Applying high-throughput phenotyping to plant-insect interactions: picturing more resistant crops

Through automated image collection and analysis, high-throughput phenotyping (HTP) systems non-destructively quantify a diversity of traits in large plant populations. Some platforms collect data in greenhouses or growth chambers while others are field-based. Platforms also vary in the number and type of sensors, including visible, fluorescence, infrared, hyperspectral, and three-dimensional cameras that can detect traits within and beyond the visible spectrum. These systems could be applied to quantify the impact of herbivores on plant health, to monitor herbivores in choice or no-choice bioassays, or to estimate plant properties such as defensive allelochemicals. By increasing the throughput, precision, and dimensionality of these measures, HTP has the potential to revolutionize the field of plant-insect interactions, including breeding programs for resistance and tolerance.