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| December 2006 | National Research Flagship | Food Futures |
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| December 2006 | National Research Flagship | Food Futures |
Insect 'noses' the key to Cybernose collaboration
Researchers in the collaborative Cluster between The Australian National University, Monash University and CSIRO's Food Futures National Research Flagship are trying to understand how simple animals make sense of smells. The microscopic nematode worm will be central to the Cybernose research due to its highly sensitive molecular recognition system, allowing it to sense smell and flavour qualities in grapes. The Cybernose will involve putting sensor proteins from insects and nematodes into an electronic nose to replace the current generation of electronic sensors that are not discriminating enough. The Cybernose may also be used in future across other sectors of the food and beverage industries and, in the long term, the cybernose technology could be developed to enhance Australia's biosecurity by detecting and intercepting pests and diseases The Minister for Education, Science and Training, the Hon Julie Bishop MP, announced the first round of Flagship Collaboration Fund Cluster funding in August, designed to facilitate the involvement of the wider Australian research community in addressing the critical national challenges targeted by the Flagships. The first cluster announced under the Flagship Collaboration Fund will provide the University partners with $2.2 million from the Fund over two and a half years. This money will be matched in-kind by ANU and Monash, says Dr Bruce Lee, Director of the Food Futures Flagship. Cluster leader, Professor Mandyam Srinivasan from ANU, said that this is the first time that his team had a real opportunity to collaborate with CSIRO to build on basic science to generate a potentially extremely useful technology, and that the research will have applications in a number of industries. Dr Coral Warr from Monash University says the collaborative cluster is an exciting opportunity and is bringing together Australian olfaction researchers using very different approaches to solve a common problem - how do animals detect and discriminate odours. She says that participation in the Flagship Cluster has enabled her to bring to Australia one of the foremost insect olfactory electrophysiologists, Dr Marien de Bruyne, thus enabling her group to study odorant receptor function in the fruit fly Drosophila in entirely new ways. "The information we generate about how these receptors function will directly benefit CSIRO's development of olfactory biosensors," Dr Warr says. Although the applications will be numerous, in the first instance, the group is working with the wine industry. "The Cybernose will draw on how the brains of simple organisms such as insects and tiny nematode worms process information about smells and tell the difference between related odours," says Dr Trowell, the Flagship theme leader. By 2013, the Flagship is aiming to have, in wineries around Australia, a Cybernose that will enable the wine industry to objectively measure aroma and flavour - a more reliable measure than chewing some grapes. This technology would enable winemakers to pick grapes at the time of optimum ripeness and even to tailor the style of wine precisely and so improve its value with the potential to contribute $750 million annually to the industry. The Flagship Collaboration Fund enables the skills of the wider Australian research community to be applied to the major national challenges targeted by CSIRO's Flagship Initiative. As part of the $305 million over seven years provided by the Australian Government to the National Research Flagships, $97 million was specifically allocated to further enhance collaboration between CSIRO, Australian universities and other publicly funded research agencies.
Read more about the "Olfactory
pattern recognition research cluster" partnership. |
IN THIS EDITION: Insect 'noses' the key to Cybernose collaboration R&D partnership targets 'super-healthy' wheats Food Futures Vision Conference Fellowship explores the secrets of glowworms
International focus on Food Futures
Flagship FELLOWSHIP AWARDED
Dr David Topping Awarded Prestigious Fellowship MEET THE SCIENTIST: Meet Dr Conor Delahunty, Science Manager, Food Quality, Measurement and Perception EARLIER UPDATES
July 2006
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The Food Futures Flagship is a CSIRO initiative and part of the National Research Flagships program that aims to deliver scientific solutions to advance Australia's most important national objectives. One of the largest scientific initiatives ever mounted in Australia, it aligns closely with the Federal Government's National Research Priorities. The initiative brings together our national research resources to deliver breakthroughs in fields ranging from healthcare to light metals and the environment. |
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Food Futures
Flagship CSIRO Editor: Sylvia Bell PO Box 93 North Ryde NSW 1670 Phone: +61 2 9490 8006 Fax: +61 2 9490 8811 editor.foodfutures@csiro.au www.csiro.au/Food Futures |
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