Modelling biophoton emission kinetics based on the initial intensity value in Helianthus annuus plants exposed to different types of stress

Zsolt Pónya,Katalin Somfalvi-Tóth

doi:10.1038/s41598-022-06323-3

Zsolt Pónya, Katalin Somfalvi-Tóth

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-06323-3

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Abstract

Biophoton radiation also referred to as ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) is used to denote a spontaneous and permanent photon emission associated with oxidative processes in cells and seems to universally occur in all living systems as a result of the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that are produced under stress conditions. The measurement of this biophoton emission allows for a non-invasive approach in monitoring phenological stages throughout plant development which has direct relevance in agriculture research. In this study, the emission of photons emanating from sunflower (Helianthus annuus, L.) plants exposed to biotic and abiotic stress has been investigated. In healthy plants raised under controlled growth conditions UPE was low whereas in stressed individuals it considerably increased; particularly upon water stress. The kinetics of the signal is shown to reveal an exponential decay with characteristic dynamics, which appears to reflect different physiological states concomitantly setting in upon stress. The dynamics of the signal decay is shown to vary according to the type of stress applied (biotic vs. abiotic) hence suggesting a putative relationship between the kinetic traits of change in the signal intensity-decay and stress. Intriguingly, the determination of the change in the intensity of biophoton emission that ensued in a short time course was possible by using the initial biophoton emission intensity. The predictability level of the equations demonstrated the applicability of the model in a corroborative manner when employing it in independent UPE-measurements, thus permitting to forecast the intensity change in a very accurate way over a short time course. Our findings allow the notion that albeit stress confers complex and complicated changes on oxidative metabolism in biological systems, the employment of biophoton imaging offers a feasible method making it possible to monitor oxidative processes triggered by stress in a non-invasive and label-free way which has versatile applications especially in precision agriculture.

Highlights

Biophoton radiation referred to as ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) is used to denote a spontaneous and permanent photon emission associated with oxidative processes in cells and seems to universally occur in all living systems as a result of the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that are produced under stress conditions
The intensifying interest can be attributed to the observation that this ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) is associated with metabolic reactions, with the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), its measurement offers a non-invasive tool in stress physiological research
In light of global climate change scenarios depicting an ever-increasing number of stress factors, especially modern plant production practices can capitalise on biophoton imaging being a non-invasive technique, which makes the monitoring of the physiological states of crops throughout all the phenological phases possible at the whole organism level[25,26,27,28,29] and in cell suspensions[30]

Summary

Introduction

Biophoton radiation referred to as ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) is used to denote a spontaneous and permanent photon emission associated with oxidative processes in cells and seems to universally occur in all living systems as a result of the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that are produced under stress conditions. The measurement of this biophoton emission allows for a non-invasive approach in monitoring phenological stages throughout plant development which has direct relevance in agriculture research. There is a common agreement that when the subtle equilibrium between the concentration of ROS and antioxidants being responsible for protecting biologically active macromolecules from the damaging effect exerted by ROS tilts, biophoton emission is enhanced thereby rendering UPE-measurement a non-destructive and powerful method for monitoring the stress status of living o rganisms[14,33,34,35,36,37]

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