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A Telemetric, Gravimetric Platform for Real-Time Physiological Phenotyping of Plant–Environment Interactions
Published on: August 5, 2020
12.5K
Chemical Sensing in Real Time with Plants Using a Webcam
Xingcai Qin1, Ying Zhu1, Jingjing Yu1
1State Key Laboratory of Analytical Chemistry for Life Science, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering , Nanjing University , Nanjing 210023 , China.
Analytical Chemistry
|October 3, 2018
Summary
Plants can detect air pollution in real time. Mosses, with their unique cellular structure, rapidly change color and shape when exposed to sulfur dioxide, enabling environmental monitoring.
Area of Science:
- Plant biology
- Environmental science
- Biotechnology
Background:
- Plants possess chemosensory capabilities, enabling adaptation to environmental chemical changes.
- Real-time monitoring of air quality is crucial for environmental and health protection.
Purpose of the Study:
- To demonstrate that plants can rapidly detect airborne chemicals for real-time air pollution tracking.
- To investigate the potential of mosses as biological sensors for sulfur dioxide.
Main Methods:
- Utilized mosses as biological sensors due to their monolayered cellular structure and high surface-to-volume ratio.
- Employed a simple webcam and image-processing algorithm to detect subtle leaf color and shape changes in response to sulfur dioxide exposure.
- Assessed sensor linearity, concentration range, and tolerance to humidity variations and chemical interference.
Main Results:
- Mosses exhibited rapid and detectable color and shape changes upon exposure to sulfur dioxide.
- The plant sensor demonstrated a linear response to sulfur dioxide across a wide concentration range (0-180 ppm).
- The sensor showed tolerance to humidity variations (15-85% RH) and chemical interference, with self-regeneration capabilities.
Conclusions:
- Mosses can serve as effective, low-cost biological sensors for real-time air pollution detection, specifically sulfur dioxide.
- The integration of plants with low-cost imagers offers a novel approach to environmental monitoring and chemical hazard alerts.
- Genetic engineering holds potential for further enhancing the chemical-sensing capabilities of plants.
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