Preface

This book covers all the areas of scientific research and development of soybean, especially physiology and metabolism, seed production, breeding and genetics, food from soybean seeds, and new soy foods. The demand for soybean seeds has been increasing due to their unique nutritional values. Annual soybean production increased to 350 Mt in 2017, which was followed by that of corn (1100 Mt), wheat (800 Mt), and rice (800 Mt). Soybean seeds contain a large amount of protein (about 40%) and oil (about 20%) and the matured seeds do not contain starch, which is the major nutrient in corn, wheat, and rice seeds. This book includes fourteen chapters in five sections.

Section 1: "Role of Soybean for Food Security"

Section 2: "Physiology and Biochemistry of Soybean Plants"

Section 3: "Cultivation and Productivity of Soybean"

Section 4: "Breeding and Biotechnology of Soybean"

Section 5: "Food and Biodiesel Industry"

Section 1 includes Chapter 1, in which Dr. Mohammad Sohidul Islam et al. summarize the important role of soybean for sustainable agriculture and global food security. Human beings and animals need an adequate amount of nutrients, such as carbohydrates, protein, lipids, minerals, vitamins, and so on. The increasing population and the expected decrease in crop production due to climate changes and land damage may be mitigated by changing from animal meat to plant protein, especially soybean protein.

Section 2 includes Chapter 2, in which Takuji Ohyama et al. review the effects of the application of various forms of nitrogen on the growth of nodules and roots related to carbon and nitrogen metabolism. Soybean plants obtain nitrogen from the fixed N2 by the root nodules and the absorbed inorganic nitrogen by the roots from soil or fertilizers. To obtain a high yield of soybean, good modulation and high and long-lasting nitrogen fixation activity are important because the availability of soil N is limited in many regions. However, it is well known that a high concentration of mineral N represses nodule formation and nitrogen fixation activity, especially nitrate, the most abundant inorganic nitrogen in upland fields, which severely inhibits nodulation and nitrogen fixation activity of soybean plants. The authors find that nitrate represses nodule growth rapidly and reversibly by the addition of nitrate in the culture solution. Also, ammonium, urea, and glutamine repress the nodule growth as well as nitrate. In Chapter 3, Dr. Md. Mannan reviews the physiological and biochemical basis of stress tolerance in soybean, especially responses to drought stress. Plants can adapt in response to water scarcity situations by altering cell metabolism and activating various defense mechanisms. Higher salt tolerance in

resistant soybean genotypes was associated with better water relation, salt dilution by juiciness, and better osmotic adaptation with an accumulation of more amino acids, sugars, and proline. In addition, less damaging chlorophylls, higher photosynthetic efficiency and cell membrane stability, and higher calcium content contributed to the higher salt tolerance of soybean genotypes.

Section 3 begins with Chapter 4, in which Dr. Fumiaki Takakai et al. report the nitrogen budget in a paddy-upland rotation field with soybean cultivation by lysimeter experiments and reveal that considerable loss of N occurred in both the upland soybean and paddy rice cultivation periods. They concluded that to mitigate the N loss in the rotation system, N supply from organic matter applications such as leguminous green manure or livestock manure compost is required. In Chapter 5, Dr. Savala Canon reports that the inoculation formulation and applications determined nitrogen availability and water use efficiency in soybean production in Mozambique. The author concludes that the inoculants applied to soil or seed increase the amount of biologically fixed nitrogen and have the potential of improving soybean productivity in Mozambique. In Chapter 6, Dr. Raetano Carlos reviews the optimization of application technology for plant protection from diseases and insects in Brazil. The chapter describes the main application techniques of chemical or biological products in the control of agents by technological innovations involving remote sensing, unmanned aerial vehicles, and other techniques. In Chapter 7, Dr. Asewar Bhagwan et al. discusses climate-resilient technologies for enhancing the productivity of soybean in India. Recent research reveals that climate-resilient technologies such as selecting suitable varieties, sowing within the proper sowing period, dry spell management practices to reduce moisture stress, rainwater harvesting, soil conservation through broad bed furrow method of planting, and reuse of harvested and stored rainwater during moisture stress conditions can mitigate the effects of climate change and enhance the productivity of soybean in a sustainable manner.

