Anannya Roy, Amity University Kolkata
Imagine the mushroom you ate for lunch is the same mushroom that you used in your Fitbit smartwatch for measuring the number of footsteps while jogging. Fascinating isn’t it? Science fiction has become a reality in today’s world and yes all this is possible.
We learned in our high school Botany classes that the body of a fungus is made up of thread-like structures called hyphae and a network of such hyphae is called a mycelium. This mycelium is a very interesting structure because this has the ability to detect external stimuli like heat, temperature, moisture, chemicals in the environment as well as electrical signals. Scientists and researchers have exploited this ability of mycelium to detect signals and conveniently altered their properties to produce biodegradable smartwatches.
In general smartwatches sense and process information from the user’s body and environment and produce a report of their results in the form of electrical signals. Electronic sensors were used traditionally but now the field of bioelectronics is rapidly evolving. A lot of research is being done here and fungal organisms are a promising candidate here.
Oyster mushroom mycelium is able to perceive electrical signals and that can be used to replace the sensors and processors inside the Fitbit which are readable by a computer. The interesting phenomenon is that the mushroom’s perception of the environment will help us determine our heart rate. Life to the machine to life again.
The fungal mycelium arranges itself throughout the soil in a mesh-like network that has a geometric pattern. Naturally, they don’t have the ability to detect electrical signals on their own, so technologists program the oyster mushroom mycelium genes according to their convenience in order to optimize the abilities.
Along with this, sensing patches are also designed with hemp fabric colonized with mycelium. They are tested by spraying with different chemicals as well as exposing different stimulants.
Though this technology is very interesting and novel, there is still a lot of work to be done. This paper provides a lot of insights into the field as well as paves the way for us budding researchers to develop the same.
Also read:Sea Snail Venom can help to cure Malaria
Source –https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0303264720301805
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