title: QTLs Regulating the Contents of Antioxidants, Phenolics, and Flavonoids in Soybean Seeds Share a Common Genomic Region.
abstract: Soybean seeds are a rich source of phenolic compounds, especially isoflavonoids, which are important nutraceuticals. Our study using 14 wild- and 16 cultivated-soybean accessions shows that seeds from cultivated soybeans generally contain lower total antioxidants compared to their wild counterparts, likely an unintended consequence of domestication or human selection. Using a recombinant inbred population resulting from a wild and a cultivated soybean parent and a bin map approach, we have identified an overlapping genomic region containing major quantitative trait loci (QTLs) that regulate the seed contents of total antioxidants, phenolics, and flavonoids. The QTL for seed antioxidant content contains 14 annotated genes based on the Williams 82 reference genome (Gmax1.01). None of these genes encodes functions that are related to the phenylpropanoid pathway of soybean. However, we found three putative Multidrug And Toxic Compound Extrusion (MATE) transporter genes within this QTL and one adjacent to it (GmMATE1-4). Moreover, we have identified non-synonymous changes between GmMATE1 and GmMATE2, and that GmMATE3 encodes an antisense transcript that expresses in pods. Whether the polymorphisms in GmMATE proteins are major determinants of the antioxidant contents, or whether the antisense transcripts of GmMATE3 play important regulatory roles, awaits further functional investigations.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Soybean Research of the Partner State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Man-Wah
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Centre for Soybean Research of the Partner State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong KongHong Kong, China; Instituto de Fisiología y Recursos Genéticos Vegetales, Centro de Investigaciones Agropecuarias-INTACórdoba, Argentina; Cátedra de Fisiología Vegetal, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas Físicas y Naturales, Universidad Nacional de CórdobaCórdoba, Argentina.
authors.forename: Nacira B
authors.initials: NB
authors.lastname: Muñoz
authors.affiliation: Centre for Soybean Research of the Partner State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Chi-Fai
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.affiliation: Centre for Soybean Research of the Partner State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Fuk-Ling
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.affiliation: Centre for Soybean Research of the Partner State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Kwong-Sen
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.affiliation: Centre for Soybean Research of the Partner State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Johanna Wing-Hang
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.affiliation: Centre for Soybean Research of the Partner State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Xinpeng
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.affiliation: Centre for Soybean Research of the Partner State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Kwan-Pok
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Centre for Soybean Research of the Partner State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Ming-Sin
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.affiliation: Centre for Soybean Research of the Partner State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology and School of Life Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Hon-Ming
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Lam
keywords: MATE transporter; antioxidants; flavonoids; genome; human selection; phenolics; quantitative trait loci; soybean