Emerging Methods of Monitoring Volatile Organic Compounds for Detection of Plant Pests and Disease

Abstract

Each year, unwanted plant pests and diseases, such as Hendel or potato soft rot, cause damage to crops and ecosystems all over the world. To continue to feed the growing population and protect the global ecosystems, the surveillance and management of the spread of these pests and diseases are crucial. Traditional methods of detection are often expensive, bulky and require expertise and training. Therefore, inexpensive, portable, and user-friendly methods are required. These include the use of different gas-sensing technologies to exploit volatile organic compounds released by plants under stress. These methods often meet these requirements, although they come with their own set of advantages and disadvantages, including the sheer number of variables that affect the profile of volatile organic compounds released, such as sensitivity to environmental factors and availability of soil nutrients or water, and sensor drift. Furthermore, most of these methods lack research on their use under field conditions. More research is needed to overcome these disadvantages and further understand the feasibility of the use of these methods under field conditions. This paper focuses on applications of different gas-sensing technologies from over the past decade to detect plant pests and diseases more efficiently.

Application of a Low-Cost Electronic Nose to Detect of Forest Tree Pathogens: Fusarium oxysporum and Phytophthora plurivora

“…Several applications for electronic noses have been proposed, focusing on forestry and agriculture [4]- [9]. In addition, applications for fungal species detection and identification have recently been explored by Mota et al [10].…”

Unearthing the alteration in plant volatiles induced by mycorrhizal fungi: A shield against plant pathogens

“…This change is attributed to the adoption of techniques that preserve and improve soil fertility and health. Most modern applications involve using electronic noses to identify plant pathogens and pests via VOC monitoring (MacDougall et al, 2022). Alteration of VOCs by inoculation of mycorrhizal fungi in the rhizosphere can play a key role in this context.…”

Plant‐Wearable Sensors for Intelligent Forestry Monitoring

“…Forest fires are uncontrolled and unrestricted natural disasters that threaten woodlands, not only causing damage to ecosystems but also posing potential threats to human survival and development. [102,103] Recently, forest fires have become more frequent, and their damage scope has increased year by year. [104] To reduce losses from forest fires, some early warning methods including infrared satellite imaging, remote sensing, aerial patrols, and electronic lightning detectors have been used to monitor forest fires.…”

“…Therefore, the same species growing in different locations, soils, or environments, or at different stages of its life cycle, will have different VOC profiles. [ 102 ] Further research is therefore needed to continue building databases that include information for each tree, information about soil type, location, weather, and nutrients available, and information on the specific VOCs emitted by individual pests or infections themselves, rather than VOCs emitted by trees.…”