scholarly journals PhenoApp: A mobile tool for plant phenotyping to record field and greenhouse observations

F1000Research ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 12
Author(s):  
Franco Röckel ◽  
Toni Schreiber ◽  
Danuta Schüler ◽  
Ulrike Braun ◽  
Ina Krukenberg ◽  
...  

With the ongoing cost decrease of genotyping and sequencing technologies, accurate and fast phenotyping remains the bottleneck in the utilizing of plant genetic resources for breeding and breeding research. Although cost-efficient high-throughput phenotyping platforms are emerging for specific traits and/or species, manual phenotyping is still widely used and is a time- and money-consuming step. Approaches that improve data recording, processing or handling are pivotal steps towards the efficient use of genetic resources and are demanded by the research community. Therefore, we developed PhenoApp, an open-source Android app for tablets and smartphones to facilitate the digital recording of phenotypical data in the field and in greenhouses. It is a versatile tool that offers the possibility to fully customize the descriptors/scales for any possible scenario, also in accordance with international information standards such as MIAPPE (Minimum Information About a Plant Phenotyping Experiment) and FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) data principles. Furthermore, PhenoApp enables the use of pre-integrated ready-to-use BBCH (Biologische Bundesanstalt für Land- und Forstwirtschaft, Bundessortenamt und CHemische Industrie) scales for apple, cereals, grapevine, maize, potato, rapeseed and rice. Additional BBCH scales can easily be added. The simple and adaptable structure of input and output files enables an easy data handling by either spreadsheet software or even the integration in the workflow of laboratory information management systems (LIMS). PhenoApp is therefore a decisive contribution to increase efficiency of digital data acquisition in genebank management but also contributes to breeding and breeding research by accelerating the labour intensive and time-consuming acquisition of phenotyping data.

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ines Van den houwe ◽  
Rachel Chase ◽  
Julie Sardos ◽  
Max Ruas ◽  
Els Kempenaers ◽  
...  

AbstractThe CGIAR genebank International Musa Germplasm Transit Centre (ITC) currently holds 1617 banana accessions from 38 countries as an in vitro collection, backed-up by a cryopreserved collection to safeguard global Musa diversity in perpetuity. The ITC also serves as a vital safety backup and transit centre for national banana genebanks and ensures that germplasm is clean of pests and diseases and freely available under the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. In more than 35 years of activity, the ITC has distributed over 18,000 banana accession samples to researchers and farmers in 113 countries. Ex situ conservation of vegetatively-propagated crops such as banana poses very particular challenges. Maintaining the ITC genebank is labor intense and costly. Efficiencies are sought through research and development of techniques on detecting viruses, the genetic integrity of accessions, and on innovative means of safeguarding banana diversity, such as conserving populations of wild species by seed banking. Although the conservation of global banana diversity is the main objective of the ITC, significant value comes from its holistic approach to better understand and promote its germplasm through numerous research activities and resources. Techniques for morphological and molecular characterization serve to identify and describe the collection, while also determining what gaps should be filled by collecting missions with national partners. The evaluation of desirable agronomic traits inherent in Musa spp. are investigated by a high-throughput phenotyping platform, which helps breeding programs to select cultivars resistant or tolerant to biotic and abiotic stresses. Genomic and bioinformatic studies of several banana wild relatives greatly enhance our understanding of Musa genetic diversity, links to important phenotypic traits and bring new methods for management of the collection. Collectively, these research activities produce enormous amounts of data that require curation and dissemination to the public. The two information systems at the ITC, Musa Genebank Management System and the Musa Germplasm Information System, serve to manage the genebank activities and to make public germplasm-related data for over 30 banana collections worldwide, respectively. By implementing the 10-year workplan set out in the Global Strategy for the Conservation and Use of Musa Genetic Resources, the network MusaNet supports Musa researchers and stakeholders, including the ITC, and most importantly, links to the world’s banana-producing countries via three regional banana networks.


2014 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 298-307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rob van Treuren ◽  
Theo J. L. van Hintum

Advances in sequencing technologies have made it possible to analyse large amounts of germplasm against low production costs, which has opened the door to screen genebank collections more efficiently for DNA sequence variation. The present study explores how these developments may affect the operations of genebanks and, consequently, how genebank agendas may change. It is argued that the new developments are more likely to have an impact on the user-oriented activities than the housekeeping operations of genebanks. To better facilitate the user community, genebanks may have to strengthen their core business, in particular, by improving quality management procedures and by providing access to a wider diversity of a crop's gene pool. In addition, genebanks may have to provide novel services, such as the introduction of specific user-oriented collection types, including research populations and genetically purified lines, and the development of novel information services, including plant genetic resources portals that should guide users to the information and materials of specific interest. To improve their user-oriented services, genebanks need to increase their communication and collaboration with the user community and to develop strategic alliances with this sector.


