Tool/Machine

Nicholas Smilanich of Sensor Development Corporation in the U.S. will develop a portable point and click device that analyzes gases to detect the pheromones of the larger grain borer, which is an insect pest, and the mold gases associated with aflatoxin produced by fungi that infect crops. Low-cost manufacturing of the aflatoxin and pest infestation detector would be possible with techniques commonly used in the electronics industry.

John Swaddle and Mark Hinders of The College of William and Mary in the U.S. will design and test controlled "nets" of sound that block vocal communication and hearing in pest bird species, causing them to move to other areas where they can hear each other and predators. Driving these pests away from crop areas should substantially reduce crop losses.

Agenor Mafra-Neto and Leandro Mafra of ISCA Technologies, Inc. in the U.S., working with Eamonn Keogh of the University of California, Riverside, seek to build ultra-cheap laser bug sensors that accurately count and identify flying insect pests from a distance. Real-time data would allow for effective and economic pest management without reliance on scarce specialists, increasing local crop production and reducing hunger-related health issues.

Donald Cooper of Mobile Assay Inc. in the U.S. will develop a low-cost, highly sensitive smartphone-based platform that employs phone cameras to image and amplify signals from immunoassay rapid test strips to detect Botrytis and aflatoxin infection in seeds or soil. Connecting phone data to a cloud server would allow farmers to monitor seed and crop quality and enable the development of regional preventative strategies.

Meshack Obonyo of Egerton University Njoro in Kenya and Aman Bonaventure of Masinde Muliro University in Kenya will develop a simple, cost-effective, solar- powered grain drying unit for prevention of aflatoxin contamination in stored grain. The prototype will use locally available materials and be tested in the laboratory and the field.

Haibo Yao of Mississippi State University in the U.S. proposes to develop portable and cost effective spectral-based technology for rapid and non-invasive detection of aflatoxin contamination in whole maize ears for use by farmers in rural areas of developing countries.

Hideaki Tsutsui of the University of California, Riverside in the U.S. will develop a low-cost stamp to directly print biosensors on maize leaves for colorimetric detection of biotic stresses. The strategy is to develop an immunochromatographic assay using microneedle probes while printing an easily-read color-change detector.

John Brassil of Functional Circulation LLC in the U.S. will augment the bowls used by women to transport cassava roots to market by incorporating pest controlling elements and passive communicating elements such as radio-frequency identification (RFID). Pest repellant materials will be molded into the inner surface of the bowls or applied post-processing. Bowls will also be fitted with communication devices such as RFID that could be used in epidemiological and agricultural studies.

J. Brandon Dixon of the Georgia Institute of Technology in the U.S. will develop a scalable, microfluidic-based model of a human lymphatic vessel to support adult- stage lymphatic filariasis (LF) parasites in vitro. LF parasites cause a range of diseases for which treatment options are limited. By recreating the host environment where the parasites normally reside they can keep them alive for longer periods of time, which is required for developing urgently needed new drugs.

Geoffrey von Maltzahn of Essentient Inc. in the U.S. proposes to design a solar-powered production system to produce pure DHA, a key lipid for infant nutrition, in a low-cost bioreactor. These cell cultures could be used to mass-produce DHA for infant nutrition and development without the need for land or fresh water.