Design and demonstration of a lowfield magnetic resonance imaging rhizotron for infield imaging of energy sorghum roots
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AbstractRoot phenotyping provides critical information to plant breeders for developing varieties with improved drought tolerance, greater root biomass, and greater nutrient use efficiency. Phenotyping roots in the natural environment is important for understanding the effect of the soil environment on root genotypic expressions. The goal of this work was to design and test a fieldscale mobile lowfield magnetic resonance imaging (LFMRI) Rhizotron that produces actionable root phenotyping data. We demonstrated this novel technology for root visualization and quantification using a LFMRI Rhizotron operating at 47 mT with two soil types. The LFMRI Rhizotron weights 453kg, with a height of 90cm, a diameter of 28cm and an imaging field of view of 28cm 28cm. The unit was operated in a Belk clay (Entic Hapluderts) and Weswood silt loam (Udifluventic Halustepts) generating 2D and 3D image data sets. The 2D image data had a collection time of 16.5min per image at an image resolution of 2.2mm per pixel. The 3D data had a collection time of 13 h per image with a 2.22.22.2mm voxel resolution. Lowfield magnetic resonance imaging worked well for visualizing roots in moderate to high clay soils, demonstrating the potential for this technology; however, the broad application of this platform is hampered due to the prohibitively long scanning time to obtain 3D images. By increasing the field strength, and therefore the signaltonoise ratio, faster scan times can enable a more useful system for root phenotyping.
Bagnall, G. C., Altobelli, S. A., Conradi, M. S., Fabich, H. T., Fukushima, E., Koonjoo, N., ... Morgan, C.
complete list of authors
Bagnall, G Cody||Altobelli, Stephen A||Conradi, Mark S||Fabich, Hilary T||Fukushima, Eiichi||Koonjoo, Neha||Kuethe, Dean O||Rooney, William L||Stupic, Karl F||Sveinsson, Bragi||Weers, Brock||Rajan, Nithya||Rosen, Matthew S||Morgan, Cristine LS
