This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Soybean is a critical element of the global food supply: Between its use for animal feed and human consumption, it accounts for roughly two-thirds of plant-based protein meal output worldwide. Canada is a global leader in sustainable soybean production, with 70% of its crop, one of the country's top three by value, exported annually.
According to Brazilian scientist Gabriel Montanha, soy production has "exploded" in recent decades to meet demand—but there hasn't been a corresponding increase in soybean protein content. "To ensure soy remains a sustainable crop, we need to increase the protein content of soy seeds," says Montanha, who is doing a postdoctoral fellowship at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) in Grenoble, France. "It's critical we find ways to generate more protein without increasing the amount of land we're currently cultivating." Montanha and colleagues used the Canadian Light Source (CLS) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) and Brazil's National Synchrotron Light Laboratory (LNLS) to determine whether the mineral content of soybean seeds could influence their nutritional content.
With the help of synchrotron imaging, the researchers investigated the location of proteins and minerals inside four types of soybean seeds. They found that certain minerals appear to play a crucial role in protein formation. "We could see that the genotypes that had higher protein content also had higher zinc and sulfur," says Montanha, who completed this research as part of his Ph.D., alongside collaborators at Brazil's University of São Paulo and Sapienza University of Rome (Italy).
The team's findings were published in the journal ACS Agricultural Science & Technology and highlighted on the cover of the journal's current issue. Montanha says the imaging conducted at the CLS and LNLS was key to the research. "The use of these different tools for structural and chemical imaging of biological materials really pushed us forward to understand the role of the nutrients in the plant's physiology." He and colleagues are already working on fertilization techniques that could ensure soy seeds have access to sulfur and zinc at key points in their development to boost protein content.
Gabriel Sgarbiero Montanha et al, Protein Biosynthesis Is Associated with Ionome Composition in Soybean Seeds, ACS Agricultural Science & Technology (2026). DOI: 10.1021/acsagscitech.5c01032 MA in English, copy editor since 2021 with experience in higher education and health content. Dedicated to trustworthy science news.
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