View XJTLU-CHINA's wiki page here: https://2022.igem.wiki/xjtlu-china/partnership
Notion
We learned about XJTLU-CHINA from their project promotion article. Their project aimed to absorb heavy metal ions in wastewater using biofilm. Both teams noted the current issue of freshwater contamination, and wished to contribute to tackling the impending crisis. Our toxic chemicals of interest are not directly related, but we believed our common goal in freshwater bioremediation would be a promising starting point for a season-long partnership.
The use of genetically modified organisms in environmental protection is one of public interest. For teams like us with a focus on environment, human practice and education concerning biosafety would be crucial to our projects. Safety has also been a great concern for teams, and we wish to thoroughly document our experience to contribute to future teams. Nanjing_NFLS and XJTLU-CHINA are both committed to building a bridge between the scientific community and the general public by providing quality information.
1st Meetup
We first got to know team XJTLU-CHINA from their project introduction article. Following a brief discussion, we scheduled an online discussion to specify our partnership details.
During the meetup, both teams did presentations on the initial project design, engineering goals, and implementation scenarios. We then shared on the current work we had done in outreach and human practices. After getting to know each other’s project better, we discussed several main points that we could collaborate on throughout the whole season.
After the meetup, we drafted a partnership proposal with more details on future activities. As we document this season on the wiki, we are excited to find that all proposed ideas have been achieved!
Environment Policy Review
It is especially important for environmental teams to comply to environmental policies and address relevant safety issues in our projects. Nanjing_NFLS and XJTLU-CHINA started off our partnership by a thorough policy review. We analyzed regulations in the past, especially the new Biosecurity Law of China that has just come into use.
We found that current legislations are generally supportive of well-analyzed uses of genetically modified microorganisms in bioremediation, mainly because of its objective advantages including fair price and nontoxic degradation products. Regulations put emphasis on the risk assessment throughout research and before implementation of the products. It is important for us to identify potential harms and respond to them if possible; if no solution is at hand, it would be equally important to clarify what harms would arise and be aware. These ideas stayed with us throughout the entire season and guided us in designing, testing, and improving our projects.
Co-Design Survey
In order to find the focus for our education and outreach projects, Nanjing_NFLS and XJTLU-CHINA decided to co-design a survey to investigate stakeholders’ attitude towards using GMOs in environmental protection. According to the points both teams were interested in, Nanjing_NFLS first drafted the key questions; then XJTLU-CHINA edited the details and added demographic questions to better understand our surveyed population. Finally, Nanjing_NFLS translated the survey to English, and edited the Chinese language to suit people with little prior knowledge in synthetic biology. Both teams participated in collecting the survey to cover a wider range of stakeholders, including students (primary, secondary, different majors in universities), city and countryside dwellers, academia, etc.
The results suggested that stakeholders’ attitudes towards using GMOs in environmental protection is largely neutral, with 31% selecting “I wish to learn more about current GM technology before deciding”. This indicated a strong need for quality education on both the advantages and downsides of GM technology, so as to help the public make informed decisions. People also wish to access more information on safety protocols in the development of a project.
This survey prompted us to focus on the education in biosafety, especially linking it to each individual project and demonstrating how potential risks (influence on environment, organism leaks, etc.) could be addressed in advance.
Freshwater Bioremediation Alliance
Water environment and biological solutions have always been a big part of iGEM projects each year. Nanjing_NFLS and XJTLU-CHINA believed that by assembling more teams in this area, we would be able to generate rigorous impact both in public education and in contributing to the iGEM environment community. Therefore, we co-initiated the Freshwater Bioremediation Alliance.
Nanjing_NFLS wrote the first promotion article and went on point-to-point invitations with other teams. We successfully organized 5 other teams, including: CHINA-FAFU, UM_Macau, GXU-China, Nanjing-China, NPU-CHINA. We then hosted the 1st meetup for each team to introduce their projects and explore further opportunities.
Biosafety Panel
XJTLU-CHINA hosted the biosafety panel discussion among Freshwater Bioremediation Alliance member teams. Each team presented the safety issues they encountered during experiments or human practices, and shared their solutions to the problems. We learned a lot about the general science of bioremediation as well. In the Q & A sessions, teams helped each other troubleshoot or identify potential problems, and we received valuable advice from GXU-China and Nanjing-China.
Biosafety Handbook
After the panel, XJTLU-CHINA collected the information presented by all teams, and documented them in a handbook. This organized effort clarified the main goals in biosafety for iGEM teams, and demonstrated our different approaches. We believe this will be a great material both for the public and for future environment teams!
Modeling Mentorship & Feedback
During the discussions at the first meetup, we were really amazed by how professional the modeling group of XJTLU-CHINA is. We struggled with modeling because of lack of resources and prior knowledge, so XJTLU-CHINA’s mentorship meant a lot to us. Without their kindly provided resources and generous assistance, we would not be able to construct our model.
XJTLU-CHINA first recommended some books about modeling to us, including “Introduction to Synthetic Biology: About Modeling, Computing and Circuit Design” and “Fundamentals of Systems Biology: From Synthetic Circuits to Whole-cell Models”. They then generously sent us videos of their own modeling workshops that covered introductory material like Law of Mass Action, Michaelis-Menten Equation, and Hill Equation. The lectures were thorough and detailed; they efficiently supplied us with the basic knowledge and greatly helped our novice modeling team construct the foundation of our model.
Moreover, we provided feedback on the lectures on how they could be improved to adapt to beginners. We suggested starting each section with the basis behind each equation, such as the background in high school biology and chemistry, or providing a list of “prerequisite” topics that may be useful in understanding this section. We also noted that analogies or connections with prior knowledge would be very helpful in directing the listener to a comfortable and familiar mindset. We hope our feedback would help XJTLU-CHINA further use their materials for education in future seasons!
We were grateful to have the modeling group from XJTLU-CHINA help us troubleshoot in an online Q & A session, and point out directions for further work. When building our model, one of the parameters was different from the values presented in previous literature, and we could not find the reason to account for it. After explaining the situation to XJTLU-CHINA, they were able to identify a difference in the experiment settings and the environment surrounding the enzyme. They also gave us suggestions on how to fully address the assumptions behind each model, and how to reasonably interpret the model’s results. XJTLU-CHINA’s input further validified our model and its compatibility with our experiment conditions.
Market Plan
In the later stage, Nanjing_NFLS and XJTLU-CHINA noted the similarity in the implementation scenarios of our projects. This prompted us to research the market together to provide background for our market plans. We both learned more about current freshwater bioremediation implementations through our co-interview with Prof. Shen Xia from Nanjing Hydraulics Research Institute. Prof. Shen gave us several examples of microbe bioremediation, including the use of bio-membranes and multiple-step degradation, helping us evaluate our product’s position in the market.
After background research, both teams wrote a market plan for our products. We proofread each other’s proposal and exchanged ideas to make it more professional and objective. Thanks to the cooperation, we were able to analyze future improvements and extend our project to beyond a season of iGEM!