Non-intrusive technology to support food security worldwide
The World Economic Forum projects that by 2050, when there will be roughly 10 billion people on the planet, there will be a 60% increase in food demand compared to now, placing more strain on our food supplies.
Factors like as urbanization, soil degradation, pandemics, climate change, and wars all lead to a decrease in the amount of arable land available. In addition, the worrying problem of world hunger is exacerbated by pollution, poverty, political unrest, and water shortages. It is critically necessary to use disruptive, innovative strategies that support sustainable agriculture practices in order to boost crop output, help satisfy the growing need for food, and adapt to climate change.The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) research enterprise in Singapore, the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART), was founded in 2007 as a collaboration with the National Research Foundation of Singapore (NRF). To date, it is MIT’s only research center located outside of the United States. Additionally, it is the biggest foreign research program at MIT. SMART’s interdisciplinary research groups (IRGs) include the Disruptive and Sustainable Technologies for Agricultural Precision (DiSTAP), which is a joint venture between SMART and the Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory (TLL). It aims to address urgent problems with food production in Singapore and around the world. In order to meet the demand for food and energy worldwide, the DiSTAP program is creating a suite of innovative technologies that are radically altering the ways in which plant biosynthetic pathways are identified, tracked, developed, and eventually translated.
The development of Raman and nanosensor technologies at DiSTAP for real-time plant health monitoring and their transfer from the lab to the farm are briefly discussed in this article. With the use of these sensor technologies, farmers should be able to increase crop productivity while enhancing crop quality and adaptability.
Creation and effects of synthetic plant nanosensors
A viable method for optimizing crop growing techniques in high-tech urban farms to increase production is plant health monitoring. Under stress, plants are known to communicate a variety of internal biotic and abiotic signals. Farmers can learn a plethora of information about their crops’ growth, development, and health by looking for these stress-induced signaling molecules.
For examining the dynamics of various signaling chemicals within model plant species that are susceptible to genetic manipulation in a laboratory context, such as thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana), transgenic plants with genetically encoded biosensors are excellent
Without well-established genetic transformation methods, it is difficult to apply these genetically encoded biosensors to non-model plants that are useful to agriculture. For this reason, conventional mass spectrometry-based methods are still frequently used to quantify the amounts of plant metabolites in crops.2. But because they are labor-intensive and harmful, these technologies severely limit the capacity of plant health monitoring to influence daily farm management decisions.The development of non-destructive sensors in recent years has made it possible to monitor plant health more effectively by accessing physiological events in real time without the need to remove or chop up leaf samples.3. For the detection of plant hormones and signaling molecules in living plants, optical nanosensors based on near-infrared fluorescent carbon-based nanomaterials, such as single-walled carbon nanotubes, represent an appealing approach. Smaller than a hair’s breadth, these biocompatible nanosensors can be injected into plant tissues and cells to help them comprehend their intricate internal signaling systems. These cutting-edge sensing instruments gather vital biochemical information straight from the plants in urban farms and instantly alert farmers to the earliest indications of plant stress.
Stresses of different sorts, like fungal and bacterial infections, heat, and light, cause different plant responses, which include dynamic shifts in the endogenous levels of different plant hormones and metabolites. These plant hormones and metabolites can be detected in real-time and with reversibility thanks to nanosensors, which also record the temporal and spatial changes brought on by stress long before any outward signs of it are noticeable. Because of its extreme adaptability, this nanosensing platform can be used with a wide range of crop species that are important to agriculture.Six
Recent research has produced a plant nanosensor that is capable of selectively identifying hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) signaling waves in seven distinct plant species, such as thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana), lettuce (Lactuca sativa), arugula (Eruca sativa), spinach (Spinacia oleracea), strawberry blite (Blitum capitatum), and sorrel (Rumex acetosa).7.
Differentiating in amplitude, velocity, and full-width-half-maximum, H2O2 signaling waveforms are produced based on the kind of stress imposed on the plants. More multiplexing of the H2O2 sensor with other plant hormone sensors allows for simultaneous detection and a more precise identification of certain stress types. With the use of portable electronics, information from the nanosensors might also be remotely recorded, enabling the farmer to modify farming inputs like pesticides, fertilizer, and nutrients to reduce stress early and avoid possible crop damage.
Our understanding of plants’ physiological reactions to external stimuli in the early stages, before the emergence of somatic symptoms, has already been greatly enhanced by these nanosensing toolsets. Therefore, advancements in this field of study will be revolutionary in closing the knowledge gap between economically significant crops and the model plants frequently employed in plant biology labs.You may also like:
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creation of transportable Raman equipment to identify plant metabolites
Light scattering that is not elastic is called Raman scattering. Raman spectroscopy uses a laser to measure the molecular vibrations in a sample, and the resultant Raman spectrum can be used as a fingerprint to identify the material being studied. Real-time information is provided by this non-invasive technology. For instance, one may forecast the amount of antioxidants called carotenoids present in a leaf by illuminating it with a laser and measuring the Raman light that is scattered throughout. Similar to this, plant stressors like drought and nutrient deficiencies can be quickly identified using Raman technology before any outward signs appear.
Researchers at DiSTAP have created a portable Raman probe that attaches to a leaf and allows for the quick identification of plant metabolites, such as nitrates and carotenoids, in vivo. For the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana as well as two popular vegetable crops in Singapore, Pak Choi (Brassica rapa chinensis) and Choy Sum (Brassica rapa var. parachinensis), the leaf-clip Raman sensor has already been employed for early diagnosis of nitrogen deficit.
DiSTAP has created a quick way to identify and measure early innate immune reactions brought on by pathogen infection in Arabidopsis and Choy Sum (leafy vegetable) plants by using Raman spectral fingerprints.
Globally, plant diseases have a significant impact on food production. Using non-destructive sensors to track plant health is an appealing and sustainable way to raise crop quality. As demonstrated above, Raman technology can significantly simplify disease management by helping with early pathogen infection detection.In order to enhance agricultural practices in the future and raise total crop output and productivity, researchers are working to further develop these exact and predictive methods.