Hamburg 2009 – scientific programme
Parts | Days | Selection | Search | Downloads | Help
UP: Fachverband Umweltphysik
UP 5: Boden- und Agrarphysik
UP 5.2: Talk
Thursday, March 5, 2009, 10:42–10:54, VMP 8 R206
Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging on Maize Roots in Soil — •Natascha Spindler1, Marion I. Menzel2, Andreas Pohlmeier1, Bernhard Blümich3, Ulrich Schurr2, and Harry Vereecken1 — 1Forschungszentrum Jülich, Institute of Chemistry and Dynamics of the Geosphere, Agrosphere (ICG-4) — 2Forschungszentrum Jülich, Institute of Chemistry and Dynamics of the Geosphere, Phytosphere (ICG-3) — 3RWTH Aachen, Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry
Water uptake and transport are essential for plant nutrition. High resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) allows unique options for non-invasive investigations of water transport and growing processes in root-soil-systems.
Diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DTMRI or DTI) measures the effective diffusion coefficients of water in Cartesian directions in each pixel of an MR image. For practical purposes it is convenient to reduce the diffusion tensor to a single parameter: the fractional anisotropy in each pixel.
For the first time this technique is applied to roots to identify water motion. Anisotropies are expected because of the shape of different cell types in roots. From DTI measurements also the preferential direction of water motion can be obtained and therefore a closed reconstruction of the root skeleton is possible which is necessary for future model calculations.