Development of Software for Assisting High-Throughput Phenotyping in Citrus Breeding

Investigation of morphological characteristics of harvested fruits is an essential process in citrus breeding. To enhance genomics-assisted crop improvement, more efficient, reliable, and high-throughput phenotyping methods are required. We developed two programs for assisting high-throughput phenotyping of harvested fruits, an image analysis software and digital note application. (1) IMAGE ANALYSIS SOFTWARE:  It is for investigation of morphological traits of cross sectional fruits by using digital pictures. A flatbed scanner is used for capturing digital images. Outlines of multiple citrus fruits in an image and flavedos of each fruit are automatically distinguished by an algorithm developed based on color segmentation. Then, multiple morphological characteristics of citrus fruits are simultaneously estimated, such as length, width, area, contour length and colors of fruits flesh and flavedos by programs in the software. (2) DIGITAL NOTE APPLICATION: We developed an application program for iPad device (Apple Inc.) that helps recording tasks of fruit trait investigation by tapping the displayed numeric or items, feeding short notes and shooting pictures. The scoring items can be easily changed according to the user’s demand. The developed software is expecting to assist in measuring and recording data in harvested fruits phenotyping. This work was supported by a grant from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries of Japan (Genomics-based Technology for Agricultural Improvement, NGB-3001, NGB-3002).