Amino acids emitted and extracted from surface-sterilized larvae and adults of Heterodera glycines were identified by paper chromatography and quantitatively analyzed by column chromatography. Five amino acids (alanine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, glycine and serine) were emitted by H. glycines larvae and eight others (asparagine, glutamine, leucine/isoleucine, lysine, methionine sulfoxide, threonine, tyrosine, valine/methionine) were found in extracts from crushed larvae.In addition to the amino acids emitted or extracted from larvae, four others were emitted by adults (gamma-aminobutyric acid, histidine, phenylalanine, and proline). Four different amino acids (arginine, cystathionine, hydroxyproline, and ornithine) were found only in the extract from crushed adults. Greater quantities of alanine, aspartic acid and glycine were emitted than could be detected in nematode extracts suggesting selective emission.Subsamples of nematode populations were taken from growing plants 19, 26, 33, and 40 days after inoculation and extracted to determine whether changes in specific amino acid content correlated with aging. Proline content shifted most, increasing from 4.1% to 21.5% of the total amino acid complement from the 19th to the 40th days.