Review. Soybean salinity (Glycine max (L.) Merril) and advances in the study of the mechanisms of tolerance

Abstract

The soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) is one of the strategic lines identified food security worldwide, by the high food value having their seeds and nutritional quality. Like many economically important crops is subject to environmental stresses that reduce their performance. Indeed, soil salinization is one of the stresses that increasingly threatens the productivity of soybean cultivars. Salt stress causes osmotic and ionic effects that lead to morphological, physiological and biochemical change in soybean plants. For this reason, there is great interest in improving crop tolerance to salinity, but it is necessary to understand the genetic basis of salinity tolerance and adaptation mechanisms. In this sense, functional studies have been conducted related gene response to salt stress, in order to detect possible candidates that confer tolerance to this stress, for the genetic improvement of crops through genetic engineering. This review summarizes some knowledge accumulated over several decades on the main effects of salinity on crops. It also discusses recent advances in the study of the mechanisms of tolerance, which have led to new ways to reduce the negative impact of salinity on the agricultural production.