Combine photosynthetic characteristics and leaf hyperspectral reflectance for early detection of water stress

Advanced techniques capable of early and non-destructive detection of the impacts of water stress on trees and estimation of the underlying photosynthetic capacities on larger scale are necessary to meet the challenges of limiting plant growth and ecological protection caused by drought. We tested i...

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Main Authors: Linbao Li, Guiyun Huang, Jinhua Wu, Yunchao Yu, Guangxin Zhang, Yang Su, Xiongying Wang, Huiyuan Chen, Yeqing Wang, Di Wu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2025-04-01
Series:Frontiers in Plant Science
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Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2025.1520304/full
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author Linbao Li
Linbao Li
Linbao Li
Guiyun Huang
Guiyun Huang
Guiyun Huang
Jinhua Wu
Jinhua Wu
Jinhua Wu
Yunchao Yu
Yunchao Yu
Yunchao Yu
Guangxin Zhang
Guangxin Zhang
Guangxin Zhang
Yang Su
Yang Su
Yang Su
Xiongying Wang
Xiongying Wang
Xiongying Wang
Huiyuan Chen
Huiyuan Chen
Huiyuan Chen
Yeqing Wang
Di Wu
Di Wu
Di Wu
author_facet Linbao Li
Linbao Li
Linbao Li
Guiyun Huang
Guiyun Huang
Guiyun Huang
Jinhua Wu
Jinhua Wu
Jinhua Wu
Yunchao Yu
Yunchao Yu
Yunchao Yu
Guangxin Zhang
Guangxin Zhang
Guangxin Zhang
Yang Su
Yang Su
Yang Su
Xiongying Wang
Xiongying Wang
Xiongying Wang
Huiyuan Chen
Huiyuan Chen
Huiyuan Chen
Yeqing Wang
Di Wu
Di Wu
Di Wu
author_sort Linbao Li
collection DOAJ
description Advanced techniques capable of early and non-destructive detection of the impacts of water stress on trees and estimation of the underlying photosynthetic capacities on larger scale are necessary to meet the challenges of limiting plant growth and ecological protection caused by drought. We tested influence of continuous water stress on photosynthetic traits including Leaf Chlorophyll content (LCC) and Chlorophyll Fluorescence (ChlF) and combined hyperspectral reflectance as a high-throughput approach for early and non-destructive assessment of LCC and ChlF traits in Rhamnus leptophylla trees. LCC and ChlF parameters (NPQ, Fv’/Fm’, ETR, ETRmax, Fm’, qL, qP, Y(II) were measured alongside leaf hyperspectral reflectance from Rhamnus leptophylla suffering from constant drought during water stress. Water stress caused NPQ, Fv’/Fm’, ETRmax, Fm’, qL, qP, Y(II) and ETR continuous decline throughout the entire drought period. ChlF was more sensitive to drought monitoring than LCC. The original reflectance spectra and hyperspectral vegetation indices (SVIs) showed a strong correlation with LCC and ChlF. Reflectance in 540-560nm and 750-1100nm and selected SVI such as Simple Ratio (SR)752/690 can track drought responses effectively before leaves showed drought symptoms. Multivariate Linear Regression (MLR) and three machine learning algorithms, namely Random Forest (RF), Support Vector Machine (SVM), and K-Nearest Neighbor (KNN) were employed to develop models for estimating LCC and ChlF parameters. RF provided the best estimation accuracy for LCC compared to MLR, KNN and SVM, achieving an R2 value of 0.895 for all LCC samples. The canopy layer significantly influenced the estimation accuracy of LCC, with the middle layer yielding the highest R2 value. RF also demonstrated superior performance compared to MLR, KNN and SVM for estimating NPQ, Fv’/Fm’, ETRmax, Fm’, qL, qP, Y(II) and ETR, achieving R2 value of 0.854 for NPQ, 0.610 for Fv’/Fm’, 0.878 for ETRmax, 0.676 for Fm’, 0.604 for qL, 0.731 for qP, 0.879 for Y(II), and 0.740 for ETR. Our results indicate that photosynthetic traits combined hyperspectral reflectance can monitor the effect of drought on trees effectively with significant potential for monitoring drought over large areas.
