Center for PFAS Research

Summer McLane-Svoboda is a graduate student in Biomedical Engineering at Michigan State University, where she also earned dual Bachelor of Science degrees in Genetics and Zoology. She currently conducts research in the Bioengineering of Olfactory Sensory Systems (BOSS) Lab under the direction of Dr. Debajit Saha. Her research focuses on developing a bioelectronic sensing platform that used the locust olfactory system to detect and distinguish PFAS. By recording neural activity from the locust brain in response to PFAS odors and applying machine learning, she has demonstrated the ability to accurately classify multiple PFAS and their concentrations. Her work contributes to the translation of biological principles into practical engineering solutions, leveraging the natural sensitivity of biological olfactory systems to create highly selective chemical sensors for environmental monitoring.