

Gene Marker for Flood-Tolerant SoybeansBy Don Comis December 28, 1999A marker that points to genes
responsible for flood tolerance in soybeans has been identified by an
Agricultural Research Service scientist.
ARS plant physiologist Tara T. VanToai, at the
Soil Drainage Research
Unit in Columbus, Ohio, reported that plants with the genetic marker had a
50 percent yield advantage after spending their flowering stage in waterlogged
soil for two weeks. The two-year study involved 208 soybean lines. For confirmation, more plants will be field-tested in Arkansas and Ohio. Biotechnology advances have led breeders to use the markers, made of genetic
material called DNA, for selecting promising plants. The markers are linked to
genes for desired traits. Breeders look for the DNA marker in tissues taken
from seedlings, without growing the plants any further. This avoids having to
wait an entire growing season to screen a mature plant. VanToai is conducting other field and greenhouse tests to find soybean
germplasm lines that contain additional genes for further yield increases in
flooded fields. VanToai and colleagues from the University of
Arkansas at Fayetteville, University of
Utah at Salt Lake City, and Ohio State
University at Columbus are doing the work jointly, as part of a national
soybean genome mapping project partly funded by the United Soybean Board. ARS is the chief scientific research agency of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture. Scientific contact: Tara T. VanToai,
ARS Soil Drainage Research
Unit, Columbus, Ohio, phone (614) 292-9806, fax (614) 292-9448,
[email protected]. Story contacts Soil Drainage Research U.S. Department of Agriculture | |