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spelling doaj-art-75ec3c0df56f42298df887a3dfa8d1f72025-08-20T03:06:13ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Plant Science1664-462X2025-04-011610.3389/fpls.2025.15203041520304Combine photosynthetic characteristics and leaf hyperspectral reflectance for early detection of water stressLinbao Li0Linbao Li1Linbao Li2Guiyun Huang3Guiyun Huang4Guiyun Huang5Jinhua Wu6Jinhua Wu7Jinhua Wu8Yunchao Yu9Yunchao Yu10Yunchao Yu11Guangxin Zhang12Guangxin Zhang13Guangxin Zhang14Yang Su15Yang Su16Yang Su17Xiongying Wang18Xiongying Wang19Xiongying Wang20Huiyuan Chen21Huiyuan Chen22Huiyuan Chen23Yeqing Wang24Di Wu25Di Wu26Di Wu27Yangtze River Biodiversity Research Centre, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaChina Three Gorges Corporation, Hubei Key Laboratory of Rare Resource Plants in Three Gorges Reservoir Area, Yichang, ChinaNational Engineering Research Center of Eco-Environment Protection for Yangtze River Economic Belt, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaYangtze River Biodiversity Research Centre, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaChina Three Gorges Corporation, Hubei Key Laboratory of Rare Resource Plants in Three Gorges Reservoir Area, Yichang, ChinaNational Engineering Research Center of Eco-Environment Protection for Yangtze River Economic Belt, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaYangtze River Biodiversity Research Centre, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaChina Three Gorges Corporation, Hubei Key Laboratory of Rare Resource Plants in Three Gorges Reservoir Area, Yichang, ChinaNational Engineering Research Center of Eco-Environment Protection for Yangtze River Economic Belt, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaYangtze River Biodiversity Research Centre, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaChina Three Gorges Corporation, Hubei Key Laboratory of Rare Resource Plants in Three Gorges Reservoir Area, Yichang, ChinaNational Engineering Research Center of Eco-Environment Protection for Yangtze River Economic Belt, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaYangtze River Biodiversity Research Centre, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaChina Three Gorges Corporation, Hubei Key Laboratory of Rare Resource Plants in Three Gorges Reservoir Area, Yichang, ChinaNational Engineering Research Center of Eco-Environment Protection for Yangtze River Economic Belt, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaYangtze River Biodiversity Research Centre, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaChina Three Gorges Corporation, Hubei Key Laboratory of Rare Resource Plants in Three Gorges Reservoir Area, Yichang, ChinaNational Engineering Research Center of Eco-Environment Protection for Yangtze River Economic Belt, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaYangtze River Biodiversity Research Centre, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaChina Three Gorges Corporation, Hubei Key Laboratory of Rare Resource Plants in Three Gorges Reservoir Area, Yichang, ChinaNational Engineering Research Center of Eco-Environment Protection for Yangtze River Economic Belt, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaYangtze River Biodiversity Research Centre, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaChina Three Gorges Corporation, Hubei Key Laboratory of Rare Resource Plants in Three Gorges Reservoir Area, Yichang, ChinaNational Engineering Research Center of Eco-Environment Protection for Yangtze River Economic Belt, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaWufeng Houhe National Nature Reserver, Hubei Forestry Bureau, Yichang, ChinaYangtze River Biodiversity Research Centre, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaChina Three Gorges Corporation, Hubei Key Laboratory of Rare Resource Plants in Three Gorges Reservoir Area, Yichang, ChinaNational Engineering Research Center of Eco-Environment Protection for Yangtze River Economic Belt, China Three Gorges