HUMAN PRACTICES
Collaborations
This year, we held an online popularization activity about synthetic biology on August 13th and August 14th. We used Tencent conference to give speeches and use the Bilibili to synchronize the live broadcast. This activity enables the communication between iGEM teams in various universities, and it also gives listeners of all ages the opportunity to understand the frontiers of synthetic biology. Before the official start of the activity, we set up a wechat group to warm up, and we answered questions for the audience, and distributed some relevant synthetic biology science articles to help our audience understand this area better. We invited BNUZH-China, JLU-China, BIT, BUCT, NJU-China, FaFu-China, BUCT-China, iBowu, NJMU-China, NPU-CHINA, Sustech_Shenzhen_HCL, BIT-China to join us. We also introduced their team and projects. In the question-asking session, the students of each university team interacted actively.
The activity process is divided into four steps, namely team introduction, popular science speech, communication and discussion, and questionnaire distribution.
Based on the different track and the project content, the event is divided into five special topics: synthetic biology and life, hair loss prevention, gene editing and production, medical care, energy utilization and environmental protection.
BUCT-China's speech focus on a topic on gene editing and production, where we introduced artificial meat related to food safety and answered public concerns. During the lecture, we vividly introduced the concept, social value and safety of artificial meat, and how to establish the standardized safety system of artificial meat in the future. The simple content and the lively background painting style deeply attracted the audience of the studio.
In the discussion part, the lecturers and the audience in the broadcast room interacted actively. Our audience are mainly undergraduate and high school students, and there are also audiences from all walks of life participating in our activities. Undergraduate and high school students have a certain biological foundation, and they are passionate about learning new things.They asked many valuable questions that inspire us to think deeply about the interdisciplinary field of synthetic biology. Simultaneously, we answered some questions from the audience in a life-like tone, and also inspired their interest in biology, making them understand that biology is not only about "lofty" scientific research, but also a ubiquitous and indispensable part of our lives. We have also introduced the iGEM competition, so that more students can pay attention to this competition.
In addition, because medical treatment, food safety, environmental protection are issues of public concern, there are also audiences from all walks of life to watch the live broadcast. The public's concern for food safety prompted us to think about the market regulation, industry norms, laws and regulations related to cell culture meat, which gave us a deeper understanding of the project and became an important theme for our subsequent scientific popularization and research. Moreover, we also promote the knowledge of synthetic biology to more people through the new media platform of various universities and the Bilibili platform of the Chemical Association of Beijing University of Chemical Technology, making it easier for people to accept and understand, and further expand the audience range.
On the evening of August 7th, together with the ShanghaiTech_China and Peking iGEM team, we dilivered a popular science lecture on biological metabolism to high school students. Using the biosynthesis of polyhydroxyfatty acid ester of artificial meat scaffold, we expounded the principle, significance, realization mode and application prospect of dynamic regulation starting from the basic characteristics of microbial metabolism.We present the process of designing and constructing gene pathway units so that recombinant cells can dynamically sense and process specific signals to undergo adaptive regulation according to signal changes, and we introduced dynamic regulatory systems based on changes in substance concentration in detail. Combined with the strategy at the national level, namely the 14th Five-Year Plan for Bioeconomic Development issued by the National Development and Reform Commission, we have expounded the application prospect of optimizing microbial cell factories to realize intelligent bio-abrication. This science popularization activity further deepened our understanding of dynamic regulation, and also strengthened our communication and cooperation with ShanghaiTech_China and PekingiGEM teams.
