SENTRY - AI to monitor & prevent plant infectious diseases
Oeiras, 1st of July
Over 673 million people experienced hunger in 2024, according to the World Health Organisation. Plant infectious disease poses a serious threat to food security, causing over 30% of annual crop yield losses, and further affecting the quality and value of agricultural products. ITQB NOVA is part of SENTRY, an international consortium tackling this challenge. This project will develop a plant health management system, supported by artificial intelligence, to help farmers prevent plant infectious diseases.
SENTRY - A Precision Agriculture Solution for Plant Pathogen Surveillance and Risk Assessment - is coordinated by Stremble Ventures Ltd (Cyprus) and includes 21 organizations across different countries, including ITQB NOVA, which provides expertise in molecular diagnostics. The goal is to develop innovative agriculture solutions for monitoring plant disease in real time and address the current gaps in crop surveillance and forecasting, allowing for early detection and management.
For this, they are developing a plant health management system, supported by AI technology, that combines early infectious disease detection, risk prediction and non-chemical control technologies. According to Catarina Pimentel, leader of the Yeast Molecular Biology Lab, “SENTRY aims to help farmers prevent plant infectious diseases in a more sustainable and proactive way. Instead of waiting until diseases appear and then applying pesticides, the project wants to detect risks early and use targeted interventions to prevent damage”.
By closely monitoring plant infections, and taking advantage of state-of-the-art AI-tools, it is possible to introduce measures for disease control across the whole food production chain. “Our system will provide warehouse managers, distributors and retailers with accurate information on plant diseases and how to manage them”, explains Catarina Amaral, from the Yeast Molecular Biology Lab, “and consequently, enhance agriculture sustainability, resilience and food security”.
The project, which at ITQB NOVA also includes the participation of the Microbial Development Laboratory, kicked off on the 22nd of June, in Limassol, Cyprus, and sets out to deliver a scientific leap by generating unprecedented, high-resolution datasets on the spread of pathogens and plant resistance dynamics across Europe. These data will advance the field of digital pest epidemiology, inform regulatory frameworks, and open new research avenues in sustainable plant health and One Health.
