Something smells fishy under the sea, and it may lead to better bomb detection.
Researchers from the UF Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience discovered special cells in the nasal senses of lobsters that can be used to improve technology that detects threatening odors.
UF Computational NeuroEngineering Laboratory director Jose Principe said these “electronic noses” are currently used to detect explosives or food contamination, but this breakthrough has the potential to radically improve their accuracy.
Principe said neurons in lobsters’ olfactory senses send out electronic pulses, or “bursts,” at a certain rhythm. Scientists from the Whitney Laboratory noticed these bursts were sent out almost like radar and responded when certain odors were presented.
Using a computer model, Principe and his colleagues proved lobsters can take advantage of these bursts and determine when and where the odor came from.
“Remember that animals can be eaten or eat, right?” he said. “So you have to find out if you should move away or approach.”
Principe said the lobsters’ ability to respond is similar to when a dog is tracking a scent, but lobsters’ neurons are much more sensitive because they can detect odors even in the rocking waves of the ocean.
“It is not easy to determine exactly the source of an odor in a turbulent environment,” he said.
Right now electronic noses can only give a general idea of an odor’s location, Principe said. But if the lobsters’ olfactory neurons are included in future designs, the device can pinpoint the source with much greater accuracy.
“This has to be parts per million,” he said, “so if we can detect a minute amount, this is better for the industry.”
Sam Shays, a 22-year-old UF electrical engineering senior, said he can see this breakthrough making a difference in other industries like the medical field.
“The fact that they’re doing this type of research and making this type of discovery right next to my classrooms is pretty cool,” he said.
[A version of this story ran on page 5 on 3/25/2014 under the headline "UF researchers sniff out lobster bomb-detection discovery"]
