Responses of different soybean cultivars under melatonin application and the use of phenotyping by image for flower and pod counting.

• Grant number: 25/03947-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 23, 2025
• End date: November 22, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Crop Science
• Principal Investigator: Ana Cláudia Pacheco Santos
• Grantee: Luis Fernando de Paiva Lourenção
• Supervisor: Krishna Jagadish
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias. Universidade do Oeste Paulista (UNOESTE). Campus de Presidente Prudente. Presidente Prudente , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Texas Tech University (TTU), United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 24/14551-3 - Association of melatonin and nickel in environmental conditions on the physiology and productivity of soybean., BP.IC

Abstract

The environmental changes promote the need to increase crop productivity to meet the global demand for food has been growing. Soybean (Glycine max) plays a crucial role in this regard, both for human and animal consumption. Melatonin (MEL), a bioregulator, has demonstrated efficacy in mitigating the effects of stress, such as those caused by abiotic factors, by boosting the antioxidant system of plants. Under field cultivation conditions, an experimental area at Texas Tech University with a semi-arid climate and high average temperatures will be investigate the application of Melatonin in plants of six different soybean genotypes with resistance to water deficit. The following treatments will be tested: 1) No melatonin (control); 2) With melatonin application (100µMol), under two irrigation regimes, 80% evapotranspiration replacement and 30% replacement. Biochemical and physiological parameters, such as the number of flowers and pods, will be evaluated. The evaluation of the number of flowers and pods will be done using an electronic device with a camera, associated with artificial intelligence that will count and detect soybean pods and flowers. The expectation is that this advanced phenotyping tool will provide insight into counting reproductive structures in different soybean strains with and without Melatonin application, promoting more sustainable agricultural practices.