Uploaded March 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Dogs are great at detecting things that are hard for humans to smell. But we don’t always know which chemicals are responsible for the scents that our four-legged friends pick up.
One group of researchers at Texas Tech University trained working dogs to identify the scent of powdery mildew, a fungus that infects grapevines and other plants. Now, another group is analyzing the volatile compounds emitted by infected leaves to figure out which molecules are responsible for the telltale smell.
“Evaluating chemical odor profiles of Vitis vinifera: Odor profiling for pathogen identification”
Presented at ACS Spring 2025 on March 23, 2025
Presenter: Nayelly Rangel
Principal investigator: Paola Prada-Tiedemann, Ph.D.
To read an ACS press release about this research, go to: acs.org/pressroom/presspacs/2025/march/guardians-of-the-vineyard-canines-and-chemistry-team-up-to-combat-powdery-mildew.html
Video credits:
Written and produced by Anne Hylden
Edited by Mónica Pinzón
Narrated by Emily Schneider
Series produced by Vangie Koonce and Andrew Sobey
Executive produced by Matthew Radcliff
Chemistry lab videos from Nayelly Rangel
Working dog videos from Riannon Rowley (provided courtesy of the Texas Tech Graduate School),
Sarah Kane, Liza Rothkoff and Arieli Da Fonseca
Additional video: Shutterstock
3D molecule images: PubChem (CID 5281515, CID 11552)
Sound effects: Soundsnap
Music: “A Charming Promise” by Boris Skalsky on Triple Scoop Music
Produced by the American Chemical Society (ACS), one of the world’s largest scientific societies. ACS is a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related information and research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences.
Join the #AmericanChemicalSociety! bit.ly/Join_ACS
#grape #fungus #dogs
Dogs are great at detecting things that are hard for humans to smell. But we don’t always know which chemicals are responsible for the scents that our four-legged friends pick up.
One group of researchers at Texas Tech University trained working dogs to identify the scent of powdery mildew, a fungus that infects grapevines and other plants. Now, another group is analyzing the volatile compounds emitted by infected leaves to figure out which molecules are responsible for the telltale smell.
“Evaluating chemical odor profiles of Vitis vinifera: Odor profiling for pathogen identification”
Presented at ACS Spring 2025 on March 23, 2025
Presenter: Nayelly Rangel
Principal investigator: Paola Prada-Tiedemann, Ph.D.
To read an ACS press release about this research, go to: acs.org/pressroom/presspacs/2025/march/guardians-of-the-vineyard-canines-and-chemistry-team-up-to-combat-powdery-mildew.html
Video credits:
Written and produced by Anne Hylden
Edited by Mónica Pinzón
Narrated by Emily Schneider
Series produced by Vangie Koonce and Andrew Sobey
Executive produced by Matthew Radcliff
Chemistry lab videos from Nayelly Rangel
Working dog videos from Riannon Rowley (provided courtesy of the Texas Tech Graduate School),
Sarah Kane, Liza Rothkoff and Arieli Da Fonseca
Additional video: Shutterstock
3D molecule images: PubChem (CID 5281515, CID 11552)
Sound effects: Soundsnap
Music: “A Charming Promise” by Boris Skalsky on Triple Scoop Music
Produced by the American Chemical Society (ACS), one of the world’s largest scientific societies. ACS is a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related information and research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences.
Join the #AmericanChemicalSociety! bit.ly/Join_ACS
#grape #fungus #dogs
