Machine learning helps plant science turn over a new leaf

LA JOLLA--(October 7, 2019) Father of genetics Gregor Mendel spent years tediously observing and measuring pea plant traits by hand in the 1800s to uncover the basics of genetic inheritance. Today, botanists can track the traits, or phenotypes, of hundreds or thousands of plants much more quickly, with automated camera systems. Now, Salk researchers have helped speed up plant phenotyping even more, with machine-learning algorithms that teach a computer system to analyze three-dimensional shapes of the branches and leaves of a plant. The study, published in Plant Physiology on October 7, 2019, may help scientists better quantify how plants respond to climate change, genetic mutations or other factors. "What we've done is develop a suite of tools that helps address some common phenotyping challenges," says Saket Navlakha, an associate professor in Salk's Integrative Biology Laboratory and Pioneer Fund Developmental Chair.