Whey proteins from soybean seeds of Japanese varieties were analyzed by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). Among 11 varieties of soybean, three green and one black soybeans lacked a 26-kDa band that was found in all yellow soybeans. In this paper, the 26-kDa protein was named AS26k (acid soluble 26-kDa protein) temporarily. The AS26k protein was purified from Glycine max cv. Nattosyoryu, which is yellow soybean, through four purification steps: 30-35% saturated ammonium sulfate fractionation, ion exchange chromatography on S Sepharose Fast Flow, gel filtration on Sephadex G-100, and hydrophobic chromatography on phenyl Sepharose CL-4B. Purified AS26k was cleaved with V8 proteinase from Staphylococcus aureus or CNBr. The cleaved polypeptide contained two typical dehydrin motif sequences: DEYGNPV and (M)DKIKEKLPG, and a 19 amino acids sequence similar to a pea dehydrin. Native AS26k had a molecular mass of 32 kDa on gel filtration and a pl of 7.2 on two-dimensional PAGE. Similarly to other dehydrins and late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins, AS26k was rich in hydrophilic amino acids, and highly heat stable. These results showed that AS26k was a dehydrin, a group II LEA protein in soybean seeds.