报 告 人：Zach Hetzler, 北卡州立大学 (North Carolina State University)

报告时间：2024年11月21日（周四）10:00-11:30

报告地点：中国农业大学东区 信息与电气工程学院 406会议室

联 系 人：史银雪，王岩 18501182599

Speaker: Dr. Zach Hetzler

报告人简介 Speaker Bio:

Zach earned his Bachelor of Science in Biology from North Carolina State University in 2013. Following his undergraduate studies, he worked in the Biopharmaceutical industry at CSL Behring, where he worked as a Manufacturing Sciences Associate Scientist to monitor process quality. Zach returned to graduate school in 2019, and recently completed his PhD working under Prof. Qingshan Wei, where he worked on developing several biosensors for biomanufacturing product monitoring. Currently, Zach is preparing to launch a startup based on technology from the Wei lab focused on developing sensors for plant pathogen monitoring to support the goal of increasing global food supply.

报告摘要 Talk Abstract:

Rising global population demands an increase in food production, however roughly 1/3 of global crop loss annually are due to plant diseases. Early diagnostics can reduce crop loss by 20-50%, however current diagnostics such as visual inspection and lab-based molecular tests (e.g. PCR) deliver results too late, allowing pathogens to spread further causing more losses. To answer the urgent need for rapid in-field diagnostic methods, we have developed several plant monitoring methods.

In this talk, I will highlight several point-of-care plant pathogen sensors, including an in-field LAMP-enabled molecular diagnostic, and a plant wearable sensor that monitor VOCs (volatile organic compounds) as diagnostic biomarkers. These low-cost sensors can detect plant diseases several days earlier than conventional methods, allowing for significantly more effective pest management strategies.