Phenomics: conceptualization and importance for plant physiology

Phenomics is a relatively new discipline of biology that has been widely applied in several fields, mainly in crop sciences. We reviewed the concepts used in this discipline (particularly for plants) and found a lack of consensus on what defines a phenomic study. Furthermore, phenomics has been primarily developed around its technical aspects (operationalization), while the conceptual framework of the actual research lags behind. Each research group has given its own interpretation of this ‘omic’ and thus unwittingly created a ‘conceptual controversy’. Addressing this issue is of particular importance, as the experimental designs and concepts of phenomics are so diverse that it is difficult to compare studies. In this opinion article, we evaluate the conceptual framework of phenomics