Scientific Name | Glycine max | ||||
Common Name | soybeans; | ||||
Taxonomy ID | 3847 | ||||
Lineage | cellular organisms > Viridiplantae > Streptophyta > Streptophytina > Embryophyta > Tracheophyta > Euphyllophyta > Spermatophyta > Magnoliophyta > Mesangiospermae > eudicotyledons > Gunneridae > Pentapetalae > rosids > fabids > Fabales > Fabaceae > Papilionoideae > Phaseoleae > Glycine > Soja | ||||
External Links | NCBI; EBI; JGI; PLAZA; Specialized Database | ||||
Representative Assembly | Glycine_max_v2.0 | GCF_000004515.4 | DNA GFF RNA Protein |
Glycine max, the soybean in North America, is a species of legume native to East Asia and an annual herb of great economic importance. It
belongs to family Fabaceae and tribe Phaseoleae which includes several
other important legumes like beans, pigeon pea, black gram, mung bean
etc. The plant, classed as an oilseed rather than a pulse by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, produces significantly more protein per acre than most other uses of land. It is believed to have originated in Asia but is now cultivated
extensively for food and forage throughout the world. It is a major
source of vegetable oil and protein in
the world. Each soybean seed contains about 20% oil and about 50% of the
remaining meal is protein. Fat-free (defatted) soybean meal is a significant and cheap source of protein for animal feeds and many packaged meals. The beans contain significant amounts of phytic acid, dietary minerals and B vitamins. Soy vegetable oil,
used in food and industrial applications, is another product of
processing the soybean crop. The main countries growing soybeans are the United States (32% of world total, 2016 forecast), Brazil (31%) and Argentina (18%). The genome of G. max is a diploidized
tetraploid with 2n = 40 chromosomes and a genome size of about 1115 Mb.
Several well developed genomic resources are available: a well developed
composite genetic map, large number of ESTs and a number of BAC
libraries.