DETERMINATION OF VARIATION IN THE FATTY ACID COMPOSITION OF DIFFERENT FAR EASTERN WILD SOYBEAN ACCESSIONS AND IDENTIFICATION OF SUPERIOR GENOTYPES WITH OLEIC ACID CONTENT AS HIGH OLEIC POTENTIAL

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] seeds contain 20% oil, 40% protein, and 12% soluble carbohydrates by dry weight. Because of its seed composition, it is one of the most economically important oil crops globally. Soybean is the largest oilseed crop worldwide with over half of the total oilseed production, followed by rapeseed, sunflower, and peanut. Direct progenitor of cultivated soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.], is wild soybean (Glycine sofa Sieb. & Zucc.) and it is widely distributed in China, North Eastern Russia, Korea, Japan, and Taiwan. Wild soybean accessions originating from different geographical regions harbour genetic differences. Because of many genetic variations have been lost in the process of domestication of G. max, soybean breeders and geneticists are interested in identifying useful genes in G. Sofa to improve different characteristics of cultivated soybeans. Therefore, it is necessary to collect and conserve the wild soybean from different regions. When soybean is consumed directly as food, polyunsaturated fatty acids such as linoleic and linolenic acid (w-6, w-3) are essential fatty acids. These fatty acids prevent diseases such as inflammation, cardiovascular, and Alzheimer's, as well as promote fetal development. The consumption rate between w-6 and w-3 concentration has an effect on human health. Healthy ratios of w-6 to w-3 fatty acids have been reported to range from 1:1 to 4:1. Generally, the w-6/w-3 ratio in the seed oils of wild (Glycine sofa) and cultivated soybeans (G. max) is 3-4:1 and 6-7:1, respectively. Wild soybeans contain almost twice the alpha-linolenic acids ALA) in their seed oil. Twenty-four wild soybean accessions from three different countries were investigated under field conditions in 2021. The content of oil, oleic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, palmitic acid and stearic acid ranged between 4.13-12.14%, 11.4-49.74%, 29.3-56.08%, 4.81-14.33%, 10.22-13.85% and 3.3-4.64%, respectively. Also ratios of w-6 to w-3 fatty acids varied between 3.368 and 6.091. To conclude, considerable variations in oil content, fatty acid composition, w6/w3 ratios were noticed among 24 wild soybean accessions in this study. The Nigata, Japan accession is one of the prominent wild soybean accession in the study with high oleic acid content (49.74%).