Phen-Italy
The Italian Plant Phenotyping Network. Facilities to study the interaction between the genotype, the environment, and the management
The Italian Node of EMPHASIS
Phen‑Italy, the Italian Plant Phenotyping Joint Research Unit (JRU), is coordinated by the National Research Council (CNR). It brings together universities, public research organisations, and public–private consortia to form a national network dedicated to advancing plant phenotyping research and infrastructure in Italy.
As the national reference point for EMPHASIS—the European research infrastructure for multi‑scale plant phenotyping included in the ESFRI Roadmap—Phen‑Italy contributes to the development and implementation of advanced phenotyping platforms accessible to the European scientific community. Through this role, it supports research aimed at sustainable agriculture and food security in the context of climate change.
Phen‑Italy’s mission is to strengthen collaboration among research groups working on high‑throughput plant phenotyping, with particular attention to crops of strategic importance for the agri‑food sector. It provides access to the only high‑throughput phenotyping infrastructure currently available in Italy and Southern Europe, as well as to the region’s only dedicated aerial fleet for remote sensing of agroecosystems.
Latest News and Updates
Sign up now
and stay up-to-date!
We use MailerLite to send our newsletter. When you subscribe, you consent to the entered data being forwarded to MailerLite. Please also see the MailerLite Privacy Policy.
Research Activities
By systematizing national expertise and infrastructure, Phen-Italy plays a crucial role in supporting the Italian and European scientific communities in addressing the challenges of modern agriculture and climate resilience
Contact Us
Contact us to find out how Phen-Italy can support your research in the field of plant phenotyping. We are here to answer all your questions and collaborate on innovative projects that address the challenges of modern agriculture.
Plant Species
- Tomato
- Wheat
- Arabidopsis
- Soybean
Growth conditions and stresses
- drought resistance
- germplasm characterization
- nutrients deprivation
Plant organs
- Shoots
- Whole plant
- Spikes (wheat)
Scientific and technological expertise
- Imaging technologies
- Plant physiology
- Electronic sensor systems
- Agricultural biology
- Remote sensing
- Precision and personalized agriculture
- Development of new in vivo sensors
Some examples of the phenotyping studies already performed
- Investigate how the interaction with beneficial soil microorganisms (i.e. Trichoderma spp.) influences plant growth, architecture and morphology at the shoot and root level.
- Measure photosynthetic performance under control and stress conditions ( Species: Solanum lycopersicum L.).
- Quantify differences in physiological performances under drought and salt stress conditions of mutants and traditional landraces. (Species:Solanum lycopersicum L.).
- Evaluate growth, geometry profile and physiological status of mutants for epigenetic regulators during development. (Species:Solanum lycopersicum L.).
- Phenotype screening by image analysis of a mutant tomato compared with the isogenic line (Species:Solanum lycopersicum L.).
- Characterization of wheat genotypes in the Single seed descent (SSD) collection subjected to water stress, with high-yield methods (Species: Triticum durum Desf.)