Genetic mechanisms underlying the expansion of soybean Glycine max (L.) Merr. cultivation to the north

Abstract

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] is produced in 93 countries of the world on 120.5 million hectares. The production area of the crop is located between 56N. (Russian Federation) and 35-37S (Argentina). In the gene pool of the crop, there is a wide variety of genotypes of different maturity groups, which every has a relatively narrow latitudinal adaptability, which depends on heat and moisture supply and the duration of photoperiod. An urgent problem of our time is the creation of early maturated varieties which allow to expand soybean cultivation to the north. In soybean 12 major loci (E1E11 and J) have been identified, which control the flowering initiation and the response to the photoperiod. The time of maturation, photothermal response and, ultimately, the adaptation of the crop to different latitudes also depend on various allelic combinations and the interaction of these loci. All these loci have been mapped, and for some of them genes have been identified, their allelic diversity has been characterized and the mechanisms of their functioning and interaction have been described. But the molecular-genetic nature of the early maturity of soybean has not yet been revealed in detail. This review presents the current understanding of the structure and nature of the interaction of molecular genetic determinants of early maturity of soybean, which regulate the timing of its flowering and maturation at different photoperiods and their influence on other plant traits, including the type of growth and productivity. As a result, an idea of the optimal genotype for northern latitudes was proposed, with a combination of alleles providing the earliest flowering and maturation in relatively northern regions with a long day.