title: Growth of Arabidopsis thaliana and Eutrema salsugineum in a closed growing system designed for quantification of plant water use.
abstract: The identification of genetic determinants for water-use efficiency (WUE) and their incorporation into crop plants is critical as world water resources are predicted to become less stable over the coming decades. However, quantification of WUE in small model species such as Arabidopsis is difficult because of low plant water loss relative to root zone evaporation. Furthermore, measurements of long-term WUE are labor-intensive and time-consuming. A novel high-throughput closed-container growing system for measuring plant WUE is described. The system eliminates nearly all water loss from the media and does not require irrigation throughout the duration of a typical experiment. Using the model species Arabidopsis thaliana and Eutrema salsugineum, it was confirmed that under growth chamber conditions, this system: (1) eliminates the need for irrigation for as much as 30 days with media water content remaining above 80% full capacity; (2) allows for quantification of WUE in plants with a leaf area as small as ca. 20 cm(2); (3) does not inhibit plant growth; and (4) does not alter media conditions outside of an acceptable range for these species. The growing system provides an efficient high-throughput system for quantifying plant water loss and WUE.
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany & Plant Pathology, Purdue University, 915 W. State St., West Lafayette, IN 47907-2054, United States. Electronic address: jfsandovalp@unal.edu.co.
authors.forename: Jhon F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Sandoval
authors.affiliation: Department of Horticulture & Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, 625 Agriculture Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2010, United States. Electronic address: chanyul.yoo@ucr.edu.
authors.forename: Chan Yul
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Yoo
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany & Plant Pathology, Purdue University, 915 W. State St., West Lafayette, IN 47907-2054, United States; Department of Horticulture & Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, 625 Agriculture Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2010, United States. Electronic address: mjgosney@purdue.edu.
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Gosney
authors.affiliation: Department of Botany & Plant Pathology, Purdue University, 915 W. State St., West Lafayette, IN 47907-2054, United States; Department of Horticulture & Landscape Architecture, Purdue University, 625 Agriculture Mall Drive, West Lafayette, IN 47907-2010, United States. Electronic address: mickelbart@purdue.edu.
authors.forename: Michael V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Mickelbart
mesh_terms: D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology* / Q000528:radiation effects; D019607:Brassicaceae / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology* / Q000528:radiation effects; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D008027:Light; D010641:Phenotype; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects; D018526:Plant Transpiration; D036226:Seedlings / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects; D014867:Water / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D014867:Water
keywords: Growing media; Light response; Methodology; Plant growth; Transpiration; Water-use efficiency