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Video Analysis of Stomatal Patch Dynamics

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Speaker: Aaron Luttman, Mathematical Sciences, University of Montana
Location: 1147 MSB
Start time: Wed, Mar 15 2006, 4:10PM

In order to engage in photosynthesis, leaves use pores on their surface - called stomata - to absorb CO2. The opening of these pores results in the evaporation of H2O, which is a detriment to leaf function. Thus a leaf is faced with the global optimization problem of maximizing CO2 uptake for a fixed amount of H2O loss. In solving this problem, stomata in spatially homogeneous patches often synchronize their apertures, even though this does not result in optimal local CO2 uptake. In order to visualize these patches, a dye is injected into a leaf so that it fluoresces when closing its stomata. Understanding how synchronized patches of stomata results in an optimal CO2 uptake for the entire leaf requires a thorough analysis of these fluorescence patterns. Using an experimental background model to drive video segmentation, we use a variational level-set approach for extracting the spatially synchronized stomatal patches from video taken of the leaf fluorescence. Methods of two-dimensional pattern analysis can then be used to analyze the dynamics of the stomatal patches.