An electronic nose, the cybernose, will be developed following a $4 million collaboration, announced today.
The collaboration will see researchers from Monash University, the Australian National University and CSIRO's Food Futures National Research Flagship trying to understand how simple animals such as worms and insects make sense of smells.
The microscopic nematode worm will be central to the cybernose research, due to its highly sensitive molecular recognition system that allows it to sense smell and flavour qualities in grapes.
The cybernose will put sensor proteins from insects and nematodes in to an electronic nose, replacing the current generation of electronic sensors that are not discriminating enough.
It could also be used in 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.
Dr Coral Warr from Monash's School of Biological Sciences said the collaboration, called the Olfactory Pattern Recognition Research Cluster, was an exciting opportunity.
"It is bringing together Australian olfaction researchers using very different approaches to solve a common problem - how animals detect and discriminate odours," Dr Warr said.
She said participation in the Flagship Cluster had 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 functionin 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 said.
Although the applications will be numerous, in the first instance, the collaborative cluster is working with the wine industry.
CSIRO's Dr Stephen Trowell, the Flagship theme leader, said the cybernose would 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.
"By 2013, we aim 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," Dr Trowell said.
"This will 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. This has the potential to contribute $750 million annually to the industry."
Dr Bruce Lee, Director of the Food Futures Flagship, said the Olfactory Pattern Recognition Research Cluster was one of the first clusters to receive funding from the Federal Government's Flagships Collaboration Fund and university partners.
The funding is designed to facilitate the involvement of the wider Australian research community in addressing the critical national challenges targeted by the Flagships.
Image Credit: Photo by Keith Weller
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