Ascophyllum nodosum Extract (SealicitTM) Boosts Soybean Yield Through Reduction of Pod Shattering-Related Seed Loss and Enhanced Seed Production

Abstract

Soybean is one of the most valuable commercial crops because of its high protein, carbohydrate, and oil content. The land area cultivated with soybean in subtropical regions, such as Brazil, is continuously expanding, in some instances at the expense of carbon storing natural habitats. Strategies to decrease yield/seed losses and increase production efficiency are urgently required to meet global demand for soybean in a sustainable manner. Here, we evaluated the effectiveness of an Ascophyllum nodosum extract (ANE), SealicitTM, in increasing yields of different soybean varieties, in two geographical regions (Canada and Brazil). In addition, we investigated the potential of SealicitTM to reduce pod shattering at the trials in Brazil. Three different concentrations of SealicitTM were applied to pod shatter-susceptible (SS) UFUS 6901 and shatter-resistant (SR) UFUS 7415 varieties to assess their impact on pod firmness. SS variety demonstrated a significant decrease in pod shattering, which coincided with deregulation of GmPDH1.1 and GmSHAT1–5 expression, genes that determine pod dehiscence, and higher seed weight per pod. SealicitTM application to the SR variety did not significantly alter its inherent pod shatter resistance, but provided higher increases in seed yield at harvest. This yield increase maybe associated with to other yield components stimulated by the biostimulant. This work demonstrates that SealicitTM, which has previously been shown to improve pod firmness in Arabidopsis and selected commercial oilseed rape varieties through IND gene down-regulation, also has the potential to improve pod resistance and seed productivity in soybean, a member of the legume family sharing a similar strategy for seed dispersal.

The Role of Protein-Rich Extracts from Chondrus crispus as Biostimulant and in Enhancing Tolerance to Drought Stress in Tomato Plants

“…Despite this great interest, there is still debate about which compounds present in the seaweed extracts are involved in the positive effects induced. In fact, seaweed extracts are a heterogeneous group of compounds including minerals, polysaccharides, polyunsaturated fatty acids, bioactive peptides and proteins, amino acids, and phytohormones [ 7 , 9 , 10 ] which could act on plant metabolism in a specific or non-specific manner [ 11 , 12 ]. Among major bioactive components present in seaweed extracts, polysaccharides such as carrageenans, alginates and their oligo-derivatives are well-known as plant biostimulants and elicitors of defense responses [ 13 , 14 , 15 ].…”

Physiology and metabonomics reveal differences in drought resistance among soybean varieties

“…Soybean production has increased in the last 4 decades (Müller et al 2021). In 2018, approximately 80% of the world's harvested soybeans was produced in the United States (35%), Brazil (34%), and Argentina (11%), a total equivalent to nearly 350 million tons, and production continues to show steady growth (FAO 2018;Łangowski et al 2021). However, soybean production will need to increase by 70 percent over the next few decades to meet the growing human demand for plant protein (Godfray et al 2010;Tilman et al 2011).…”

A Seaweed Extract-Based Biostimulant Mitigates Drought Stress in Sugarcane

“…Seaweed extracts provide polysaccharides, polyunsaturated fatty acids, enzymes, bioactive peptides, LEA (late embryogenesis abundant) proteins, amino acids, plant hormones, and macro- and micronutrients ( De Abreu et al, 2008 ; Shukla et al, 2016 ; Okolie et al, 2018 ). These extracts act on plant metabolism in a specific or non-specific manner ( Carmody et al, 2020 ; Langowski et al, 2021 ). In general, seaweed extracts stimulate the synthesis of pigments, such as chlorophyll, to optimize photosynthesis, promote root growth and improve water and nutrient uptake, with direct effects on crop yields ( Bulgari et al, 2015 ; Yakhin et al, 2017 ).…”