DEEPER: An integrative platform for deeper roots Molly Hanlon1, Malcolm Bennett2, Kathleen M. Brown1, Alexander Bucksch3, Paul Heinemann4, Shawn Kaeppler5, Natalia de Leon5, Sacha Mooney2, Tony Pridmore2, Jonathan P. Lynch1,2. Email:
[email protected]
1. Department of Plant Science, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA. 2. Centre for Plant Integrative Biology, School of Biosciences, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington, UK. 3. Department of Plant Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA. 4. Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA. 5. Department of Agronomy, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI.
DEEPER is a multiplatform phenotyping and technology effort to discover traits and genes resulting in deeper rooted maize cultivars that are better at obtaining water and nitrogen under limiting conditions. We are advancing current technologies and software, including laser ablation tomography (LAT), xray fluorescence, DIRT3D, and SimRoot, and developing new technologies, including RootRobot, to advance and improve phenotyping. Information about traits and genes will be incorporated into genomic selection models to produce elite lines with deeper roots. Architectural and anatomical root trait discovery via field work and in silico modeling in SimRoot. Root anatomical traits captured via laser ablation tomography in 3D and analyzed via machine learning algorithms in RootScan3D
PHENOTYPING ROOT DEPTH
PHENOTYPING TRAITS REGULATING ROOT DEPTH
TRAIT DISCOVERY
BREEDING TOOLKIT
Anatomics •
Trait Discovery Comparison of contrasting phenotypes in multiple environments: in silico, multiple field sites, N stress, water stress
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LAT 2.0: high throughput imaging of root anatomy and composition RootScan3D: software for 3D analysis of root anatomy and compositoin
RootRobot/Dirt3D • •
RootRobot: automatic excavation and imaging of root architecture in the field DIRT3D: software for automated 3D analysis of root architecture
SimRoot/deep • •
Model interaction of root anatomy and architecture with deep rooting Ideotype generation and testing
DeepGenes
LEADER • • • •
DeepGenes incorporates genes and traits into genomic selection models, resulting in maize lines with deeper roots.
Evaluation of hybrids across multiple locations to discover genes, parents, genomic selection models for breeding elite lines with deeper roots
Field phenotyping of root depth Nondestructive 2 min/plant portable
New maize lines with deeper rooting
LEADER (leaf elemental accumulation for deep roots) uses handheld xray fluorescence technology to identify deep rooted cultivars in the field in less than two minutes
Advances in root phenotyping through RootRobot, a tractor-pulled root crown excavator and imaging unit. RootRobot will excavate 1 plant every 6 seconds. Multiple images will be collected per root crown and analyzed and reconstructed into 3D root models via DIRT3D software.
Tracer element banded at depth Element 1 Shallow
Element 2 Deep
