Adapting Photosynthesis in Soybeans to Increase Yields

Feb-26-20 Soybean plants can lose up to 13 percent of their productivity because they cannot adjust quickly to changes in light intensity.

Sponsored by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, researchers working for RIPE (Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency) aim to improve photosynthesis and help farmers attain higher-yielding crops.

The team created a dynamic computational ray-tracing model that was able to predict light levels across every leaf for every minute of the day while also measuring photoprotection and Rubisco activase.

To find soybeans plants with the fastest, slowest, and average rate of change from induction to the relaxation of photoprotection, the team evaluated 41 varieties.

The technologies developed by these findings will be made available to farmers across the globe.

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