Food Security ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 919-927 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas Gollin

Abstract New challenges have arrived for the conservation of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. Increased pressure on the environment, including the added threat of climate change, has had adverse effects on biodiversity and agricultural systems. Emerging science and new technologies have at the same time altered the scope of possibilities for collection, conservation, and utilization of genetic resources for agriculture. Taken together, these changes imply a need for a refocusing of global strategies for the management of genetic resources for agriculture. This paper argues that simple theoretical models provide relatively little guidance for key questions about genebank management. The fundamental uncertainty of scientific possibility and global futures makes it challenging – and perhaps futile – to attempt economic valuation of gene banks. A more useful application of economic tools will be in the prioritization of collection and conservation. Economic analysis may also offer useful insights into the efficient management of genetic resources.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos H. Galeano ◽  
Katherine Tehelen ◽  
Hugo R. Jiménez ◽  
Carolina González ◽  
Ivania Cerón-Souza

AbstractAgrosavia (Corporación Colombiana de Investigación Agropecuaria) is the Colombian state institution in charge of the agricultural research at the national level, including plant breeding. Since 2014, Agrosavia started to increase its research staff and has reset the leadership of public research to solve the needs of the agricultural sector population, focusing on small producers. However, the current team working on plant breeding and plant genetic resources are facing some challenges associated with generation gaps and the lack of a collaborative working plan for the next years. To identify the opportunities and actions in this research area, we surveyed all the 52 researchers working in Agrosavia in this area in 2017. We analyzed the opinions of researchers to detect the strengths and weaknesses of the program using a sentiment score. We also examined the networking to test both how consolidated the group is and if among top leaders are gender parity and also have a higher academic degree. Results showed that there is a mixed community of old and new researchers with clear gender bias in the proportion of male-female. Within the network, the interactions are weak, with several subgroups where the top-ten of both central leaders and the most influencer are frequently males with mostly an M.Sc. degree but with significant experience in the area. Researchers have an interest in 31 crops. From them, 26 are in the national germplasm bank, but this bank is not the primary source for their breeding programs. The top-five of plants with increasing interest are corn, cocoa tree, golden berries, oil palm, and sugarcane. Researchers also want to establish collaborations with 54 different institutions, where the Universidad Nacional de Colombia, which is the top public university in the country, is on the head. Researchers also perceived weaknesses in the marker-assisted selection, experimental design, and participatory plant breeding, but those criticisms have a positive sentiment score average of 1.55 (0.3 SE) across 31 texts analyzed. Based on all results, we identified five critical strategic principles to improve the plant-breeding research program. They include a gender diversity policy to hire new researchers strategically to reduce the gender gap and strength the generational shift. Better collaboration between the national germplasm bank and plant breeding research. A coordinate plan where the studies focus on food security crops that the government supports independently of market trends. And finally, adequate spaces for the project’s design and training programs. Hence, we recommend the creation of a consultant group to implement these policies progressively in the next years.


Planta Medica ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 78 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
JS Sung ◽  
CW Jeong ◽  
YY Lee ◽  
HS Lee ◽  
YA Jeon ◽  
...  

2017 ◽  
Vol 52 (6) ◽  
pp. 1116-1128 ◽  
Author(s):  
N.I. Dzyubenko ◽  
◽  
E.A. Dzyubenko ◽  
E.K. Potokina ◽  
S.V. Bulyntsev ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
N. V. Kulyakina ◽  
G. A. Kuzmitskaya ◽  
T. K. Yurechko

The downy mildew (peronosporosis) is the most dangerous and harmful cucumber disease in the Far-Eastern region. Its harmfulness is the highest during the period of flowering – fruiting, because it may completely ruin the cucumber plants both in open and protected ground. Use of cucumber sorts with effective genes that are resistant to the disease is the most efficient way to fight cucumber peronosporosis. In this connection the publication adduces the facts of study the sorts and hybrids of different ecological and geographical origin from the genetic resources collection of the N.I. Vavilov All-Russian Institute of Plant Genetic Resources (VIR) in comparison with three zoned sorts of DV NIISH selection – Mig, Khabar, Amurchonok. The aim of researches – to identify the sort samples cucumber according to the main economically valuable traits and also to the degree resistance of genetypes to the main disease of the culture in the region – downy mildew (peronosporosis), for allow to select the source material for the creation of sorts and hybrids, highly productive and resistant to biotic and abiotic stress environmental factors in the monsoon climate conditions of Khabarovsk region. The perspective genetypes having both the resistance to the diseases and productivity are not revealed as a result of the evaluation of the collection of cucumber samples according to their susceptibility by fungus diseases and productivity. Slavyanskiy (Belarus) is more resistant to peronosporosis, especially in 2016 year conditions, although it was inferior to the damage degree of disease to the zoned sorts – Mig, Khabar, Amurchonok. This perspective sample is planned to be used as a source of donors of the main economically valuable traits in a further selective work.


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