Bovinemimicry:Thewaronmold

ShiAnna Craig, Samantha Bojorquez, Diego Draguicevich, Chase Ahrens

Our project attempts to solve multiple problems with both specific solutions and
systemic changes. Our main goal was to eliminate food waste due to rot in transport
and resources wasteddue toinefficiencies on the farm.To solvelosses dueto rot, we
turned to frogs.Manyspecies of frog coat their body inan anti microbial slime toward
offbacteriaand fungi.Welocated a peptidein cattle thatservesasimilarpurpose,and
decided to make a preservativeoutof it.As cow's blood is generally wastedwhenthe
cow is slaughtered, it would be in line with natures pattern of optimization to putitto
use. Toprevent enormous waste ofresourcesin transport,we turnedto the olddesign
of symbiotic farming. An agricultural farm is placed within a freerange cattle farm.
Some of the agriculture is food for the cattle, who in turn fertilize the fields with their
manure, preventing waste on both ends. The farm would then be equipped toextract
some blood from cows (if they are dairy cows) or drain the blood from dead cows (if
beef cows). The antimicrobial peptide would be extracted onsite, then used in a
solution to preserve fresh fruits and vegetables thataregrown on the farm. The result
wouldbeless wastefromthetransportofcattlefeedandfertilizer,lesswastedwateron
grass,moreefficientuseoffarmspace,andlessfoodlosttorot.

ProjectIllustration


TeamPhoto

ScopingProcess

Therearemanyproblemssurroundingfoodtransportation.Whenourgroupwaspaired
togetherbycommoninterestinfooddistribution,wewantedtofindawaythatcould
preservefoodfromspoilingduringtransit.Factis,52%offoodthatisbeingproducedin
theUnitedStatesgoesinthetrash,10%ofwhichisduetofoodspoilageintransitand
inretail.Ofcoursethisnumbermayseemsmall,butevenasmallincreaseinefficiency
couldprovidefoodfortensofthousandsofpeople.Theveryfirstday,wediscussed
deepseafishingversusfishfarms.Overthelastcoupleofdecadestherehasbeena
dropinpopulationoffishfromtoomuchfishingandthenasteadyincreaseduetofarm
raisedfish.Thisgotusthinkingofawaywecouldproducemorefoodandkeepitfrom
spoiling.

Inordertominimizespoilage,westartedtolookatmicroorganismsthatcouldeat
certainbacteriaormoldthatgrowsonfoodduringtransportthatcausesittospoil.Ifwe
takeacertainbacteriaandgeneticallymodifyit,wecanputthisonfoodwhileitsbeing
transported,sowhenmoldorfungigrowonthefoodthiscertainorganismwillpostpone
thespoilage.Thiscertainmicroorganismwilleatthefungiandbreakitdown.Whenfood

isbeingsolditcanjustbewashedofforcookedoff.Theonlychallengeiswewould
havetochooseanmicroorganismthatisn'tharmfultohumanifconsumed.

Withnoluckfindingwhatmicroorganismswecoulduse,wedecidedtolooktowardsdry
andcoolenvironmentswheremold/bacteriawouldntgrow.Weasked:Howdoesnature
naturallykeepthingsdry?Indryenvironments,itshardforbacteriatogrowwithout
moisture.Welookatdehydratedfruitsforinspiration.Ourgroupfoundthestrategiesof
buildingadehumidifier&evaporativecoolertostopmicrobialgrowth.Therewasalso
theideaofusinghydrophobicchannelstodivertwaterintoevaporativecooler.
Hydrophobicchannelsaretubsintheshapeofacertaindesertplantthatcollectwater.
Hydrophobicmeansfearofwater,soitwouldcollectit,butawayfromthefoodinorder
topreserveit.However,designingaplanthatinvolvesanevaporativecoolerwouldbe
highlycomplicatedandexpensiveinordertoputitineverytrucktransportingfood.

Headingbacktothedrawingboard,welookedatthewatercontentsoffood.Which
foodneedsthemoistmoisture.Ourfindingswerethatberriesneededthemost
moisture.Wereallytriedtonarrowdownwhichfruitorvegetablewewantedtofocuson,
however,wecameupshort.Becausetherearecompartmentsintrucksthatcarryall
vegetables,orfruits,orbreads,oricecream,itwasreallyhardtofindonespecificfruit
thatwecouldpreventspoilagefrom.

Afterthat,wewantedtocomebackandmakeadifferentapproachtoouroriginalidea.
Wekeptthinkingofapesticideorapreservativethatcouldeatbacteriaandmoldthat
growsonfruits.Weknewwhattheenvironmentwouldlooklike,anddecidedtolookfor
somethingthatwouldfunctioninadampenvironmentthatwouldfightbacteria.After
someresearchingwecameacrossatoadthatcoatsitselfinaslimethatpreventsany
bacteriaormoldfromgrowingonit.Thatslimehasproteinsinitcalledpeptides.
Peptidesbreakdownanymoldorbacteriathattriestogrowonthetoadfrombeingin
themudallday.Soasolutioncomposedofmultiplepeptidesusedtocoat
fruits/vegetablescouldbeusedtoslowrotanddelayspoilage.

