Collaborations

China iGEM Online Meetup

In the hot summer of 2022, Northern Hemisphere, our NEFU_China team was invited by another team from Guangxi University to participate in an online conference: China iGEM Online Meetup, which more than 20 iGEM teams attended. Affected by the epidemic, this supposedly lively meeting has been changed from offline to online. But we still have great expectations for the brainstorming process of exchanging views and expanding minds.

This was NEFU_China’s first time to introduce its own project to other iGEM teams, and it is also the first time that YeastFab has been used for terpene synthesis. Wenhao Lin, the representative of NEFU_China, gave a comprehensive introduction to our project from the aspects of background, description, hardware, outlook and so on. Especially for design part, we explained the assembly methods at different levels in detail and answered the questions raised by other IGEM teams. In this meeting, we met our partnership: SZPT-CHINA. Then we carried out a series of exchanges and discussions, which was of great help to the promotion of the project.

Figure 1.Two teams were discussing enthusiastically in the online meeting

INTO CHINA INTO iGEM (ICII)

During the 2022 summer vacation, we participated in ICII (INTO CHINA INTO iGEM). In the event, we rely on the live broadcast platform to publicize our project and popularize science for the society. During the live broadcast, many people who are interested in synthetic biology actively interacted with us and asked some valuable questions, such as: whether the product astaxanthin we were going to synthesize was left-handed or right-handed. These questions are of great help to us to re-evaluate the value of the product. After the beginning of this term, we shot and edited videos combining the scenery and culture of the school (Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, China) as material for science popularization and publicity.

Figure 2.Wenhao Lin's project presentation on the live streaming platform

Enterprise communication

In order to better demonstrate the high light of our NEFU_China team project, that is, the assembly method of YeastFab, we interviewed Yunnan Aierfa Biotechnology Co., Ltd., the top company in the synthesis of terpenoids (astaxanthin) in China. We had an online discussion with Mr. Li Linpin, the deputy general manager of the company. Manager Li gave a detailed introduction to the basic situation of the company and the important role of terpenoids in human production and life.The hallmark we used to demonstrate efficient synthesis methods is the yield of terpenoids. Lin Wenhao, as a representative of NEFU_China, discussed with Li Linpin, a manager who is also engaged in terpenoid synthesis. Lin Wenhao introduced to manager Li the assembly principle of different levels of YeastFab, the reasons for the efficient synthesis of terpenoids, and the prospect of using YeastFab in the future. Taking astaxanthin, a famous antioxidant, as an example, Manager Li introduced its commercial value in China, the process of industrial production, and the output value of astaxanthin synthesized by Erfa Company. Finally, combined with the actual situation and market, Manager Li gave us some industrial and commercial suggestions for the synthesis of terpenoids by YeastFab, such as: biosynthesis has advantages in cost and environmental protection compared with chemical synthesis, but whether it has advantages in large-scale production.

For our project, Manager Li suggested that lycopene should be selected for terpenoids synthesized by Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Because lycopene synthesis has been achieved in yeast, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a non-oil yeast with weak fat metabolism and limited ability to synthesize fat-soluble compounds.

This leads us to think more deeply. With the advice of professionals, we NEFU_China has a deeper reflection on the actual market value and market utilization of the project (using YeastFab to synthesize terpenoids). NEFU_China has a comprehensive understanding of the market situation of terpenes and moves the knowledge from the laboratory into the actual production life.

Figure 3.NEFU_China team communicated with Manager Li of Yunnan Alphy Biotech Co., Ltd

Conference of China iGEMer Community（CCiC）

During the summer vacation, our team participated in the biggest conference on iGEM competition in China：CCiC. This conference was held on 18^th to ^28th in August. Affected by the epidemic, we took the form of online participation. Although without meeting, we could not hinder the enthusiasm of young enthusiasts of synthetic biology. Our team prepared carefully reported in English, and participated in the project report and poster display. The purpose of this meeting is to encourage us to think about and explore the role of synthetic biology in scientific research and industry in different fields, so that synthetic biology has the power and opportunity to participate in life and change life.

