultivar N7103. Over 47 combined testing environments of the USDA Southern Uniform and USB Protein Diversity Tests (2018-2021), USDA-N7007 yielded 98% of the check mean and 102% of the test mean. The average protein content of USDA-N7007 was significantly higher (432 g kg-1) than the average check means of 402 g kg-1 and 413 g kg-1 in the USDA Southern Uniform and USB Protein Diversity Tests, respectively. Across both Tests (2019-2021) the release was significantly (p<0.05) higher in protein (+7 g kg-1) with nine percent higher seed yield (+242 kg ha-1) than the recurrent parent, N7103. USDA-N7007 is resistant to lodging, southern root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) and stem canker (Diaporthe aspalathi). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first U.S. release clearly demonstrating that the wild soybean genome can be incorporated in an elite cultivar to increase seed protein without a negative effect on seed yield. This release is a truly novel and valuable resource for development of future U.S. soybean cultivars because it will be useful to improve both genetic diversity and seed protein simultaneously without a negative effect on seed yield.