Anotherideawethoughtofthatcouldhelpagriculturefarmsandusethispeptidewould
betorelocatecattlefarmsandagrarianfarmsneareachother.Someplantsareused
asfoodforcattleandmanurefertilizesplants.Thiswouldbereducingcowfood
transportationanditwouldputmanuretouse.Whenthecowisslaughteredforfood,
antimicrobialpeptidesarethenextractedfromcattlebloodandusedtopreservethe
produceintransitreducingwastefromrottingfoodsfurther.

Asyoucanimage,comingupwiththisideawasnteasy.Thescopingprocesswasvery
longanddifficultendeavour.Onadailybasis,ourgroupwaslookingatcertainwebsites
thathadtodowithfoodtruckdesigns,examplesofnaturalpreservation,andthe
problemoffoodwaste.Lookingtonaturewasabitofachallengeforusconsideringwe
werevergingbioutilizationandnotBiomimicry.Findingoutaboutthetoadwasour
savinggrace.

BiologicalInspirationProcess

Aswediscussedbefore,itwashardnottovergebioutilizationbecausemostofwhat
wewantedtodowasutilizecertainresourcesfromnatureinsteadofmimicnature.At
first,whenwethoughtofusinganevaporativecoolerwithamoisturecatcher,we
realizedthatitwouldn'tbemimickinganything.Thishappenedmultipletimes.

Whenwecamebacktoouroriginalidea,welookedforanimalsinnaturethatmimicthe
limitofbacteriagrowth.Maybeasystem,orsomethingin/onananimalsskin.Wefound
atoadthatcoatsitselfinanaturalbodyslimefullofpeptideswhichareessentially
proteinstopreventgrowthofbacteriaonitsmoistskin.

Becausethetoadisinreallymoistenvironmentslikemudandwater,itneedstoprevent
itsskinfromgettingrotten,thatswherethepeptideslimecomesin.Peptidesarevery
usefulandcanbefoundanywhere.Thereareactuallyalotofstudiesaboutpeptides
andwhattheycanbeusedfor.Alotofthemarestillbeingtestedforcancer,HIV/Aids,
fungiinfections,viruses,andmuchmore.Peptidescanbefoundineveryhumanbody,
soweassumetheywouldhavenonegativeimpact.However,wewereinevitablyforced
toadmitthatthisisoneofthemanythingswewereunabletoconfirmwithfinalityinside
ourtimeline.

Wewantedtoincorporateagriculturefarms,wealsothoughtofcows.Cowsbloodoften
goestowasteaftercowsareslaughteredformeat.Wefoundantimicrobialpeptidesthat
arealsoincowsbloodandwecouldusethatforpreservation.Ourattemptstofurther
integratethisintoasystemicsolutionwereaidedbyanexpertinthefieldoffarming,
whosuggestedsymbioticfarming.Ourplanistousethepeptidesforpreventing
microbialgrowthonfoodduringtransport,asyetanotherbenefittopushtheideaofthe
symbioticfarm.

Thisisourstrategy.Mimickingthetoadandusingthepeptidesfromthecowsblood
wouldservemultiplepurposes.Wewouldhaveplantsgrowingmorethankstothe
fertilizer,therewouldbelittletransportationforcowsfoodconsideringtheywouldbe
eatingsomeoftheplants/grassthatgrows,andtheoretically,ifwecouldpostpone
spoilageoffruitsandvegetablesforevenonedaybyusingthepeptides,thatwould

makeahugedifference.Alloftheseideashavebeentailoredtofitintonaturesunifying
patternsofefficiencyandsymbiosis.

Ofcourse,therealchallengeishowtoactuallyextractpeptidesandmakea
preservativeoutoftheseproteins.Weneedtomimictheslimecoatonthefrogthatis
washable.Functionandstrategyaretwoveryimportantrolesinthis.Weknowwhatour
purposeis,itsjustthestrategyofhowtomakeanduseit.Thatisstillaprocessinitself
becauseitstillinvolveslookingtonatureforguidance.

UseofNaturesUnifyingPatterns

Ourprocess,fromthebeginning,wasfocusedonwastereduction.Wealignedour
goalswiththeunifyingpatternofoptimizationovermaximization,andourdesignreflects
that.Insteadofappropriatingmorespaceforfarms,symbioticfarmsenablemore
productioninthesameamountofspace.Reuseofwastefrombothpartiesalso
alignedwiththeideathatnaturerunsincircularpatternsofenergydistribution.The
reuseoftheantimicrobialpeptidealignswiththeideaofzerowasteaswell.Theentire
conceptofasymbioticfarm,ofcourse,alignswiththeprinciplethatnaturerewards
cooperation.Specificexamplesareinlinewithotherpatterns.Usingcowsasamethod
ofweedingafarmisawaytocapitaliseonabundantresourcesratherthanwasting
energyonalternativesolutions.

