Die sojabohne (Glycine max (L.) Merr.): Nutzung, genetik, biotechnologie

Soybean (Glycine max) is the most important oil crop worldwide. Because of its high content of oil and protein there are many uses in the food and non-food sector. The cultivated soybean originates from the wild species Glycine soja. Numerous other wild Glycine species form a huge reservoir of genetic resources that are slowly being utilized by breeding. Mutagenic and genetic engineering studies of the soybean genome have resulted in drastic alterations of fatty and amino acid composition. The introduction of a bacterial gene for tolerance to the herbicide glyphosate into the soybean genome has led to transgenic lines which are commercially grown on a large scale.