Soba, D., Shu, T., Runion, G.B.,
Prior, S.A., Fritschi, F.B., Aranjuelo, I.
and Sanz-Saez, A.
2020
Environmental and Experimental Botany 178:
104154, doi.org/10.1016/j.envexpbot.2020.104154.
"Soybean is a key agricultural crop, the fourth most important globally ... and is a significant source of protein for human and livestock consumption.
... We can expect significantly higher soybean biomass and seed yield in the future as the air's CO2 concentration rises ... (with) large increases in seed mineral content.
... Half of the plants ... were grown in ambient air (CO2 concentration of 427 ppm) and half in air enriched to 631 ppm of CO2 ... during daylight hours only.
So what impact did this approximate 200 ppm increase in atmospheric CO2 have on these two cultivars differing in Water Use Efficiency (WUE)?
Aboveground biomass at this stage was enhanced by +53% (high WUE cultivar) and +36% (low WUE cultivar).
... in seed yield ... elevated CO2 stimulated this key parameter by +101% in the high WUE cultivar and +65% in the low WUE cultivar .
... seed mineral concentration ... for 11 minerals (N, P, K, Mg, Ca, S, B, Zn, Mn, Fe and Cu) as a function of CO2 ... "were mainly due to differences between genotypes rather than between CO2 treatments."
... seed mineral content in all of the eleven minerals examined increased by 1.5 to 2.5-fold under elevated CO2 ..."