Progressive Water Deficit Impairs Soybean Growth, Alters Metabolic Profiles, and Decreases Photosynthetic Efficiency

Soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) is highly sensitive to water deficit, particularly during the vegetative phase, when morphological and metabolic plasticity support continued growth and photosynthetic efficiency. We applied eleven water regimes, from full irrigation (W100) to total water withholding (W0), to plants grown under controlled conditions. After 14 days, we quantified morphophysiological, biochemical, leaf optical, gas exchange, and chlorophyll a fluorescence traits. Drought induces significant reductions in leaf area, biomass, pigment pools, and photosynthetic rates (A, g_s, ΦPSII) while increasing the levels of oxidative stress markers (electrolyte leakage, ROS) and proline accumulation. OJIP transients and JIP test metrics revealed reduced electron-transport efficiency and increased energy dissipation for many parameters under severe stress. Principal component analysis (PCA) clearly separated those treatments. PC1 captured growth and water status variation, whereas PC2 reflected photoprotective adjustments. These data show that progressive drought limits carbon assimilation via coordinated diffusive and biochemical constraints and that the accumulation of proline, phenolics, and lignin is associated with osmotic adjustment, antioxidant buffering, and cell wall reinforcement under stress. The combined use of hyperspectral sensors, gas exchange, chlorophyll fluorescence, and multivariate analyses for phenotyping offers a rapid, nondestructive diagnostic tool for assessing drought severity and the possibility of selecting drought-resistant genotypes and phenotypes in a changing stress environment.