Kumar among research leaders nominated for Governor's Innovation Awards

Two ASU projects --one that converts algae into jet fuel and another using computer tools to help identify the evolutionary clues to life on Earth and genetic roots of disease--are among the finalists for the 2009 Innovator of the Year Award for Academia, which is given out as part of the Arizona Governor’s Celebration of Innovation.

One project is being led by Sudhir Kumar, director of the Center for Evolutionary Functional Genomics at ASU's Biodesign Institute and also an ASU professor in the School of Life Sciences.  His team research team has pioneered the development of computer methods and discovery software tools to aid the large-scale analysis of DNA from humans and much of life on Earth. Kumar and his group have developed and refined tools for the computational analysis of DNA data (called MEGA software) and for mining scientific literature to build the most complete tree of life scaled to time to date (TimeTree web tool).

These two software tools have proven to be quite popular. The MEGA software for comparative genomics has been cited in more than 3,000 publications annually and the TimeTree of Life Web tool, launched this year, has been accessed 30,000 times in the past few months. Its widespread use includes a targeted educational component and is accessible to everyone. Now, the group is working on a TimeTree application for the iPhone to help bring evolutionary biology to mobile phone users.

“Around the world, thousands of scientists are studying the evolutionary diversification of life by taking advantage of rapidly expanding DNA genome databases,” said Robert Page, founding director of ASU’s School of Life Sciences. “The genomic software developed by Sudhir Kumar has improved not only the fundamental understanding of the process of evolution but also provided key insights into the evolution of beneficial (e.g. crops) and harmful (pathogens, pests) species.”

In the other project, the work of Milton Sommerfeld and Qiang Hu, both professors of applied science and mathematics, was highlighted in the College of Technology and Innovation award nomination. Sommerfeld and Hu have developed a process that can convert algae into aviation or jet fuel. Last year, Time magazine named the process one of the top innovations in 2008.

Sommerfeld and Hu have been working on algae as a source of renewable fuel for more than 25 years. The technology they developed uses sunlight, waste materials like carbon dioxide in flue gas, and nitrates and phosphates in waste waters as nutrients for growing a renewable algae feedstock that yields oil. The algae biomass residuals yield carbohydrates for ethanol production and proteins for animal feed or organic fertilizer.

“A significant aspect of Sommerfeld and Hu’s research is the holistic nature of their efforts,” said Douglas Green, interim chair of the applied science and mathematics department. “Not only are they interested in lipid production from algal cells, but they continually strive and have been successful in utilizing inputs and products to create a green, sustainable production chain.”

The researchers recently received significant funding for their algae projects, and already, two spin-off companies have been created from technologies developed in their laboratory.

The Governor’s Celebration of Innovation has become a premier community gathering in Arizona. The November 19 banquet will be held at the Orpheum Theatre in Phoenix at 7 p.m. The Governor's Innovation Awards, Arizona’s highest honor for technology innovation, is presented by the Arizona Technology Council and the Arizona Department of Commerce.