Natural hybridization in wild soybean (Glycine max ssp. soja) by pollen flow from cultivated soybean (Glycine max ssp. max) in a designed population

Abstract

The frequency of hybridization through pollen flow from the cultivated soybean to the wild soybean was evaluated for the purpose of assessment of the ecological risk of genetically modified crops. The flowering habits of three soybean cultivars and one wild soybean accession were monitored on an experimental farm. A cultivar and a wild accession, both of which flowered at a similar period, were then planted alternately in 5 × 12 arrays with 50 cm spacing on the farm. The seedlings of progeny seeds gathered from individual plants of the wild accession were used for an isozyme analysis to identify whether they were hybrid or not. In 23 plants of the wild accession, four plants produced hybrids (the incidence of hybridization = 17.4%). There was no directionality in hybridization. The hybridization rate per maternal plant varied from 0 to 5.89% with a mean of 0.73% for all maternal plants. The results indicate that natural hybrids are easily produced in a certain frequency by pollen flow from the cultivated soybean to the wild soybean under their simultaneous flowering with adequate pollinators.