Soybean Response to Water: A QTL Analysis of Drought Tolerance

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] yield, when regressed on water needed to replenish 0 to 100% seasonal evapotranspiration (ET), generates an estimate of season‐specific water‐use efficiency (WUE). The impact of unpredictable water deficits might be lessened if high‐yielding genotypes had a smaller b...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Crop science 2001-03, Vol.41 (2), p.493-509
Main Authors: Specht, J.E., Chase, K., Macrander, M., Graef, G.L., Chung, J., Markwell, J.P., Germann, M., Orf, J.H., Lark, K.G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adaptation to environment and cultivation conditions
Agronomy. Soil science and plant productions
Biological and medical sciences
Cellular biology
Crops
Drought
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Genetics
Genetics and breeding of economic plants
Glycine max
Soybeans
Varietal selection. Specialized plant breeding, plant breeding aims
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Summary:Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] yield, when regressed on water needed to replenish 0 to 100% seasonal evapotranspiration (ET), generates an estimate of season‐specific water‐use efficiency (WUE). The impact of unpredictable water deficits might be lessened if high‐yielding genotypes had a smaller beta. Our objective was to determine the genetic basis of beta and carbon isotope discrimination (CID), a theorized indicator of transpiration efficiency (TE). A ‘Minsoy’ × ‘Noir 1’ population of 236 recombinant inbred lines (RILs), genotyped at 665 loci, was evaluated in six water treatments (100, 80, 60, 40, 20, and 0% ET) for 2 yr. Water stress was mild in 1994, but high temperatures and no rainfall in 1995 led to a drought so severe that the 100% ET treatment required 41 cm of irrigation. The 1995 yield‐to‐water regression was highly linear (28 kg ha−1 cm−1). Genotype × water (G × W) interaction was due to genotypic heterogeneity in beta The CID vs. beta correlation was low (r = 0.26), so selection for better leaf TE may not improve crop WUE. Selection of low beta (less sensitivity to drought) will be difficult, given the yield beta vs. yield correlation (r = 0.71). The major quantitative trait loci (QTL) for yield beta, yield, and CID were coincident with maturity and/or determinancy QTLs, except for a CID QTL in linkage group U09‐C2, but it had no effect on beta Genetic improvement of soybean yield performance under drought would be better achieved by coupling a high‐yield grand mean with a high‐ (not low‐) yield beta
ISSN:0011-183X
1435-0653
DOI:10.2135/cropsci2001.412493x