Simplified,ouridealinesupwithnaturesunifyingpatternsassuch:
Placementofonefarmwithintheotherisoptimization.
Cattleandplantsymbiosisisrewardedforcooperation.
Reducedtransportationconservesenergy.
Manureoverindustrialfertilizeralsoconservesenergy.
Useofpeptidetopreserveproduceisoptimizationanduseofabundant
resources.

BusinessCase

Symbioticfarmshaveaclear,longstandingbenefitforbusiness.Specifically,ourideas
wouldbeofbenefittobothfarmersandrancherslookingtoreducecostswhile
improvingefficiency.Farmersandrancherscansplitpropertycostswithouteitherlosing
anyavailablespace,reducingexpensestobothbymakingbestuseoftheavailable
land.Itemsboththerancherandfarmerwouldconsiderwasteareinsteadreusedbythe
otherparty,namelymanurefromthecowsandweedsfromthecropfields.Thecows

wouldprovidefertilizerfortheplants,andtheweedsasourceofnutrientforthecows.
Thiswouldalsoslightlyreducetheamountoflabortherancherwouldneedtocleanup
afterthecows,andreducethefamountofweedingthefarmerwouldneedtodo.

Therancherwouldbeabletoturnasmallprofitoncowsbloodthatwouldotherwisego
towaste,andthefarmer,withtheproperequipmenttoextracttheantimicrobial
peptides,wouldhaveacheapandreadilyaccessiblepreservativefortheirfruitsand
vegetables.Bothpartieswouldalsosaveontransportationcostsoffeedandfertilizer,
asbothwouldbemorereadilyavailable.Reducedoperatingcostswouldthenbe
transferredintoeitherahigherprofitmarginoralowercosttoconsumerstoincrease
marketpenetration.Wehavenotyetestimatedthepotentialcostreductiontopotential
adopters,butthatwouldbeournextstepwerewetocontinue

CurrentLimitations

Acurrentlimitationforourdesignisdesigningandcreatingamachinethatisableto
collectthecowsbloodandmedicalsuppliesthatwillremovepeptidesfromthebloodin
afastandefficientway.Thenwewillneedtofindandorcreatemorefreerangedfarms
andplantcrops.Wewillthenneedtoworkfurtheronefficientextractionofthese
peptidesandsafetyprocedurestopreventanddangerfromourpreservatives.

Forournextstepsweneedtofigureouthowtoputourpeptideproductonfoodina
waythatprotectsandpreservesthefood,butalsousesnomorethanthebareminimum
neededforpreservation.Ourobstaclestoovercometoimplementdesignwewillneed
toeitherdesignorlocateaninstrumentthatremovespeptidesfromblood.Wewillthen
needamedium(liquid)toputthepeptidesintosoweareabletocoatfoodwiththe
peptides.

Afewunknownfactorsarefindingawaytominimizeriskofpathogensinblood.Wewill
needtomakesurethatourcowbloodiscleanandsterilesounwanted
compounds/diseasesdonotcontaminatefood.Therearemanyunknownfactorsand
possibledangerthatcouldarise,butweareunawareofallofthemorhowtosolve
them.Furtherresearchwouldrevolvelargelyaroundhowtoensurethatthepeptide
solutioniseffectiveandguaranteeingthatitissafe.

TeamDynamics

Ourteamworkedverywellforthedurationofthisproject.Westrivedtohelpeachother
completetasks,usemaximumcommunicationandalwaysbeopentonewideas.We
usedteamworktodevelopagreatideatoimproveourfoodproblems.Weworkedwell
togetherasateamlargelyduetoourdividingupoftasksandassignments,aprocess
thatenabledustoworkwithoutstrengthsandgetthemostworkdoneintheleast
possibletime.Herearesomeexamplesoftheroleswegaveourselves:

DiegoDiegowasdefinitelytheleaderofthegroup,heexcelledatbrainstormingand
presentingnewideas.Whenwewouldbestuck,wewouldcometodiegobecausehe
alwaysknewawayaroundtheproblem.Hereallyknewourtopicandhewasveryuseful
whenweweredoingourscopingprocess.Diegoalsowastheoneresearchingthe
differentpeptidesweusedfromnature.

ChaseChasecontributedhisefforttoallofthepartsonthisproject.Anythinghewas
askedtodohewouldgetitdone.Hisstrengthswereresearchingandmakingsureour
ideashadnoflaws.

SamSamsexcelledatkeepingthegrouporganizedandmadesurewewereallonthe
samepage.Shealsoresearcheddifferentflawsintransportation.

ShiAnnaShiAnnaworkedonresearchingandthescopingprocess.Whenwewould
comeupwithanideatofixaproblemshewouldbethefirstonetogetacomputerand
researchtheidea.

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