Rapid physiological trait measurements of crops using the dynamic assimilation technique

Abstract

Quantifying crop responses to increasing temperatures is critical for predicting the productivity and sustainability of agricultural systems under environmental change. Physiological trait data associated with Rubisco carboxylation ( V cmax ) and electron transport ( J max ) rates are especially important predictors of crop response to elevated temperatures. However, when generating V cmax and J max data, steady-state methods of gas exchange measurements are time-consuming; thus, non-steady-state methods have been developed to obtain these measurements faster, prospectively allowing for trait data collection of considerably more varieties of crops. Globally important and geographically widespread vineyards are of particular interest due to the high economic value and the susceptibility of these managed systems to climate warming, especially in Canada, where the annual rate of warming far exceeds global averages. In this study, we examined the efficacy of the high-throughput, non-steady-state dynamic assimilation technique (DAT) for obtaining V cmax and J max data from wine grapes. Specifically, we measured V cmax and J max (alongside leaf nitrogen [N] concentrations and leaf mass per unit area [LMA]) across seven of the world’s most common wine grape ( Vitis vinifera L.) varieties, namely, Cabernet franc, Cabernet sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot noir, Riesling, Sauvignon blanc, and Viognier. Our results show that V cmax and J max estimates derived from the DAT were strongly correlated to those obtained through steady-state methods ( r 2 =0.748 and 0.908, respectively), and J max did not differ significantly between the two methods. Additionally, leaf N explained 43-46% and 56-58% of the variation in V cmax and J max , respectively, across both methods. Our results suggest the DAT represents a viable tool for rapidly estimating intraspecific variation in important physiological traits and allows for increased replication and the inclusion of additional varieties when evaluating the responses of wine grape and other crops to elevated temperatures.

Plant phenotyping relevance

作物の生理形質（V cmax、J max）を迅速に取得する動的同化法を開発・検証し、定常状態法との比較で妥当性を評価しているため、植物フェノタイピング手法が中心である。

Code and data availability

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