At 6 PM on May 22 Beijing time, two teams from Beijing University of Chemical Technology: BUCT-China and BUCT-iGEM, gave a lecture on iGEM, synthetic biology and project introduction in the studio of the school. We used live speeches and Bilibili live broadcasts to attract online and offline audiences. Our audience is mainly college students, and people from all walks of life also come to watch our live broadcast. The lecture included an introduction to the iGEM competition and basic knowledge about synthetic biology. BUCT-China team introduced a project on the development of cell culture meat, and BUCT-iGEM team popularized the problem of seborrheic alopecia. Although the two teams' projects focus on different areas of biology, they both contain the nature of synthetic biology: building specific tool cells through biotechnological means with the ability to produce specific products. We respectively introduce how components can be built from a modular perspective according to specific requirements, and then integrate and optimize these components with a natural biological system to produce an artificial biological system with controllable operation. This event not only gave us a deeper understanding of synthetic biology, but also inspired undergraduate audiences from different majors from different schools, enabling them to understand the importance of biology in their daily life. At the same time, after the lecture, some junior students also showed a strong desire to participate in the iGEM competition, and they had a further discussion with us.
On July 16th, we participated in the online meetup organized by Jiangnan, GXU-China, Jilin_China, and NPU-CHINA. We introduced our project to many iGEM team members, actively interacted with them, and answered their questions. Since most of the iGEM team members have a relatively profound biological foundation, they put forward professional questions from the aspects of experimental design and experimental operation, which also enabled us to reflect. We focused on explaining to the teams that they were all concerned about regulating the production of scaffold material PHFA through an autonomous dynamic regulation system and the use of microsphere cultured cells instead of 3D printing to solve the current challenges of high cost and high barriers faced by the cell meat industry.
Meanwhile, the organizer made the conference manual and had the project introduction of each team. We found teams with similar directions from the project manual and the speech content, and had further in-depth communication and gained a lot.
The collaboration with Shanghai_Tech runs through our project, and the common goal that we both work towards is not only the vision of space but also the future expectations of food production.
At the initial stage of the project, the two teams hit it off and appreciated each other's projects.
When determining the project direction, Shanghai_Tech learned that BUCT-China uses E. coli to produce edible products - cultured meat, so they changed the chassis bacteria from spirulina to E. coli which preserves the production of food and has greatly improved by synthetic biology. At the same time, BUCT-China's cultured meat food can be used as a downstream industry to land the project.
BUCT-China also knows that our two teams can utilize our chassis bacteria as platforms for each other, and Shanghai_Tech is our vision. Keeping our eyes on the stars while with both feet on the ground. Since then, taking space exploration and interstellar migration as the background of our grand vision has been firmly established. We and Shanghai_Tech contacted each other and conducted preliminary exchanges and discussions. After introducing our respective inspirations and preliminary plans, we put forward each team’s opinions on the overall idea together.
However, in the early and middle stages of the project, Shanghai suffered from COVID-19 and was therefore subject to lockdown control. Shanghai_Tech’s projects had been affected a lot which is very difficult to develop the experimental part furtherly. BUCT-China was also in quarantine and lockdown for a long time in the middle and last stages of the project due to the impact of the Beijing epidemic, so it was unable to carry out experiments. However, COVID-19 has not knocked us down but allowed our relationships to get closer, and we can support each other through cooperation.
It is not only the support of concepts but also our mutual help in experiments. When the progress of the experiment was limited by the epidemic, we worked together to tap stakeholders and conduct research, and jointly publicized the knowledge of synthetic biology. (modeling)
The experiment design of BUCT-China offered inspiration to Shanghai_Tech who adjusted their project plan and initially established the project track. Due to the impact of the epidemic, we held online meetings to better communicate. The two teams sincerely support each other in concept and discussion on experimental design. We arranged meetings together frequently in order to have a further understanding which allows us to provide some valuable advice for both teams.
Shanghai_Tech asked us about the suggestion of using E. coli as chassis to produce food (cell-cultured meat), and we provided theoretical and experimental support to them.
In addition, we have maintained continuous contact with every team member.
Quorum sensing system with an alternate expression of the idea
Shanghai_Tech suggested that we could design a system that can express alternately
In the communication with the students in the experimental design group, we proposed the degradation label to Shanghai_Tech students gave inspiration
Experimental design: insect catching and supplement, joint efforts to tap stakeholders (questionnaires), joint publicity.
