Low-cost and automated phenotyping system “Phenomenon” for multi-sensor in situ monitoring in plant in vitro culture

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  • Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences
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Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number42
JournalPLANT METHODS
Volume19
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - 2 May 2023

Abstract

Background: The current development of sensor technologies towards ever more cost-effective and powerful systems is steadily increasing the application of low-cost sensors in different horticultural sectors. In plant in vitro culture, as a fundamental technique for plant breeding and plant propagation, the majority of evaluation methods to describe the performance of these cultures are based on destructive approaches, limiting data to unique endpoint measurements. Therefore, a non-destructive phenotyping system capable of automated, continuous and objective quantification of in vitro plant traits is desirable. Results: An automated low-cost multi-sensor system acquiring phenotypic data of plant in vitro cultures was developed and evaluated. Unique hardware and software components were selected to construct a xyz-scanning system with an adequate accuracy for consistent data acquisition. Relevant plant growth predictors, such as projected area of explants and average canopy height were determined employing multi-sensory imaging and various developmental processes could be monitored and documented. The validation of the RGB image segmentation pipeline using a random forest classifier revealed very strong correlation with manual pixel annotation. Depth imaging by a laser distance sensor of plant in vitro cultures enabled the description of the dynamic behavior of the average canopy height, the maximum plant height, but also the culture media height and volume. Projected plant area in depth data by RANSAC (random sample consensus) segmentation approach well matched the projected plant area by RGB image processing pipeline. In addition, a successful proof of concept for in situ spectral fluorescence monitoring was achieved and challenges of thermal imaging were documented. Potential use cases for the digital quantification of key performance parameters in research and commercial application are discussed. Conclusion: The technical realization of “Phenomenon” allows phenotyping of plant in vitro cultures under highly challenging conditions and enables multi-sensory monitoring through closed vessels, ensuring the aseptic status of the cultures. Automated sensor application in plant tissue culture promises great potential for a non-destructive growth analysis enhancing commercial propagation as well as enabling research with novel digital parameters recorded over time.

Keywords

    Chlorophyll fluorescence, Image analysis, Laser distance sensor, Non-destructive growth analysis, Plant tissue culture, RGB imaging, Spectrometer, Thermal sensor

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
  • Biotechnology
  • Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
  • Genetics
  • Agricultural and Biological Sciences(all)
  • Plant Science

Cite this

Low-cost and automated phenotyping system “Phenomenon” for multi-sensor in situ monitoring in plant in vitro culture. / Bethge, Hans; Winkelmann, Traud; Lüdeke, Patrick et al.
In: PLANT METHODS, Vol. 19, No. 1, 42, 02.05.2023.

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer review

Bethge H, Winkelmann T, Lüdeke P, Rath T. Low-cost and automated phenotyping system “Phenomenon” for multi-sensor in situ monitoring in plant in vitro culture. PLANT METHODS. 2023 May 2;19(1):42. doi: 10.1186/s13007-023-01111-0, 10.1186/s13007-023-01018-w
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title = "Low-cost and automated phenotyping system “Phenomenon” for multi-sensor in situ monitoring in plant in vitro culture",
abstract = "Background: The current development of sensor technologies towards ever more cost-effective and powerful systems is steadily increasing the application of low-cost sensors in different horticultural sectors. In plant in vitro culture, as a fundamental technique for plant breeding and plant propagation, the majority of evaluation methods to describe the performance of these cultures are based on destructive approaches, limiting data to unique endpoint measurements. Therefore, a non-destructive phenotyping system capable of automated, continuous and objective quantification of in vitro plant traits is desirable. Results: An automated low-cost multi-sensor system acquiring phenotypic data of plant in vitro cultures was developed and evaluated. Unique hardware and software components were selected to construct a xyz-scanning system with an adequate accuracy for consistent data acquisition. Relevant plant growth predictors, such as projected area of explants and average canopy height were determined employing multi-sensory imaging and various developmental processes could be monitored and documented. The validation of the RGB image segmentation pipeline using a random forest classifier revealed very strong correlation with manual pixel annotation. Depth imaging by a laser distance sensor of plant in vitro cultures enabled the description of the dynamic behavior of the average canopy height, the maximum plant height, but also the culture media height and volume. Projected plant area in depth data by RANSAC (random sample consensus) segmentation approach well matched the projected plant area by RGB image processing pipeline. In addition, a successful proof of concept for in situ spectral fluorescence monitoring was achieved and challenges of thermal imaging were documented. Potential use cases for the digital quantification of key performance parameters in research and commercial application are discussed. Conclusion: The technical realization of “Phenomenon” allows phenotyping of plant in vitro cultures under highly challenging conditions and enables multi-sensory monitoring through closed vessels, ensuring the aseptic status of the cultures. Automated sensor application in plant tissue culture promises great potential for a non-destructive growth analysis enhancing commercial propagation as well as enabling research with novel digital parameters recorded over time.",
keywords = "Chlorophyll fluorescence, Image analysis, Laser distance sensor, Non-destructive growth analysis, Plant tissue culture, RGB imaging, Spectrometer, Thermal sensor",
author = "Hans Bethge and Traud Winkelmann and Patrick L{\"u}deke and Thomas Rath",
note = "Funding Information: Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL. This project took place within the research project “Experimentierfeld Agro-Nordwest”, which is funded by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL, Grant No.: 28DE103F18) via the Federal Agency for Agriculture and Food (BLE). ",
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AU - Bethge, Hans

AU - Winkelmann, Traud

AU - Lüdeke, Patrick

AU - Rath, Thomas

N1 - Funding Information: Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL. This project took place within the research project “Experimentierfeld Agro-Nordwest”, which is funded by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL, Grant No.: 28DE103F18) via the Federal Agency for Agriculture and Food (BLE).

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N2 - Background: The current development of sensor technologies towards ever more cost-effective and powerful systems is steadily increasing the application of low-cost sensors in different horticultural sectors. In plant in vitro culture, as a fundamental technique for plant breeding and plant propagation, the majority of evaluation methods to describe the performance of these cultures are based on destructive approaches, limiting data to unique endpoint measurements. Therefore, a non-destructive phenotyping system capable of automated, continuous and objective quantification of in vitro plant traits is desirable. Results: An automated low-cost multi-sensor system acquiring phenotypic data of plant in vitro cultures was developed and evaluated. Unique hardware and software components were selected to construct a xyz-scanning system with an adequate accuracy for consistent data acquisition. Relevant plant growth predictors, such as projected area of explants and average canopy height were determined employing multi-sensory imaging and various developmental processes could be monitored and documented. The validation of the RGB image segmentation pipeline using a random forest classifier revealed very strong correlation with manual pixel annotation. Depth imaging by a laser distance sensor of plant in vitro cultures enabled the description of the dynamic behavior of the average canopy height, the maximum plant height, but also the culture media height and volume. Projected plant area in depth data by RANSAC (random sample consensus) segmentation approach well matched the projected plant area by RGB image processing pipeline. In addition, a successful proof of concept for in situ spectral fluorescence monitoring was achieved and challenges of thermal imaging were documented. Potential use cases for the digital quantification of key performance parameters in research and commercial application are discussed. Conclusion: The technical realization of “Phenomenon” allows phenotyping of plant in vitro cultures under highly challenging conditions and enables multi-sensory monitoring through closed vessels, ensuring the aseptic status of the cultures. Automated sensor application in plant tissue culture promises great potential for a non-destructive growth analysis enhancing commercial propagation as well as enabling research with novel digital parameters recorded over time.

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KW - Plant tissue culture

KW - RGB imaging

KW - Spectrometer

KW - Thermal sensor

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