Translating Soybean Genomics to Opportunities for Improved Human Health.

Soybean is a major crop for food and fuel. While the vast majority of soybean meal is incorporated into the diet of livestock such as poultry and swine, the soybean oil is extremely valuable as a component of the human diet.  Many soybean breeding efforts are targeted to improve agronomic traits such as yield and resistance to both biotic and abiotic stress.  In addition to these producer-oriented traits, soybean breeders have also been developing varieties with enhanced nutritional benefits with the goal of providing more nutritional foods and feeds for humans and livestock.  The objective of my research is to develop the molecular genetic basis for soybean seed composition traits so that soybean breeding for enhanced nutrition oil and meal can be rapidly developed into commercially acceptable varieties.  Soybean seed fatty acid profiles can be altered to develop low linolenic acid soybeans free from the need for hydrogenation, soybeans with elevated oleic acid, and other desired traits that have the potential to enhance the nutritional profile of soybean oil.