Industrialization mussel protein: this method can increase adhesion
BUCT-China proposed that it may be necessary to improve cell adhesion in current cell meat production. Shanghai_Tech, based on the experience of past projects, told us that mussel mucins have strong adhesion which is completely harmless and biodegradable, so maybe mfp-5 can be used to promote the adhesion of cell meat. As a result, we decided to cooperate with Synmeta (Shanghai Yiru Technology Co., Ltd.), a synthetic biology company derived from the iGEM competition of Shanghai_Tech, to develop cell meat and solve the adhesion problem in cell meat synthesis.
Shanghai_ Tech proposed that it is necessary to show that the three chassis bacteria have different fluorescence, and the fluorescence brightness is insufficient
We send the sequence of the fluorescent protein to Shanghai_Tech. The fluorescent protein has high brightness and is red. It can be compared with E.coli (blue) and cyanobacteria (green) to identify.
Meanwhile, the events we hold together benefit us, including joining scientific education and designing the questionnaire.
We attended the Science Lecture (metabolism) held by Shanghai_Tech.
Collaboration questionnaire with Shanghai_Tech.
The questionnaire “Just the right question of the thing we care about” is mainly focused on the public awareness and recognition of cultured meat and the Mini Bioproduction Circle System on Mars base (MBCS). The content includes the food safety problem and Mars immigration plans which offers us the requirement and feedback for our project.
Interview
On September 18, 2022, we and ShanghaiTech iGEM team interviewed Mr. Liu Xidong from Mengniu Dairy. The two teams first introduced their projects and then discussed various issues related to food manufacturing with Mr. Liu Xidong from the key points of their projects. BUCT-China's goal is to overcome public health challenges in the food industry and reduce carbon emissions in the process through an automated production line using cell-cultured meat. ShanghaiTech_China's goal is to provide an initial sustainable food production solution for the future of human Mars exploration by providing initial sustainable food production solutions. They have constructed miniature artificial ecosystems using microorganisms to convert CO2 to sucrose using S. elongatus; nitrogen-fixing bacteria A. caulinodans to convert N2 to NH4+; and ultimately relying on engineered E. coli to produce products needed by humans, both teams' goals are related to food manufacturing are closely related.
Through his several years of experience in industrial food production, Mr. Liu answered our questions and provided valuable advice on how to move our project towards industrial production.
Experimental support, modeling, and joint efforts to explore stakeholders
After a half year of mutual running in and help, we successfully solved many technical problems in the experimental practice. Through our joint efforts, both teams have made great progress in their projects. We held a further meeting for consultation and confirmed the cooperation content in the final stage.
The two teams conducted preliminary cooperation on some aspects of human practice at the previous meeting and jointly explored common stakeholders. Therefore, when designing social practice, we mainly communicate from laboratory to industrial production, food safety, industrialization, and other aspects, and contacted Mengniu (???) to conduct interviews for exchanges. Our projects have also been fully recognized.
In the later stage, the experiments of both sides have basically reached the final stage, and some experimental results have been achieved. Through the private communication of the students during the experiment and the convening of the meeting, we put forward the difficulties encountered in the experiment one by one and exchanged views to help each other.
Three plasmids were sent directly, and Shanghai_Tech helped BUCT-China measure the fluorescence content. Shanghai_Tech sent to BUCT-China to help them measure the sucrose content of the solution. The sterile supernatant sent by Shanghai_Tech was used for the nuclear magnetic spectrum by BUCT-China Send P- λ, CI repressor protein, promoter (a set of repressor proteins) to Shanghai_Tech Shanghai_ Tech needs to degrade AHL, add a degrading enzyme to AHL, and add a repressor protein and a promoter. So, they tried ours.
The well-coordination has a great impact on both teams which improves our projects from many stages.