High‐throughput physiological phenotyping and screening system for the characterization of plant–environment interactions

• Published in: The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology Vol. 89; no. 4; pp. 839 - 850
• Main Authors: Halperin, Ofer, Gebremedhin, Alem, Wallach, Rony, Moshelion, Menachem
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.02.2017
• Subjects: Biomass; Botany; Ecology; Environment; Environmental conditions; functional phenotyping; Genotype; Genotype & phenotype; genotype‐by‐environment interaction; Phenotype; phenotyping plant stress response; Photosynthesis; Plant Roots - metabolism; Plant Stomata - metabolism; Plant Transpiration; root flux; Soils; soil–plant–atmosphere continuum; technical advance; transpiration; Water - metabolism; whole‐plant water relation; functional phenotyping; phenotyping plant stress response; transpiration; root flux; technical advance; genotype-by-environment interaction; soil-plant-atmosphere continuum; whole-plant water relation
• ISSN: 0960-7412; 1365-313X
• DOI: 10.1111/tpj.13425

Summary We present a simple and effective high‐throughput experimental platform for simultaneous and continuous monitoring of water relations in the soil–plant–atmosphere continuum of numerous plants under dynamic environmental conditions. This system provides a simultaneously measured, detailed physiological response profile for each plant in the array, over time periods ranging from a few minutes to the entire growing season, under normal, stress and recovery conditions and at any phenological stage. Three probes for each pot in the array and a specially designed algorithm enable detailed water‐relations characterization of whole‐plant transpiration, biomass gain, stomatal conductance and root flux. They also enable quantitative calculation of the whole plant water‐use efficiency and relative water content at high resolution under dynamic soil and atmospheric conditions. The system has no moving parts and can fit into many growing environments. A screening of 65 introgression lines of a wild tomato species (Solanum pennellii) crossed with cultivated tomato (S. lycopersicum), using our system and conventional gas‐exchange tools, confirmed the accuracy of the system as well as its diagnostic capabilities. The use of this high‐throughput diagnostic screening method is discussed in light of the gaps in our understanding of the genetic regulation of whole‐plant performance, particularly under abiotic stress. Significance Statement Fast and accurate phenotyping remains a bottleneck in the effort to enhance yields in water‐limited and other stressful environments. Here we present a non‐invasive high‐throughput platform for simultaneous and continuous monitoring of water relations in the soil–plant–atmosphere continuum of numerous plants under dynamic environmental conditions.