Corporation, Wuhan, ChinaAdvanced techniques capable of early and non-destructive detection of the impacts of water stress on trees and estimation of the underlying photosynthetic capacities on larger scale are necessary to meet the challenges of limiting plant growth and ecological protection caused by drought. We tested influence of continuous water stress on photosynthetic traits including Leaf Chlorophyll content (LCC) and Chlorophyll Fluorescence (ChlF) and combined hyperspectral reflectance as a high-throughput approach for early and non-destructive assessment of LCC and ChlF traits in Rhamnus leptophylla trees. LCC and ChlF parameters (NPQ, Fv’/Fm’, ETR, ETRmax, Fm’, qL, qP, Y(II) were measured alongside leaf hyperspectral reflectance from Rhamnus leptophylla suffering from constant drought during water stress. Water stress caused NPQ, Fv’/Fm’, ETRmax, Fm’, qL, qP, Y(II) and ETR continuous decline throughout the entire drought period. ChlF was more sensitive to drought monitoring than LCC. The original reflectance spectra and hyperspectral vegetation indices (SVIs) showed a strong correlation with LCC and ChlF. Reflectance in 540-560nm and 750-1100nm and selected SVI such as Simple Ratio (SR)752/690 can track drought responses effectively before leaves showed drought symptoms. Multivariate Linear Regression (MLR) and three machine learning algorithms, namely Random Forest (RF), Support Vector Machine (SVM), and K-Nearest Neighbor (KNN) were employed to develop models for estimating LCC and ChlF parameters. RF provided the best estimation accuracy for LCC compared to MLR, KNN and SVM, achieving an R2 value of 0.895 for all LCC samples. The canopy layer significantly influenced the estimation accuracy of LCC, with the middle layer yielding the highest R2 value. RF also demonstrated superior performance compared to MLR, KNN and SVM for estimating NPQ, Fv’/Fm’, ETRmax, Fm’, qL, qP, Y(II) and ETR, achieving R2 value of 0.854 for NPQ, 0.610 for Fv’/Fm’, 0.878 for ETRmax, 0.676 for Fm’, 0.604 for qL, 0.731 for qP, 0.879 for Y(II), and 0.740 for ETR. Our results indicate that photosynthetic traits combined hyperspectral reflectance can monitor the effect of drought on trees effectively with significant potential for monitoring drought over large areas.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2025.1520304/fullchlorophyll fluorescencehyperspectral reflectanceleaf chlorophyll contentmachine learning algorithmsRhamnus leptophyllawater stress
spellingShingle Linbao Li
Linbao Li
Linbao Li
Guiyun Huang
Guiyun Huang
Guiyun Huang
Jinhua Wu
Jinhua Wu
Jinhua Wu
Yunchao Yu
Yunchao Yu
Yunchao Yu
Guangxin Zhang
Guangxin Zhang
Guangxin Zhang
Yang Su
Yang Su
Yang Su
Xiongying Wang
Xiongying Wang
Xiongying Wang
Huiyuan Chen
Huiyuan Chen
Huiyuan Chen
Yeqing Wang
Di Wu
Di Wu
Di Wu
Combine photosynthetic characteristics and leaf hyperspectral reflectance for early detection of water stress
Frontiers in Plant Science
chlorophyll fluorescence
hyperspectral reflectance
leaf chlorophyll content
machine learning algorithms
Rhamnus leptophylla
water stress
title Combine photosynthetic characteristics and leaf hyperspectral reflectance for early detection of water stress
title_full Combine photosynthetic characteristics and leaf hyperspectral reflectance for early detection of water stress
title_fullStr Combine photosynthetic characteristics and leaf hyperspectral reflectance for early detection of water stress
title_full_unstemmed Combine photosynthetic characteristics and leaf hyperspectral reflectance for early detection of water stress
title_short Combine photosynthetic characteristics and leaf hyperspectral reflectance for early detection of water stress
title_sort combine photosynthetic characteristics and leaf hyperspectral reflectance for early detection of water stress
topic chlorophyll fluorescence
hyperspectral reflectance
leaf chlorophyll content
machine learning algorithms
Rhamnus leptophylla
water stress
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2025.1520304/full
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