An automated quantitative image analysis tool for the identification of microtubule patterns in plants. (16th August 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Faulkner, Christine; Zhou, Ji; Evrard, Alexandre; Bourdais, Gildas; MacLean, Dan; Häweker, Heidrun; Eckes, Peter; Robatzek, Silke
• Is Part Of: Traffic. Volume 18:Number 10(2017)
• Page Start: 683
• Page End: 693
• Publication Date: 2017-08-16
• Subjects: Arabidopsis -- bioimage informatics -- confocal microscopy -- endomembrane compartments -- herbicides -- MAP4 -- microtubules -- TUB6; Biological transport -- Periodicals; 571.6
• DOI: 10.1111/tra.12505
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1398-9219

Abstract

Abstract : High throughput confocal imaging poses challenges in the computational image analysis of complex subcellular structures such as the microtubule cytoskeleton. Here, we developed CellArchitect, an automated image analysis tool that quantifies changes to subcellular patterns illustrated by microtubule markers in plants. We screened microtubule‐targeted herbicides and demonstrate that high throughput confocal imaging with integrated image analysis by CellArchitect can distinguish effects induced by the known herbicides indaziflam and trifluralin. The same platform was used to examine 6 other compounds with herbicidal activity, and at least 3 different effects induced by these compounds were profiled. We further show that CellArchitect can detect subcellular patterns tagged by actin and endoplasmic reticulum markers. Thus, the platform developed here can be used to automate image analysis of complex subcellular patterns for purposes such as herbicide discovery and mode of action characterisation. The capacity to use this tool to quantitatively characterize cellular responses lends itself to application across many areas of biology. Abstract : CellArchitect is an automated image analysis tool that quantifies changes to complex, network‐like subcellular patterns such as the microtubule cytoskeleton in plants. This tool performs analyses from large image datasets and can distinguish effects induced by different chemicals, which lends itself to identification and characterization of bio‐active chemicals. CellArchitect facilitates automated, high throughput quantitative characterisation of cellular responses by image‐based screening.