In the process of project reporting, the Judge praised the idea of our project and the application of machine learning. At the same time, for our project, the Judge proposed: Use the homologous recombination to solve the problem of gene loss; YeastFab technology can be extended to Yarrowia lipolytica. Fat metabolism of Y.lipolytica can provide more acetyl-CoA original, thus synthesizing more abundant terpenoids, such as astaxanthin, β-carotene and so on.

In the special lecture, we learned about the market value of synthetic biology and molecular biology, as well as the progress of HP implementation and the way to evaluate the quality. By participating in the activities of "You draw, I guess" and "Knowledge contest", more synthetic biology enthusiasts are involved, and many non-biological professionals are attracted, which plays an important role in the popularization of synthetic biology science.

Figure 4.Networking event at CCiC

Joint science popularization

At the invitation of SZPT-CHINA team, we participated in the popular science lecture on synthetic biology jointly organized by iGEM teams from Zhuhai Campus of Beijing normal University, Northwestern University, Hubei University of Technology, Shenzhen Vocational and Technical College and Northeast Forestry University.

We recognize that synthetic biology should not be active only in a small number of people, so this lecture is mainly aimed at more than 300 non-biological college students. On behalf of Zhendi Wu, we NEFU_China gave a lecture entitled "synthetic biology is not a distant science", which aims to improve people's understanding of synthetic Biology.

He gave a speech with "synthetic biology is closely related to our lives". He popularized the important role of synthetic biology in daily life from the aspects of food synthetic, microbial pharmaceuticals, cell therapy and agricultural planting. He also took the project of NEFU_China as an example to introduce the efficient advantages and future potential of using the assembly technology of YeastFab, and refuted the "superior" argument of synthetic biology. This speech attracted a lot of students who are interested in synthetic biology but hesitant, and received affirmation and applause from other iGEM teams. For the purpose of science popularization, this activity shortens the relationship between synthetic biology and people, broadens the audience of synthetic biology, and shows everyone the broad prospect and hope of synthetic biology with our NEFU_China team as a microcosm.

Figure 5.Lecture on synthetic biology

Joint education

Our team has always focused the focus of popular science on children. Together with other iGEM teams, we have previously held a forum for the popularization of synthetic biology for non-professional adults. Considering that plasticity and curiosity in childhood are the strongest, we gladly accepted the invitation of the FAFU team and cooperate with other iGEM teams drawing comic book. We use comics to attract children's curiosity and cultivate children's interests in synthetic biology in a way that combines teaching with fun.

A total of six iGEM teams participated in the drawing of the comic book, forming a complete series. We NEFU_China team continues the story told by FAFU, transforming the theme from peptides to enzymes, focusing on the various properties of enzymes. By personifying the enzyme and having a dialogue with the protagonists, the children are introduced to basic information about their nature and characteristics (such as protein and RNA in nature), as well as the appropriate proportion of enzymes needed.

After introducing the properties of the enzyme, we handed the storytelling baton to the OUC-China team. They will follow our ideas and introduce the relevant contents of fermentation.

Using the popular form of comics is one of the most effective ways to promote synthetic biology to the public. This is not only because comics can speak out synthetic biology easily: enable public to understand synthetic biology；but also because the main audience of comics is children, which allows children to learn in entertainment and develop an interest in exploring science from an early age.

Figure 6.Discussion on comics content and planning

Patent application

Our team focuses on innovation. In the course of the project, we plan to apply for patent protection of the hardware and promote our products in this form. For this purpose, we invited Mr. Haiying Li, a research librarian and director of the intellectual property information service and research center of the intellectual property workshop of Northeast Forestry University.

We introduce the design of the hardware part (liquid transfer workstation), and put forward the application for patent. Teacher Haiying Li focused on the patent type, patent search, patent application process, patent application documents and application document writing, and established contact with our team. He will follow up on the progress of our event for a long time and provide services on intellectual property related issues at any time.

Figure 7.Two teams were discussing enthusiastically in the online meeting