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Temporospatial Characterization of Nutritional and Bioactive Components of Soybean Cultivars in China

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society

Abstract

Nutritional and bioactive constituents, apart from protein and oil, have many beneficial functions and are of great importance in determining the quality and nutritional value of soybeans [Glycine max (L.) Merr.]. However, the temporospatial trends in soybean constituents have not been determined. The objective of this study was thus to identify the temporospatial trends in seed constituents among 89 widely grown soybean cultivars over a period of nine decades (1923–2007) in four soybean-producing regions of China. A combination of analytical techniques was used to quantify eight categories of 35 seed constituents. The results include the following: (1) The temporal pattern (the genetic change) after nine decades of breeding was characterized by significantly increasing trends in the concentration of isoflavones, tocopherol, starch, sucrose, Ca, Mn, phospholipids and lectin, and decreasing trends in Zn, Cu and lutein concentrations. (2) The spatial distribution showed higher stachyose, Zn, isoflavone, saponin and lectin content in the cultivars from lower latitudes versus higher latitudes, and the content of tocopherol, carotenoid, oligosaccharides and phospholipids exhibited the reverse pattern. (3) According to principal component analysis, carotenoid, Fe and Mn, saponin components and glycitin were the most important contributors to the total variation across the 89 cultivars. These results provide us with a comprehensive profile for manipulating chemical constituents and improving various functional ingredients through breeding.

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Abbreviations

D:

Daidzin

GL:

Glycitin

G:

Genistin

MD:

Malonyldaidzin

MGL:

Malonylglycitin

Sap I:

Saponin I

Sap II:

Saponin II

Sap αg:

Saponin αg

Sap βg:

Saponin βg

Sap βα:

Saponin βα

BBI:

Bowman–Birk inhibitors

PC:

Phosphatidylcholine

PE:

Phosphatidylethanolamine

PI:

Phosphatidylinositol

α-Toc:

α-Tocopherol

β + γ-Toc:

β + γ-Tocopherol

δ-Toc:

δ-Tocopherol

BHT:

Butylated hydroxytoluene

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Acknowledgements

We thank the researchers at the CARS experimental stations for providing samples, and Drs. Lijuan Qiu and Zhangxiong Liu (Institute of Crop Science, the Chinese Agricultural Academy of Sciences, China) for providing soybean germplasm.

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    Authors and Affiliations

    1. MOA Key Laboratory of Soybean Biology (Beijing), Institute of Crop Science, the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 12 Zhongguancun South Street, 100081, Beijing, China

      Tingting Wu, Yang Yao, Shi Sun, Caijie Wang, Wenwen Song, Cunxiang Wu, Bingjun Jiang, Wensheng Hou, Guixing Ren & Tianfu Han

    2. Heihe Branch of Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 164300, Heihe, Heilongjiang, China

      Hongchang Jia

    3. Soybean Research Institute, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 150086, Harbin, Heilongjiang, China

      Weiqun Man

    4. Tieling Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 112616, Tieling, Liaoning, China

      Lianshun Fu

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    Correspondence to Guixing Ren or Tianfu Han.

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    T. Wu, Y. Yao and S. Sun contributed equally to this work.

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    Wu, T., Yao, Y., Sun, S. et al. Temporospatial Characterization of Nutritional and Bioactive Components of Soybean Cultivars in China. J Am Oil Chem Soc 93, 1637–1654 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11746-016-2908-4

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