The current state of Japanese soybean breeding using DNA marker technology.

Following the recent global progress in the establishment of soybean genomic resources, DNA marker technologies have been actively implemented in soybean breeding programs in Japan, thereby enhancing the efficiency of varietal improvement and facilitating the successive release of cultivars developed through the application of DNA markers. In particular, DNA markers developed for the selection of useful traits, such as pod-shattering resistance and bacterial leaf pustule resistance present in foreign germplasms, have facilitated the precise introgression of only the desired alleles from genetically divergent foreign germplasms into Japanese backgrounds. By increasing selection efficiency and shortening breeding cycles, these advances have substantially contributed to the recent improvements in Japanese soybean breeding. The present review consolidates findings on genetic variations identified in Japanese cultivars and breeding materials, which have been investigated for the development of such DNA markers, and from knowledge expected to contribute to future soybean breeding in Japan.