Ultraweak photon emission and proteomics analyses in soybean under abiotic stress

• Biophotons are related to various biological activities and processes of plant.
• Biophotons can visualize the physiological states of plants in vivo.
• Application of proteomics provides mechanism of plant response to biophoton emission.

Biophotons are ultraweak photon emissions that are closely related to various biological activities and processes. In mammals, biophoton emissions originate from oxidative bursts in immunocytes during immunological responses. Biophotons emitted from plant organs provide novel information about the physiological state of plant under in vivo condition. In this review, the principles and recent advances in the measurement of biophoton emissions in plants are described. Furthermore, examples of biophoton emission and proteomics in soybean under abiotic stress are reviewed and discussed. Finally, this review suggests that the application of proteomics should provide a better interpretation of plant response to biophoton emission and allow the identification of genes that will allow the screening of crops able to produce maximal yields, even in stressful environments.