Team UBC
We collaborated with the UBC iGEM Team throughout the year. We engaged and exchanged ideas through multiple online meetings and helped shape each other’s projects in a better way.
We held a webinar together on International Accessibility to Synthetic Biology Innovations. We invited four experts from different parts of the world to a panel discussion: Prof. Pawan Dhar (India), Alex Kyaborongo (Uganda), Scott Pownall (Canada), and Dr. Luis De Stefano-Beltrán (Peru). The webinar was aimed to understand the difference in accessibility to biotechnology innovations in different parts of the world. Panelists talked about their own experiences and the difference in monetary support they got and how that impacts synthetic biology. They also talked about how public perception ties in deeply into the acceptance of synthetic biology and the policies framed around this field of research.
We also helped them out with modelling by looking at soil elevation, water table depths, proximity to water-bodies among a few more parameters to find the places in the country where waterlogging is likely to happen. They in return helped us out by planning ethylene assays.
Mimamsa
Mimamsa is a National level annual Science Quiz organized by the students of our institute, IISER Pune, for students at the undergraduate level. On the closing day, Mimamsa organised a science fest which was attended by curiosity-driven high school and college students. Our team in collaboration with iGEM IISER Pune 2 put up a synthetic biology exhibit.
In this exhibition, students were introduced to synthetic biology and were given a glimpse into the immense potential of synthetic biology to solve the world’s problems. We introduced the students to the microscopic world using a DIY microscope, i.e. Foldscope. We also gave them at-home activities which will increase their interest into the world of these tiny yet exciting organisms.
The students also had the opportunity to play fun games based on synthetic biology. “The Plasmid Game” was aimed at teaching them the basics of plasmids and gene expression. The genes and their associated proteins were named after our team members. Students were asked what effect they wanted and likewise were given codes about which colored gene and substrates they should add to the plasmid to get the desired gene expression.
“Crack The Code” was a game designed to test student’s knowledge of biology and their cognitive skills. They had to spin a wheel and then were asked the question upon which the wheel landed. They were also awarded chocolates upon giving correct answers.
Environment Day
For the occasion of World Environment Day, we invited iGEM teams to contribute in some way to make our Earth a better place to live in. We asked them to click a picture of their team performing the act, and we posted them on our social media handles. This encouraged teams to plant trees, clean their surroundings and look for sustainable ways to help the environment.
Desertification Survey
On the occasion of World Day to Combat Desertification and Drought, we invited everyone including iGEM teams and the general public to fill out a survey. It was to test people’s knowledge about desertification, its causes, and current solutions. Also, we asked them to propose their own solutions to this problem. We gave open access to all the solutions so that people can develop them further and hopefully can implement them in real life.
Food Security and GMOs
We invited the general public to fill out a survey on ‘Food Security and GMOs’ in order to understand how much the general public knows about these topics. We circulated the form among our institute through mail, individually invited iGEM teams and also posted on social media.
All India iGEM Meet
We visited IISC Bangalore to attend the All India iGEM Meet. We got to interact with all the Indian iGEM Teams and networked with people working in synthetic biology. This helped us understand the different ways teams have tried to improve their project throughout their iGEM cycle. We presented our idea and got to learn about how the other teams have used synthetic biology to solve existing problems. We also did a poster presentation and gained some experience on how to present our idea in a concise and creative way. We received valuable inputs from the judges and have tried to take their suggestions to improve our project. We also received the Best Drylab Award and got honorable mentions for Best Education, Best Presentation and Best Overall Project. These achievements boosted our confidence and motivated us to work hard for our project.
Agriculture Meetup
Team Thailand RIS invited us to a global meetup with teams working to meet agricultural goals. We presented our project to all the other teams and learned about how different teams are taking different approaches to solving the same main goal. This also opened up various possibilities for forming collaborations.
Journal Initiative
Team MSP invited us to take part in their journal initiative which aims to put forward the most innovative research done by iGEM teams from all around the world. One of our team members sent a literature review on Phage Therapy written by him and had to peer-review three papers from other teams. We were one of the top three winners and the paper was published in their annual journal: MSP Vector.
Checkout our literature review here.
World DNA Day
Team Patras Medicine invited us to create a DNA graphic and as bases, images from iGEMers, each holding the corresponding base were used. This brought together iGEMers from around the world for a fun collaboration that fostered a sense of unity among all the iGEM teams.
World Dengue Day
Team IISER Pune 2 invited us to take a pledge to eradicate the scourge of dengue. We fully support them in this cause, and we recorded a video of our team members taking a pledge to give this neglected disease our attention and exercise vector control measures as are within our ability.
Card Game
Team INSA Lyon invited us to their card game. We had to send our team logo and a short project description. The aim of the game was to be the first researcher to create bacteria capable of solving a problem(detecting toxic elements, clean oil spill, etc.). To do this, the player needs to combine a type of bacteria, a gene, a certain quantity of time, money, and resources for the bacteria. However, the player is not alone, as the other players also have specific projects and missions to fulfill.
Coloring Book
Team USAFA invited us to take part in their collaboration to make a coloring book that can be given to young students all around the world. The coloring book depicts the problems that we are trying to solve using synthetic biology.
