Investigating\nthe Effect of Syringe Infiltration on <i>Nicotiana tabacum</i> (Tobacco)

Plant infiltration techniques, particularly agroinfiltration,\nhave\ntransformed plant science and biotechnology by enabling transient\ngene expression for genetic engineering of plants or genomic studies.\nRecently, the use of infiltration has expanded to introduce nanomaterials\nand polymers in plants to enable nonnative functionalities. Despite\nits wide use, the impact of the infiltration process <i>per se</i> on plant physiology needs to be better understood. This study investigates\nthe effect of syringe infiltration, a commonly employed technique\nin plants, using a typical infiltration buffer solution. Noninvasive\nand real-time monitoring methods, including high-resolution thermal\nimaging and a porometer/fluorometer, were used to study the physiological\nresponses and stress levels of the infiltrated plants. Our results\nrevealed localized cell damage at the infiltration site due to syringe\ncompression, but the overall cell viability and tissue integrity were\nlargely unaffected. Thermography showed a temporary temperature increase\nof the leaves and stomatal conductance alterations postinfiltration,\nwith leaf recovery in 3–6 days. Additionally, fluorescence\nmeasurements indicated a 6% decrease in maximum quantum efficiency\n(<i>F</i><sub>v</sub>/<i>F</i><sub>m</sub>) and\na 34% decrease in photosystem II (ΦPSII) quantum yield, persisting\nfor 5 days after infiltration, suggesting sustained photosystem efficiency\nchanges. Our work highlights the need to consider the effect of infiltration\nwhen performing biological studies and aims to facilitate the optimization\nof protocols commonly used in plant science and biotechnology.