X-ray-μCT: nondestructively identifying hidden microphenotypes inside living crop seeds

X-ray microcomputed tomography (micro-CT, μCT) allows visualizing nondestructively the inner microstructures of small solid biological and nonbiological samples. Micro-CT equipped with a conical X-ray beam can obtain truly isotropic volumetric images with high spatial resolution (μm level). By detecting the penetrated X-ray intensity, a series of consecutively cross-sectional digital images in different dimensions (axis x, y, and z) is captured. Image segmentation and reconstruction software allows 3D reconstruction, based on 2D cross-section images and volume-based structural analysis.