# US teen designs banana leaf-inspired liner for neonatal incubators

2026-08-17T16:58:30+00:00 | Health & Science | Indian Opinion Desk

Corroboration: 1 independent outlet

Vedika Devarajan, a ninth-grade student at Redmond High School in Washington, has developed a biomimetic neonatal incubator liner inspired by banana leaf veins. Her project, BananaBaby, aims to reduce hospital-acquired infections in newborns by managing condensation inside incubators. The project won a third-place award of $1,200 in Materials Science at the 2026 Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair. Devarajan created a polydimethylsiloxane mold based on the parallel venation pattern of Musa species leaves. The liner is designed to direct condensation along controlled pathways rather than letting moisture pool, potentially reducing microbial contamination. The Times of India reports that the project focuses on a low-cost approach to improve incubator safety, especially for developing countries. BananaBaby first earned first place at the Washington State Science & Engineering Fair before qualifying for ISEF. The liner remains a student research project and would require further clinical testing before hospital use. Devarajan's design was among more than 1,700 projects from over 65 countries at the fair.

## Coverage

- timesofindia.indiatimes.com <https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/meet-vedika-devarajan-the-washington-high-school-freshman-who-designed-a-banana-inspired-neonatal-incubator-liner-to-tackle-hospital-acquired-infections/articleshow/133300081.cms>

This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.

Tags: Redmond High School, Regeneron ISEF, Vedika Devarajan, Washington
Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/us-teen-designs-banana-leaf-inspired-liner-for-neonatal-incubators/
License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources.
Cite: https://indianopinion.org/us-teen-designs-banana-leaf-inspired-liner-for-neonatal-incubators/#story-in-brief

Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.

How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/