ExciPlex is developing on-site mycotoxin detection technologies to deliver actionable data in real time to every level of feed and food production. Its detection system will rapidly quantify mycotoxins in any feed or grain sample, presenting a faster and simpler option at the mill and a first-in-class option on the farm.
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Daryl Staveness
Daryl Staveness is the founder and CEO of ExciPlex, a portable diagnostics company that provides actionable real-time data in agricultural and environmental sectors. Staveness completed his B.S. at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his Ph.D. in organic chemistry at Stanford University. He was awarded an American Cancer Society Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Michigan for his translational synthetic photochemistry research. Staveness founded ExciPlex to connect photochemical innovation with critical areas of need in on-site toxin detection.
TECHNOLOGY
Critical Need
Mycotoxins are small molecule toxins produced by fungi that infest cereal grains. These toxins can persist in the grain or grain-based products even after grain processing. Contaminated grains thus translate into contaminated end products, such as animal feeds and even human foods. All animals have physiological susceptibilities to these fungi-derived poisons, and acute toxicity can be fatal. Recent survey data suggests up to 40 percent of all animal feed is contaminated at a rate detrimental to animal health. These poisoning events reduce productivity and profitability in protein production, significantly contributing to waste and inefficiency in the food supply chain.
Technology Vision
ExciPlex is developing the next generation of mycotoxin detection technologies that will deliver actionable data in real time to every level of animal feed and livestock production. On-site detection is critical to proactively remediate these toxins for upstream grain processors and downstream livestock producers. ExciPlex’s technology will deliver fast and operationally simple testing protocols that are viable even in highly complex feed samples (e.g., silage). The smartphone-associated portable device design facilitates IT connectivity that is non-existent in current mycotoxin quality control models; thus, ExciPlex is primed to usher mycotoxin detection into the digital age of agriculture.
Potential for Impact
Animals consuming mycotoxin-contaminated feed grow more slowly, produce less milk/eggs, and are more susceptible to disease. This necessitates additional feed (among other inputs) to maintain production levels, which in turn necessitates more resources to produce said feed (e.g., water, fertilizers, pesticides, time/labor). This mycotoxin multiplier equates to millions of tons of wasted resources and unnecessary agricultural contamination in the United States alone. Mycotoxin vigilance is therefore a crucial component of efficient, sustainable protein production. Increasing mycotoxin visibility and traceability with ExciPlex’s detection system will allow for proactive remediation of these toxins and eliminate the economic, ethical, and environmental ramifications they propagate.
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