Combined FTIR and Raman analysis of pollen composition for studying plant adaptation to environmental changes

Development of methodical and cost-efficient plant phenotyping is imperative for determining and monitoring of climate-related plant adaptation. Measurement of biochemical composition of pollen grains by infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy has great po tential for systematic collection of data on ecosystem and plant-environment interactions. Our research group has been conducting studies covering hundreds of different pollen species by various FTIR techniques coupled with data analysis methods. In this project we aim at establishing a combined FTIR and Raman setup for pollen phenotyping by initiating collaborative research with the group of Dr. Janina Kneipp at Humboldt Universität zu Berlin. Since both groups can offer substantial complementary knowled ge on vibrational spectroscopy of pollen, the collaboration will result in transfer of knowledge from the host to the applicants' group (regarding Raman spectroscopy), and vice versa (regarding FTIR and data analysis). Moreover, the study relies on transn ational research cooperation in order to gather relevant data on plant-environment interactions. Within the proposed research the influence of climate and geography on biochemical content of pollen will be estimated by comparing data of pollen samples col lected in Germany and Norway. The collaboration will address standardisation of sampling techniques for FTIR and Raman spectroscopy of pollen, which is the main challenge for broader application of these methods by the scientific community. The collaborat ion will yield a standardized database of pollen vibrational spectra, which will represent the raw material for a wide range of botanical research, from agronomy to ecology. Realisation of this project will create a long-term collaboration of the research groups resulting in the consolidation of the research field within the international biospectroscopy and bioanalytical community.