A giant step: Argentina uses molecular markers to identified soybean varieties

(Photo: soybean planted over wheat stubble, as a second crop in the same season. The farmer is Santiago Del Solar, currently Chief of Advisors at Ag-Industry secretariat)

December 21, the Argentina Seed National Institute (INASE) published its Order 228/2018 in the Official Register establishing the use of DNA molecular markers, known as Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP), to verify the identity of soybean varieties inscribed in the INASE’s registers.

The INASE is the authority in charge to enforce de Plant Breeders Act, the law from 1973 that preserve the intellectual property rights to the plant breeders.

Until today, the identification of a soybean variety was made by phenotypical characters. This limitation hindered the proper identification and the institute had to appeal to the goodwill of the farmers, to declare which variety they were using.

In the basis of the order, the INASE’s authorities remark that the selection of the SNP was done it along with the plant breeders, “based on genotypic studies on the soybean germplasm”.

The order includes an attach with 56 SNP developed by the USDA and used to identify the local varieties. Know the list clicking here: SPN soja

The authorities of the INASE hopes that the use of these molecular markers enhances the control of seed commerce, reducing the illegal one.

“It’s a great new”, the chairman of the Argentine Plant Breeders Association (ASA), Mr. Alfredo Paseyro, told to www.eFarmNewsAr.com. He explained that three teams participated in the developing of this system, one for the private sector, one for the INASE and the third from the Buenos Aires University, focused on the bioinformatics side.

Mr. Paseyro stressed that not only the SNP will be used to identify a variety at a commercial level, but they will use to register a new variety. “We are the first country in the world using SNP to identify and register both public and private soybean varieties”. About 900 soybean varieties were mapped with molecular markets. “We presented the case at the UPOV (the international union of the plant breeders) because it is a disruptive way to control IPR’s in autogamous crops”, Paseyro said and he anticipated to www.eFarmNewsAr.com, that INASE is already working to use this technology in wheat, cotton, and barley.