A nondestructive method to estimate the chlorophyll content of Arabidopsis seedlings
Abstract Background Chlorophyll content decreases in plants under stress conditions, therefore it is used commonly as an indicator of plant health. Arabidopsis thaliana offers a convenient and fast way to test physiological phenotypes of mutations and treatments. However, chlorophyll measurements wi...
Main Authors: | , , , , , |
---|---|
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
BMC
2017-04-01
|
Series: | Plant Methods |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13007-017-0174-6 |
id |
doaj-b02e2b32464c44faa9167d78b44f3718 |
---|---|
record_format |
Article |
spelling |
doaj-b02e2b32464c44faa9167d78b44f37182020-11-25T00:27:51ZengBMCPlant Methods1746-48112017-04-0113111010.1186/s13007-017-0174-6A nondestructive method to estimate the chlorophyll content of Arabidopsis seedlingsYing Liang0Daisuke Urano1Kang-Ling Liao2Tyson L. Hedrick3Yajun Gao4Alan M. Jones5Department of Biology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel HillDepartment of Biology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel HillDepartment of Biology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel HillDepartment of Biology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel HillCollege of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F UniversityDepartment of Biology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel HillAbstract Background Chlorophyll content decreases in plants under stress conditions, therefore it is used commonly as an indicator of plant health. Arabidopsis thaliana offers a convenient and fast way to test physiological phenotypes of mutations and treatments. However, chlorophyll measurements with conventional solvent extraction are not applicable to Arabidopsis leaves due to their small size, especially when grown on culture dishes. Results We provide a nondestructive method for chlorophyll measurement whereby the red, green and blue (RGB) values of a color leaf image is used to estimate the chlorophyll content from Arabidopsis leaves. The method accommodates different profiles of digital cameras by incorporating the ColorChecker chart to make the digital negative profiles, to adjust the white balance, and to calibrate the exposure rate differences caused by the environment so that this method is applicable in any environment. We chose an exponential function model to estimate chlorophyll content from the RGB values, and fitted the model parameters with physical measurements of chlorophyll contents. As proof of utility, this method was used to estimate chlorophyll content of G protein mutants grown on different sugar to nitrogen ratios. Conclusion This method is a simple, fast, inexpensive, and nondestructive estimation of chlorophyll content of Arabidopsis seedlings. This method lead to the discovery that G proteins are important in sensing the C/N balance to control chlorophyll content in Arabidopsis.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13007-017-0174-6Arabidopsis thalianaC/N sensingChlorophyll contentColorChecker chartHeterotrimeric G protein complexStress assay |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Ying Liang Daisuke Urano Kang-Ling Liao Tyson L. Hedrick Yajun Gao Alan M. Jones |
spellingShingle |
Ying Liang Daisuke Urano Kang-Ling Liao Tyson L. Hedrick Yajun Gao Alan M. Jones A nondestructive method to estimate the chlorophyll content of Arabidopsis seedlings Plant Methods Arabidopsis thaliana C/N sensing Chlorophyll content ColorChecker chart Heterotrimeric G protein complex Stress assay |
author_facet |
Ying Liang Daisuke Urano Kang-Ling Liao Tyson L. Hedrick Yajun Gao Alan M. Jones |
author_sort |
Ying Liang |
title |
A nondestructive method to estimate the chlorophyll content of Arabidopsis seedlings |
title_short |
A nondestructive method to estimate the chlorophyll content of Arabidopsis seedlings |
title_full |
A nondestructive method to estimate the chlorophyll content of Arabidopsis seedlings |
title_fullStr |
A nondestructive method to estimate the chlorophyll content of Arabidopsis seedlings |
title_full_unstemmed |
A nondestructive method to estimate the chlorophyll content of Arabidopsis seedlings |
title_sort |
nondestructive method to estimate the chlorophyll content of arabidopsis seedlings |
publisher |
BMC |
series |
Plant Methods |
issn |
1746-4811 |
publishDate |
2017-04-01 |
description |
Abstract Background Chlorophyll content decreases in plants under stress conditions, therefore it is used commonly as an indicator of plant health. Arabidopsis thaliana offers a convenient and fast way to test physiological phenotypes of mutations and treatments. However, chlorophyll measurements with conventional solvent extraction are not applicable to Arabidopsis leaves due to their small size, especially when grown on culture dishes. Results We provide a nondestructive method for chlorophyll measurement whereby the red, green and blue (RGB) values of a color leaf image is used to estimate the chlorophyll content from Arabidopsis leaves. The method accommodates different profiles of digital cameras by incorporating the ColorChecker chart to make the digital negative profiles, to adjust the white balance, and to calibrate the exposure rate differences caused by the environment so that this method is applicable in any environment. We chose an exponential function model to estimate chlorophyll content from the RGB values, and fitted the model parameters with physical measurements of chlorophyll contents. As proof of utility, this method was used to estimate chlorophyll content of G protein mutants grown on different sugar to nitrogen ratios. Conclusion This method is a simple, fast, inexpensive, and nondestructive estimation of chlorophyll content of Arabidopsis seedlings. This method lead to the discovery that G proteins are important in sensing the C/N balance to control chlorophyll content in Arabidopsis. |
topic |
Arabidopsis thaliana C/N sensing Chlorophyll content ColorChecker chart Heterotrimeric G protein complex Stress assay |
url |
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13007-017-0174-6 |
work_keys_str_mv |
AT yingliang anondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT daisukeurano anondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT kanglingliao anondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT tysonlhedrick anondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT yajungao anondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT alanmjones anondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT yingliang nondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT daisukeurano nondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT kanglingliao nondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT tysonlhedrick nondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT yajungao nondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings AT alanmjones nondestructivemethodtoestimatethechlorophyllcontentofarabidopsisseedlings |
_version_ |
1725338128196042752 |