Fraunhofer IPA
On the way to the smelling machine
Fraunhofer IPA is developing a technology for the automated production of cell-based biosensors. Such sensors could then give machines a sense of smell, for example.
The platform will initially be validated on a product from the Californian start-up Koniku. However, it should later also be usable for other applications. Martin Thoma, project manager at the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA in Stuttgart, summarizes the innovation as follows: "We are basically developing a generic tool that should make it possible to produce cell-based biological sensors for industrial use in the medium term."
To enable the targeted development of a commercially viable product, Fraunhofer IPA will develop a screening process for receptor selection and the reliable automated production of so-called transfected cells - cells into which foreign DNA or RNA is introduced. The company Koniku has been cultivating such cells for several years, into which odorant receptors are introduced on small autonomous optical readout units. The cells can be kept alive and functional over a longer period of time in order to detect tiny particles from the environment. However, there are still many unanswered questions in this field of research.
In order to determine the right odor receptor for a specific application, several thousand receptors and their combination must be screened. To make this process economical, a platform is required that enables cells to be automatically modified, i.e. transfected, in order to subsequently examine them for their specific reaction to odors and tastes. With such a transfection and screening platform, it would be possible to modify the cells very quickly for different odor stimuli and thus open up further areas of application, such as medical diagnostics. Other visions are aimed, for example, at robots that 'sniff out' explosives at airports or locate gas leaks.
The project is funded by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Economic Affairs, among others.
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