RE-IMAGINE-CROPS EIC Pathfinder Project

As global food demand continues to rise, there is an urgent need for sustainable agricultural practices that optimise resource use and minimise environmental impact. Traditional methods of N-fertiliser application often lead to overuse, resulting in harmful nitrogen dispersion, ecological degradation, and economic losses. Current technologies lack the precision to modulate fertiliser application effectively. RE-IMAGINE-CROPS addresses this challenge by developing a portable, multimodal imaging system that combines positron emission tomography (PET) and multiphoton endoscopy (ME). This innovative technology will enable real-time, in-field analysis of crop metabolic processes at the cellular level, providing unprecedented insights into plant responses to nitrogen fertilisers and other inputs. The primary objective of RE-IMAGINE-CROPS is to develop and implement a mobile PET-ME system. The mobile PET-ME is capable of doing: - Metabolic Imaging: Utilising PET to measure metabolic processes in crops at a scale of hundreds of micrometres. - Cellular Visualization: Employing ME to observe functional mechanisms at the cellular level. - Real-Time Data Acquisition: Achieving spatial resolutions of 0.6 mm and 1 µm, with real-time functionality at rates of 2 Hz and 10 Hz, respectively. - Fertiliser Optimisation: Tailoring N-fertiliser application by monitoring crop signal pathways activated shortly after fertiliser application. This approach is expected to reduce ecological and economic losses associated with improper fertiliser use and promote sustainable agricultural practices.