Genetically optimizing soybean nodulation improves yield and protein content

Xiangbin Zhong; Jie Wang; Xiaolei Shi; Mengyan Bai; Cuicui Yuan; Chenlin Cai; Nan Wang; Xiaomin Zhu; Huaqin Kuang; Xin Wang; Jiaqing Su; Xin He; Xiao Liu; Wenqiang Yang; Chunyan Yang; Fanjiang Kong; Ertao Wang; Yuefeng Guan

doi:10.1038/s41477-024-01696-x

Genetically optimizing soybean nodulation improves yield and protein content

Nat Plants. 2024 May;10(5):736-742. doi: 10.1038/s41477-024-01696-x. Epub 2024 May 9.

Authors

Xiangbin Zhong^#¹, Jie Wang^#¹, Xiaolei Shi², Mengyan Bai³, Cuicui Yuan⁴, Chenlin Cai¹, Nan Wang⁴, Xiaomin Zhu¹, Huaqin Kuang³, Xin Wang³, Jiaqing Su^{1

4}, Xin He⁵, Xiao Liu⁶, Wenqiang Yang⁶, Chunyan Yang², Fanjiang Kong⁷, Ertao Wang⁸, Yuefeng Guan^{9

10}

Affiliations

¹ College of Resources and Environment, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China.
² Hebei Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Breeding, Institute of Cereal and Oil Crops, Hebei Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, Shijiazhuang, China.
³ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Adaptation and Molecular Design, Innovative Center of Molecular Genetics and Evolution, School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, China.
⁴ FAFU-UCR Joint Center for Horticultural Biology and Metabolomics, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China.
⁵ New Cornerstone Science Laboratory, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
⁶ Photosynthesis Research Center, Key Laboratory of Photobiology, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
⁷ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Adaptation and Molecular Design, Innovative Center of Molecular Genetics and Evolution, School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, China. kongfj@gzhu.edu.cn.
⁸ New Cornerstone Science Laboratory, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China. etwang@cemps.ac.cn.
⁹ Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Adaptation and Molecular Design, Innovative Center of Molecular Genetics and Evolution, School of Life Sciences, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, China. guan@gzhu.edu.cn.
¹⁰ FAFU-UCR Joint Center for Horticultural Biology and Metabolomics, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China. guan@gzhu.edu.cn.

^# Contributed equally.

PMID: 38724696
DOI: 10.1038/s41477-024-01696-x

Abstract

Symbiotic nitrogen fixation in legume nodules requires substantial energy investment from host plants, and soybean (Glycine max (L.) supernodulation mutants show stunting and yield penalties due to overconsumption of carbon sources. We obtained soybean mutants differing in their nodulation ability, among which rhizobially induced cle1a/2a (ric1a/2a) has a moderate increase in nodule number, balanced carbon allocation, and enhanced carbon and nitrogen acquisition. In multi-year and multi-site field trials in China, two ric1a/2a lines had improved grain yield, protein content and sustained oil content, demonstrating that gene editing towards optimal nodulation improves soybean yield and quality.

MeSH terms

Gene Editing
Glycine max* / genetics
Glycine max* / metabolism
Glycine max* / microbiology
Mutation
Nitrogen Fixation / genetics
Plant Proteins / genetics
Plant Proteins / metabolism
Plant Root Nodulation* / genetics
Root Nodules, Plant / genetics
Root Nodules, Plant / metabolism
Root Nodules, Plant / microbiology
Soybean Proteins / genetics
Soybean Proteins / metabolism
Symbiosis

Substances

Plant Proteins
Soybean Proteins