Section 4 beings with Chapter 8, in which Dr. Sinan Meriç et al. discuss current strategies and the future of mutation breeding in soybean improvement. Currently, there are numerous alternative breeding approaches, including conventional breeding as well as biotechnological approaches. Among these, mutation breeding is still a major method to produce new alleles and desired traits within the crop genomes. The chapter highlights common bacterial, fungal, and viral pathogens and the role that biotechnology can play in controlling the disease. In Chapter 9, Dr. Sokichi Shiro and Dr. Yuichi Saeki examine the breeding of *Rj* gene-accumulated soybean genotypes and their availability for improving soybean productivity. Some soybean varieties harbor *Rj* genes, which regulate nodulation by preventing infection and nodulation by specific rhizobial strains. Soybean genotypes carrying several *Rj* genes may enhance the occupancy of useful bradyrhizobia, which exhibits potent nitrogen fixation ability and exhibit nodulation compatible with the *Rj* genotype of soybean. In Chapter 10, Dr. Summra Siddique reviews soybean quality improvement through CRISPR/Cas9. The fields of functional genomics and crop improvement have been transformed by advances in genome editing tools. CRISPR/Cas9 (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeat)-Cas9 is a versatile genetic engineering tool.

Section 5 begins with Chapter 11, in which Dr. Lilian Hasegawa Florentino et al. review soybean functional proteins and synthetic biology. Despite soybean-producing high and elevated nutritive and functional proteins, it also produces allergenic proteins,

harmful secondary metabolites, and carcinogenic elements. Therefore, synthetic biology is a powerful and promising science field for the development of new devices and systems. It represents a new disruptive frontier that will allow better use of soybean functional proteins, both for animal and human food and for the pharmaceutical and chemistry industry. In Chapter 12, Dr. Moses Ojukwu and Dr. Azhar Mat Easa discuss the innovative application of soy protein isolate and combined crosslinking technologies to enhance the structure of gluten-free rice noodles. Soy protein isolate may serve as a health-enhancing functional ingredient in many food products. The authors combined crosslinking and cold gelation of soy protein isolate to improve the structure, texture, and cooking properties of rice flour noodles. In Chapter 13, Dr. Ana Kiesse Zelema Geremias and Dr. António André Chivanga Barros discuss biodiesel production using a reactive distillation column based on intensification processes. For the preparation of biofuels that have the same characteristics as petroleum derivatives, a reactive distillation column was designed, constructed, installed, and operated using process intensification principles. It was applied in the production of biodiesel, using residual frying oil as the raw material, by the transesterification reaction in a continuous regime. In Chapter 14, Dr. Fernando Luiz Pellegrini Pessoa et al. discuss the routes to the aggregate value of soybean biofuel. The traditional production routes, such as pyrolysis, allow for the generation of bio-oils with high burning power by mixing oils and plastics. One example of an alternative route is single-step interesterification, where the methyl acetate reacts with the triglycerides in the oil, forming fatty acid methyl esters and triacetin as a byproduct.

This book is a useful resource for researchers, students, persons in the agriculture and food industries, and policymakers.

We greatly appreciate all the contributors and editors. We also thank Author Service Manager Ms. Jelena Vrdoljak at IntechOpen for her kind support.

> **Takuji Ohyama** The Fertilization Research Foundation, Tokyo, Japan

**Yoshihiko Takahashi and Norikuni Ohtake** Niigata University, Niigata, Japan

> **Takashi Sato** Akita University, Akita, Japan

**Sayuri Tanabata** Ibaraki University, Mito, Japan

**1**

Section 1

Role of Soybean for Food

Security
